On December 3rd, BBN received a visit from Karen Oliver, once a figure in the film industry who has since transitioned to working on the innovation of homeopathic medicine.
Oliver attended Cal State Fullerton, where she earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Communication/Radio/TV/Film and went on to get her masters after that. While she was attending Cal State Fullerton, Oliver started working at NBC on a popular television show in the 1960s- 1980s known as Fight Back! With David Horowitz.
From there, she went to work at Universal Studios for 10 years, where she started off as a front office purchasing clerk. At this point, Oliver gave us the advice of taking any position you’re offered at first, no matter how big or small, in the industry you’re interested in since it’s important for us to be able to make that first step into the front door. She eventually ascended the ranks and began working in the inventory and legal area of Universal Studios, where she oversaw the entirety of the materials used to construct a set (nails and wood), as well as stationary for the studio. However, Oliver was also granted the opportunity to work on various other projects, including films.
Oliver then digressed and addressed the history of the studio, though the importance of her words did not waver, for she explained how important it was to understand the history of a studio should any of us decide to work on one. “…Regardless of where it’s at right now because you need to understand where it came from because then you’ll understand the company culture.”
Through working at Universal Studios, Oliver was able to meet and converse with Steven Spielberg, whom she handed her resume to after she had enough of the continuous prospect that the employees at the studio would be let go once Universal Studio was sold. To her fear though, Spielberg rolled his eyes when receiving the resume, but this did not halt her aspirations. Instead, she ended up being hired at Dreamworks Animations, working under Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg. During her time at Dreamworks, Oliver designed products for the films she worked on, including Shrek and Kung Fu Panda and worked on various live-action movies as well, which she described as “more of Spielberg’s babies then Katzenberg’s.” After that, she moved on to work for the popular television show, Power Rangers.
Oliver went on to open the discussion up to the class, giving us the chance to ask questions while giving important advice of which we might come to use in the future. For example, Oliver stated that she wasn’t related with anybody in the industry when she entered it, in which she emphasized the idea of being open to learn new things and going out of one’s way to achieve such skills. She also encouraged us to embrace our uniqueness, forit may give ways to new ideas that other people in the industry may not have thought of, which can lead to an equal standing among those we look up to. Overall, we should be willing to fight for our ideas and present our input even if they aren’t always followed through with.
A big thanks to Karen Oliver for coming out and speaking with us! We, the students in BBN, appreciate the time she took out for us and the meaningful advice she presented.
