Big Screen Names

Since graduating from Oberlin last December, Emma LaChance has quickly risen through the ranks at Lionsgate TV in Los Angeles, from an intern to an office floater—a kind of in-office temp that fills in where vacancies occur—to first assistant to Sandra Stern, chief operating officer/head of business affairs at Lionsgate TV. LaChance’s responsibilities include booking flights, writing materials for meetings, and supervising Stern’s second assistant.

Lionsgate is the production company behind such films as American Psycho and Hunger Games, while the TV branch, where LaChance works, has recently put out a string of successful shows, including Mad Men, Nashville, and Orange is the New Black.

An anthropology major, LaChance says that Oberlin’s culture helped her develop the skills necessary to succeed in the entertainment industry. “People want to see that you want to learn from them, and that you can pick things up fast,” she says. “Oberlin students, I think, are very hard working and very dedicated and passionate and motivated and you need all of those things to make it here.”

LaChance says that, even after several months of rigorous work, the thrill of working for such a successful entertainment company hasn’t gone away. After missing the employees-only screening, LaChance went to see the recent Lionsgate film Now You See Me in theaters. ““It was awesome to see the Lionsgate logo on the big screen and go ‘I work there,’” she says.