Chad Riley is a Los Angeles-based playwright/screenwriter and comic book creator who has just recently returned from New York City. Over the past several years, Chad has worked in the film and television industry, helping to produce small indie films while working full time at Sony Pictures.
While at Sony, Chad worked in both features and television, helping to develop longform and mini-series programming for the studio. With a new desire to focus more on theater, Chad made the move to New York City in 2011 with the goal being to enhance his writing abilities and reinvigorate his creativity. He has now returned to LA to continue pursuing his career goals of writing and producing in film and television.
Once upon a time, Sam Raimi set all kinds of box office records and geek hearts atwitter with the first big screen adaption of our favorite webslinger with 2002's Spider-Man. It was both a critical and financial success. He then followed up that strong first entry with 2004's Spider-Man 2, which equally lit up the...
You may have already heard the news, but ICYMI, HBO has just green-lit J.J. Abrams' Westworld series. The skein will be a reboot of Michael Crichton's cult classic from 1973 about robots gone bad in an amusement park. The network announced the series launch via Twitter, with a pretty creepy Vine confirming the 2015 date....
BioWare has dropped the final trailer for the third installment of their acclaimed dark fantasy series, which was (finally) released today in North America, and November 20 in Europe. Check it out: The game so far is getting stellar reviews, only serving to add to the hype machine.
What a day for movies and geeks! On the day when Disney announced the title of the next Star Wars movie, Warner Bros. has released the latest and greatest trailer for Peter Jackson's THE HOBBIT: THE BATTLE OF THE FIVE ARMIES. And the word epic immediately springs to mind.
It's as if millions of geek voices cried out in terror, and were suddenly silenced. That would be the sound of the internet exploding right about now. The seventh installment of our beloved Star Wars saga has officially wrapped shooting, and with it came the announcement of its subtitle: THE FORCE AWAKENS.
In case you've been sleeping under a rock, Christopher Nolan's sci-fi epic INTERSTELLAR opens this week around the country. Early reviews have been somewhat mixed, but the word from Nolan's contemporaries is that the movie is a spectacle in more ways than one. Here's a sample: And then there's this gem which comes...
By Chelsea Evara September 9, 2014 WASHINGTON, DC - Hey, have you guys heard? Not about the bird (though it continues to be the word, haha) but about the news that could affect all animals. Not just of the avian variety. I'm talking about the People's Climate March happening in New York City at the end of the month!
By Chelsea Evara August 19, 2014 Washington, DC - The world is such a big beautiful place! And we're SOOO lucky to live in a city that attracts its best and brightest! Did you know that there's a record number of international students studying in the US right now?
By Truman Wosnak August 26, 2014 WASHINGTON, DC - I started thinking about odd jobs that pay well as an alternative to office work, which I find nerve wracking. It always stresses me out. So I said to myself "Well, Truman you don't have to work in an office.
By Billy J. Clanton August 12, 2014 Washington DC - While recent grads are busy entering the work force and getting after it, some college students are getting ready for the fall. It's really just getting after it in a different way.
By Woody Wilson July 29, 2014 WASHINGTON, DC - The San Diego Comic-Con just wrapped up. It's an annual event that draws hundreds of thousands of geeks, fans and entertainment executives to the San Diego Convention Center to celebrate and promote pretty much anything and everything in comics and pop culture.
One thing that separates the District from many other major American cities (aside from being the Nation's Capital, of course) is the vitality of its invigorating art scene. From awe inspiring art galleries and museums, to abundant offerings of the performing arts, DC has it all, and then some.
By Hillary Kawahara July 21, 2014 WASHINGTON, DC - I can't remember the last time I was on Facebook for anything other than business. Whenever I share something from one of my 10 blogs (which you should all totally be following!) it automatically goes to Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Tumblr.
By Ed Woodward July 14, 2014 WASHINGTON, DC - That's what I want to know. And I'm going to get to the bottom of it. In what could be bigger than the IRS scandal or even Whitewatergate, Congress is editing Wikipedia pages! (Editor's note: Watergate and Whitewater are two different scandals).
WASHINGTON, DC - Do you remember that one scene from The Matrix movie when Agent Smith has Morpheus hostage and he's trying to get information out of him? Remember how Smith tells him that he's recently had a revelation about humans? How they all follow the exact same pattern as a virus?
It's my favorite time of year yet again: that special day when we all come together as Americans and celebrate our country's founding by combining extreme patriotism with heavy drinking and incendiary devices. (Don't do that!!)
