Louissa Brandt '25

Louissa Brandt spent part of her summer studying and exploring in the city she had always thought of as dreamland.

For four weeks, the broadcast communications major was in Los Angeles, the heart of the film and entertainment industry.

“It was so nice to just be there on the right path to fulfill my dreams, going out to explore and experience what LA had to offer,” she said.

Brandt’s experience in LA was part of Pitt’s Study Away program, similar to the university’s Study Abroad Program but with placements only in the United States. 

The program gave her the chance to tour many of the industry’s most prominent locations, including Warner Brothers Studios, Lionsgate and the Fox Lot, and learn about the business and finance side of the film industry. 

She also got to rub elbows – and learn from – industry professionals.

“We got to meet with industry stars who have been in the business for decades,” she said, including Lauren Schuler Donner, the producer for all of the X-Men and Deadpool films; Jon Hill, a Pitt alumnus who is an Emmy-award winning producer and director; and Nate Cornett, another Pitt graduate who is a cinematographer and worked at SNL.

Brandt said they gave her good – but unexpected – career advice.

“Having them tell me to my face not to come to Hollywood right now was not what I wanted to hear, but it was also greatly appreciated.”

Brandt said Hollywood has not recovered yet from last year’s strikes by the Writers Guild of America and the Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, and work is hard to come by, even for those who are already established.

“It was nice to hear that I should find work in the industry somewhere else to start, specifically Pittsburgh.”