Marissa Muchnok, Pitt in LA: The American Film Industry Summer 2023
During Pitt in LA, the 16 chosen students were not responsible for finding our own places, as that was coordinated for us. We were all given a month-long lease to sign for June to stay in an incredibly nice apartment complex in the Burbank area, which is just north of the heart of Los Angeles. The apartment was called The Talaria, and it had numerous amenities including a pool, a hot tub, an arcade, a grilling patio with a backyard, conference rooms, a gym with a sauna, and even a salon! There was also a movie theatre inside of the apartment, which is where most of our classes would take place, but it was also available to rent out for private use as well during free time.
The 16 students were split between four apartment units, each with two bedrooms, with two beds per room. We also had a living room, kitchen, two bathrooms, in-house laundry, and a balcony for every apartment. One of the challenges I faced in this new place was having to share a bedroom with someone who I did not know, even though they were a Pitt student. I had never had to share a room before, even during my freshman year of college I had a single dorm, so this was a very new situation for me to navigate. But luckily, we ended up getting along very well and were able to respect each other’s space. There was also plenty of room in the apartment, so there was always somewhere to go if you needed some alone time.
It was definitely scary at first to come into this program not knowing anyone, but it really brought us all closer together, and I ended up making some great friends and connections! Another major challenge I dealt with while I was here was not having a car. Burbank is a little out of the way, and if there is one thing I learned about Los Angeles in general it is that it is not a very walkable city. Having a car is practically a necessity out there, so I had no choice but to Uber to most places that I went, which of course was pretty expensive. Luckily we were given some Uber credits as part of the program, which were really helpful! Despite these minor obstacles, I thoroughly enjoyed living here, and I loved the apartment and all of its amenities.
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