Virginia Beach Woman To Intern At The Jim Henson Company

Tanya Boucicaut, of Virginia Beach, VA, has been selected for the prestigious Television Academy Foundation Internship program. She is one of just 50 students chosen by Television Academy members from across the country for the 2021 program.

Boucicaut is currently a Writing and Rhetoric PhD student at George Mason University in Fairfax, VA. She will be interning remotely this summer in the children’s programming department at The Jim Henson Company in Hollywood, CA. Boucicaut attended Landstown High School in Virginia Beach, VA.

“This opportunity feels amazing, like the best present ever and a dream come true,” said Boucicaut. “I am excited to be a sponge and learn more about the industry to hopefully work with Television Academy members in the future.”

“I am inspired and in awe of millennials such as Issa Rae, Donald Glover and Justin Simien,” said Boucicaut. “They not only represent my generation authentically, but their work speaks to a range of experiences that I resonate with as a Black woman. They present stories that are not caricatures or stereotypes.”

“I have worked in some capacity with youth since I was in middle school,” said Boucicaut. “I am a second-generation Haitian American woman on my paternal side. I believe a part of my purpose is to help and shape stories that young people see and tell for themselves. This internship will allow me to continue to do that work.”

Typically, the Television Academy Foundation’s annual Internship Program provides 50 paid internships, at top Hollywood studios and production companies, to college students nationwide. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Television Academy Foundation has had to re-imagine its internship program this year offering the 50 students selected from across the country the chance to either intern remotely or enroll as a Summer Fellow.

The Internship Program also includes virtual professional development panel discussions with leaders in the television industry and customized seminars covering personal brand building and navigating the job market ahead. Interns also become life-long members of the Foundation’s alumni family giving them access to events and networking opportunities as they build their careers in the industry.