Field Work Term Spotlight: Shloka Shah
Shloka Shah '25 studies Drama, with a focus on acting and directing, at Bennington. During the winter, Shah completed a Field Work Term experience as a Creative Development Intern at Roy Kapur Films in Mumbai, India.
At Bennington, students spend six weeks every year taking their skills and knowledge out of the classroom and applying them in the world of work. They use this annual work-learning opportunity—known as Field Work Term—to deepen their studies, challenge and test new ideas, and hone their direction for the future.
How did your Field Work Term relate to (or diverge from!) your studies at Bennington?
My last Field Work Term was completely related to my Plan, as all my internships/fellowships have been in the past. I worked as a Creative Development Intern at Roy Kapur Films, a big production house in Mumbai.
What did a typical day at your Field Work Term site look like?
My usual Fridays would involve reaching work at 10:00 AM. I would work on a coverage of a new film script submission I read the previous day. Script coverage mostly refers to breaking down key components of the plot–for example, the theme, setting, time, and summary–and my verdict on it.
I would then attend meetings with writers and directors who would usually pitch new film ideas to our creative team. Each week, I attended a group meeting with all different departments at the production house.
For lunch, I'd go to the cafeteria with my intern friends. Then I'd type up the minutes of the meetings and send them to my supervisors, and work on three personal film pitches for Monday to pitch to my supervisors.
I was interning while their movie was in the process of releasing. Therefore, my day would end by attending either an interview with actors or a publicity event for their movie. Depending on the event, my day would end either at 6:30 or 8:00 PM.
What surprised or challenged you the most about your position?
Even though I was an intern, I got a lot of exposure to the film industry in a short period. I am grateful to have been involved in the thick of the Indian film industry. I was part of a team that filtered and read a lot of scripts, and our supervisors highly depended on our approval of those scripts. That amount of responsibility surprised me.
The theatre world is very different than the film world. I had previously been a creative development intern at Harlem Stage, and the work was very different from what it is as a creative development intern for film. Instead of writing grants, I analyzed scripts and wrote coverages on them. My last internship was the most busy and educational one. I improved a lot in my writing and communication skills, and that is very important for me if I want to act. I met a lot of important people from the industry and made strong connections.
What do you hope to do in the future—for your next Field Work Term and beyond Bennington?
I graduate this May, and I hope to work in New York for a theater or film company. I just want to create art and be involved in the industry of telling stories!