Film Production & Liberal Arts and Humanities
I knew I wanted to go to college in l in Los Angeles since I was a kid, because it is the heart of the film Industry.
At the age of 11 I was cast in a TV show at my hometown in Russia. We filmed during the summer, and it impacted me in a big positive way, so I decided that this is what I wanted to Study at College. After completing a year of Theater Arts studies at a private Theatric Arts School, I wanted to expand to musical studies. I enrolled in The Music Academy at my hometown, where I honed my singing skills, learned to play the guitar, and collaborated with other musicians to compose music. I started to combine my passions for film and music, in creating music videos, and my colleagues rallied around me to help produce these music videos. The videos were submitted to The Los Angeles Film Awards competition which was hosted in LA, and I ended up being selected as a semifinalist, winning second place. Once I was back home in Russia, I started researching good schools in Los Angeles, and that is how I found Santa Monica College. I moved to LA and enrolled as an Academic Student at SMC with double majors in Film Production and Liberal Arts & Humanities. My studies at SMC were very enlightening, our professors provided us with real world experience in the industry, even introducing me to a renowned producer who was one of the producers working with Christopher Nolan on the film “Tenet”. This same producer later hired me as an assistant director for a Million Dollar Budget Feature Film.
At SMC I was offered a position as a Peer Mentor at the International Education Center. As a student worker I had the opportunity to communicate with students in person to assist them with all their questions. Because I was an international student, I understood their concerns firsthand and was able to provide the full support they needed. International students have a diverse range of elements that need to be in status for Visa compliance requirements, this can sometimes be a bit overwhelming. It was very rewarding for me to assist students; build relationships with them and see how they flourished and grew while studying at SMC. At IEC, I also collaborated with the Social Media Team, Producing engaging and creative content for all their social media platforms. Additionally, I assisted with event production and hosting for the Department.
Once I had completed my 2 associates degrees, I was offered a Position as an Interpreter and Translator at Gazprom, the premier multinational energy corporation in Russia. I also continue to work on my music and film projects which are my passion. You can see more of my life in LA as an SMC student and current adventures at @alieva.liana on Instagram.