By Chelsea Evara June 24, 2014 WASHINGTON, DC - One day, while browsing Elle Magazine (oh, their manicure tips are miraculous!!!) I saw a sight to behold: the 10 Most Powerful Women in DC. Of course, I immediately thought about my Editor-In-Chief, Martha Warrington. She is totally going to be on a list like this someday.
Savvy job seekers have jumped on the app wagon to get a digital edge in our digital world. Here are our reporter's fave Mobile apps let you search for positions 24/7, everywhere you are. We've asked three of our resident interns here at The WISHington Post to give their opinions on which ones serve their lifestyles the best.
Last week we talked about the 5 BEST places to work in DC, so it was only natural for us to take a look at the other side of the coin this week. According to Glassdoor.com, which rates companies based on employee reviews, among other factors, these are the 5 WORST places to work, not just in DC, but anywhere.
Wether you are in communications or technology, companies below offer a world of opportunity. Which one is your dream come true? With 67 offices and over 4,800 employees, the company provides its services to more than 15 industries through about 40 practice and expertise areas (including digital, research insight, financial communications and investor relations, corporate affairs, consumer marketing, litigation and public affairs).
Here you are, a recent college graduate ready to begin your career path and eager to make a difference. That's what this moment is all about, and that's what the last four years have been all about. And now you're ready to get into politics. Or are you?
Next Monday is Memorial Day, a time of barbecuing, sharing a beer, seeing movies and generally celebrating the fact that it's all possible because of those that gave the ultimate sacrifice in service to our country. It's also recognized as the official start of three-months-of-bliss-that-we-wish-would-last-forever-but-instead-live-someplace-cold. Otherwise known as "summer".
According to internships.com, companies are hiring more interns today than they ever have before. In fact, 56% are planning to hire more interns this year, while 62% are planning to implement a more structured program. That's up from 48% a year ago. You are in demand, big time.
The times ahead are changing. As summer internships begin, it may mark the beginning of the end of the unpaid internship. Thanks to a large number of lawsuits, students and employers alike have been forced to define what exactly an internship is for all time, who it benefits, what the expectations are, and what should and shouldn't be offered to make the internship legal.
The Smithsonian is already known for being seriously amazing, as their website attests (as well as tens of millions of visitors every year), but there's an actual reason for that sentiment other than the sheer spectacle of what you can see there. The Smithsonian also happens to be one of the best places to volunteer.
Of course, we'd be remiss if we didn't start with this one. This is WISH after all. Even though internships are under all kinds of scrutiny today for basically having free labor, they remain one of the best ways you can spend your summer. The numbers bear that out.
Your years living with someone has (hopefully) taught you some good habits and also what you like and dislike. Take this with you as you venture out into the real world and get your first apartment. Chances are, you might have to have a roommate when you are starting out.
It may have been fun when you first got to college, but now those awkward roommate moments (you know the ones) and general lack of personal space are getting to you. Luckily, we have some tips on how to land your first pad after graduation. Take a peak and start planning.
Washington, DC consistently ranks near the top of U.S. cities for job growth and creation, and it doesn't show any signs of slowing down. A number of recent studies have shown that the metro area will add more than 1 million jobs over the next two decades. One...million!
Once upon a time, we gave some basic tips on how to start building your own personal network. Everything from who could be a potential contact, to what to say and where to go, was covered. However, sometimes knowing what NOT to do can be just as - if not more - effective in teaching you the ropes.
It's that time of year again. The time when both basketball and non-basketball fans alike ready their brackets for the next two weeks of sheer madness, otherwise known as the Men's Basketball NCAA Tournament.
Here's a scary thought: the moment you graduate you are a freshman again, a freshman in the school of life. Your status clock resets to zero and it can be hard to find your own way with no academic adviser or a professor to help you out when things get tough.
You've seen the news reports. Read about the protests, perhaps even seen them or been to one. The crisis in Ukraine, a country that is important not only to Russia (who has cultural and ethnic ties to Crimea) but to the rest of Europe, the United States, and the global economy as a whole.
Last year, the Pew Internet and American Life Project conducted an exhaustive study about the effects of social media on the political landscape. The full results can be viewed by heading over to their website at pewinternet.org. The results were quite eye-opening, and it showed just how much the Digital Age has changed and influenced political engagement.
It's been said before and it will be said again...and again...and again. And then it will be said one more time: Clean up your social media channels! Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. They are all being checked by potential employers.
There have been numerous topics on here and elsewhere discussing ways to make yourself look good to potential employers and how you can make a good first impression. But the one thing in all of this that has probably been overlooked just happens to be the most important: how you see yourself.
