Meet our 2019 Fall Interns Amanda Rivera and Autumn Gonzalez

Autumn Gonzalez: I am a junior at The City College of New York where I am majoring in Film and Video Production with a minor in Journalism. A city kid at heart, I am from Brooklyn, New York. My drive to study film derives from my love of storytelling, and I love storytelling because of its power to evoke emotion. I want to evoke emotion from the many with my work, and if I can use that to inspire people to be better and do better, then I am doing my job right. After a recent volunteer trip to Puerto Rico this past summer, where I spent two weeks with the most amazing individuals working to help rebuild in the area, I couldn’t wait to keep the good streak going. Shine Global allows me to do just that by putting my efforts towards helping the underserved youth of the world. Additional fun facts: I can juggle, play alto saxophone, and do some card magic!

Amanda Rivera is a senior at CUNY Queens College majoring in Media Studies and minoring in Film Studies. Born in Long Island, raised by her Salvadoran mother, she learned firsthand accounts of trauma endured during the Salvadoran Civil War. These stories of resiliency and others have shaped her desire to advocate for social change through film. Amanda was compelled to join Shine because Shine highlights the strength of children in times of adversity and how these stories can inspire impactful change amongst educators, communities, and governments. Essentially this is what makes Shine Global a unique place to work and she is grateful for the opportunity. Amanda is currently co-producing a Salvadoran coming of age film and aspires to create a non-profit arts center in the US and El Salvador.

Learn more about internship positions as Shine Global here: https://shineglobal.org/internships/