Last week, we talked briefly about how the President wants to shake up the higher education system by holding them accountable for both performance and how they help to reign in soaring tuition costs.
Michael Waldman, president of the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University summed up the State of the Union address like this: "A State of the Union speech, whether something goes in the speech or not, is not just about what sounds good to the audience, but political choices like, 'If we do that, it might make it harder to pass what we want."
Let's start this off with a fun fact. The great hero of the Trojan War, Odysseus, had a trusted guardian to watch over his son Telemachus while he was away fighting the war. That guardian's name was Mentor. (Funner fact: Mentor was often Athena in disguise who was the goddess of wisdom....foreshadowing.)
There will undoubtedly come a time in your career when you feel it's time to move on. It can be a difficult decision to make. Even if you dislike your job and pretty much everything about it, resigning can still be difficult to pull off tactfully, especially if you are about to be fired.
As you go through your (hopefully realistic) resolutions and plan out how you're going to accomplish your goals this year, there are some great networking opportunities coming up that you should definitely take advantage of. It will not only help you start things off on the right foot, but help keep those networking skills up to snuff, which should always be an ongoing goal.
Well, it's that time of year again. A new year, in fact. A time to look forward and plan, to not only set new goals but a way to meet them. But the trick is to set realistic goals, and to not set yourself up for disappointment.
There are two things about the holidays that make the District a wonderful place to be. First, congress is out of town (that's probably the best thing). And second, few places in America celebrate Christmas the way the nation's capital does.
It's been a grueling congressional session. With only about a week left before the 113th Congress (mercifully) comes to a close, let's pause and take a look at what this congress has left to do before closing out the year.
It's that time of year again. The holidays are upon us and the semester is ending, which means it can be a pretty crazy busy time of year for students. Not only are you getting ready to go home, and doing some holiday shopping, but you're cramming for finals.
It's that time of year again. The holidays are upon us and the semester is ending, which means it can be a pretty crazy busy time of year for students. Not only are you getting ready to go home, and doing some holiday shopping, but you're cramming for finals.
Here's a pop quiz just to get you ready for Finals. When did the first internships start? Don't stop reading this to Google the answer. We'll give you a hint: William the Conqueror sat on the throne in England. Or at least, he could have.
If you are spending Thanksgiving in the District this year, then you're lucky. There are a lot of wonderful things to do in the nation's capital as we kick off the holiday season. So, sit back and take a gander through the below list to get some ideas of some fun and cool things to do during the Thanksgiving weekend.
Recruiters are inundated with resumes, emails, recommendations, phone calls and of course, the task of conducting job interviews every single day. It gets to the point where many employers dread giving interviews because they not only have to do so many of them (familiarity breeds contempt), but also because the majority of answers given by applicants are almost always the same.
One of the key takeaways in last week's election results, (other then Chris Christie's weight and the presidency) was the minimum wage increase in New Jersey. The state voted to raise its hourly minimum wage from $7.25 to $8.25.
It might sound strange, but something major and historic took place on October 1st, and it wasn't just the government shutdown. It was actually the roll out of the nation's first health care law, the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare) designed to make sure every American has health insurance (whether or not it actually does that is an entirely different debate).
With the government shutdown, the threat of default and the general partisan mood in Washington, the District has been pretty scary over the last month or so. But Halloween brings a whole different flavor of scary. And it's the fun kind.
The latest government shutdown and debt ceiling drama really highlighted the current dysfunction in American politics. One party is defined by its ideology while the other is united against it. Swap the party names every few decades or so and the latter still applies. But this might actually be a blessing in disguise.
It's been all over the news lately. The debt ceiling. CNN even has a countdown clock till we hit it, like some dramatic movie, ticking down the time till the asteroid hits the economy. The debt ceiling. Something hovering over us all like some sort of magical barrier desperately saving us from ourselves.
If you live in Washington D.C. and have been affected by the government shutdown (and who in the District hasn't) now would actually be a great time to take advantage of your newfound time off.
Welcome to the 2013 Government Shutdown Extravaganza! Because Democrats and Republicans couldn't agree on how the U.S. should pay its bills, the federal government is in lockdown as of today. And this could be a real bad time since the economy is finally showing signs of life. Why?
Though we've talked about unpaid internships before, it was done in a much broader sense. But the truth is nowhere is this debate more relevant than in government - specifically congress - where barely a third of US Senators pay their interns.
So, you've landed an impressive new internship in congress, moved into a decent pad, and figured out the Metro. Now's there's only one (albeit monumentally important) thing left to do: keep from becoming an example of what not to do.
Washington, D.C. is changing-from top to bottom. So much so, that it is now even challenging Los Angeles and Chicago for the prestigious title of Second City, as it is becoming more recognized as an epicenter of political and cultural life.
As you head back to school this fall, there's something you should try to keep in mind. You spent the summer in Washington, D.C. working as an intern, giving you a variety of unique perspectives with the people that help shape public policy. And that is something that's specific to YOU.
So you've just completed your summer internship and now have eyes on getting a job. And you might have heard that a good way to do that is by getting a letter of recommendation from your current boss. However, there might be one thing you need to consider.
There is one simple fact of college life that has been true since colleges existed. Students want cheap food, and they want to know where to find it. That's especially true in a town like DC, where the burgeoning restaurant scene might actually be enough to prevent a government shutdown.
There's one aspect to job hunting that is just as important as your personal brand, good networking skills and having a good resume. But it's not nearly as exciting as those. It's learning how to deal with rejection.
Did you see it? Last week in DC something rare and really cool happened. Congress passed a major piece of public policy and sent it to the president's desk - by an overwhelming bipartisan majority. And the piece of public policy that went through? It was none other than the much needed student loan bill.
Well, it's that time of year again. The time of year you need to start thinking about the new school year and wrapping up all your summer activities. And don't hate us for pointing that out. We just want you to get a jump on the Fall semester.
As an intern, there are a number of things you will learn on the job. For example, one DC-based think tank requires their interns to complete a study about something specifically related to the organization, then present their findings to everyone. It's part of the educational requirement of the internship, but it's more than that.
Unpaid internships have been in the news a lot lately, and not necessarily for good things. On June 11th, a judge ruled Fox Searchlight violated minimum wage laws by not paying their interns. Emboldened by this ruling, plaintiffs filed new lawsuits on June 14th and June 21st against Conde Nast and Gawker Media respectively.
Last week we gave you a peek at some pretty cool resumes that all garnered attention, jobs, and in some cases even went viral. But as the old saying goes, it's often substance over style that will carry the day - and your career.
In The Basic Patterns of Plot, Foster-Harris contends that there are only three main storytelling plots in the world. Which is probably why we seem to see the same thing on television and at the movies over and over again, but that's beside the point.
Social media is as ubiquitous as oxygen nowadays, and some would say just as necessary. Although breathing might be a tad more important (arguably). And as a recent grad, you've been around it your entire life. But did you know that, according to Forbes Magazine, 37% of employers actively employ social media to screen prospective candidates?
Okay, so you've just recently graduated from college and have just started out on your career path. Last week, we talked about how interning for success can be the first and most important step on your career path.
Every summer, tens of thousands of interns make their way to DC to begin following the Yellow Brick Road (sometimes called K Street) of their young career paths. The ultimate destination is, of course, landing a job. The path can sometimes be windy and tricky and even a bit scary, especially if it's your first time.
The legendary head football coach of the Green Bay Packers, Vince Lombardi, said "When you go into the end zone, act like you've been there before." It's now a pretty common saying that essentially just means, be cool.
Though you may not be aware of it, there is one thing you are probably doing on a daily basis that is very important to setting your career path. You do it every time you make a new friend, mingle at a party, or attend any social event.
Washington D.C. is a National Treasure of things to see and do, many of which are free or nearly free. Now that you've gotten settled into your internship, you'll have plenty of time to see all of it. Here's a quick list of inexpensive and free things to do that don't require a 2/3 majority.
Making the change to living in your OWN first apartment can be daunting, intimidating, liberating and fulfilling all at the same time. (And sometimes in that order.) But there are things you can do that will help bring up those feelings of liberation and fulfillment a bit more.
Some are obvious, some not so much. Last week, we talked a little bit about personal branding and ways to make yourself stand out in a line of applicants. This week we're going to talk about ways to make sure you don't stand out for the wrong reasons.
And the answer to it lies in designing your own personal brand. Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, once said " Your brand is what people say about you when you're not in the room." That was how he defined personal branding. Quite simply, it's how people perceive you.
Simpsons fans rejoice. The Simpsons World App is now live. And Chief Wiggum and Reverend Lovejoy never looked better. The new Simpsons World app and portal, which launched today, is the ultimate Simpsons fan's experience. Every episode of the long-running television show is available on a streaming player, with every in-joke and uncredited guest star...