About the role
Department Description: The Event Planning and Hospitality lives within the Development Department. The Development Department’s primary role is to cultivate and maintain relationships with local and national sponsors to raise money for the festival. The primary goal of the position is to raise money in cash sponsorships for the Austin Film Festival, On Story, and the Film & Food Party. The purpose of the Development Department is to cultivate new corporate sponsorships, both locally and nationally. The duties include searching out and cold calling new sponsors, setting up meetings, creating presentation material, closing sponsors, preparing sponsor agreements, maintaining relations with the sponsors during the festival and providing each sponsor with a follow-up report which encapsulates the Festival’s fulfillment of the sponsorship agreement.
Job Description: AFF is seeking interns to work in the Development Department under the Development Events Coordinator to assist on planning, building, and working on the logistics for the hospitality events during the festival. A typical day will include researching and contacting the top businesses and restaurants in town for partnerships in our Film & Food Fundraising Party, researching venues for parties, creating copy for marketing materials for Film & Food and festival parties, and updating partnership database. Festival requirements include attending festival parties to assist in line and volunteer management, set-up and tear-down, and act as an AFF Contact person for guests with questions.
Job Responsibilities:
- Helping acquire sponsor assets, marketing materials, and collateral and understand how the sponsor wants to use these items to market their company during the festival
- Collaborate with the Development Team on generating new avenues for sponsorship and new outreach for sponsors
- Vetting venues, restaurants, or vendors for one of our late-night festival parties
- Help Development Events Coordinator with auction outreach
- Assist in finalizing details for fall fundraising event
- Assist in maintaining communication with sponsors, vendors, and venues
- Create Final Reports and build final report materials post festival
Project Ownership Opportunities:
*Approximately a month into each internship, interns will be assigned one of the following projects to own throughout the rest of the internship’s duration. Project assignment is based upon interns’ capabilities and goals.*
- Film & Food Restaurant and Auction Management
- Alcohol Partnership Management
Interns will get the opportunity to:
- Gain experience in corporate company outreach
- Learn people skills and develop skills to work with individuals
- Experience event management
- Build tenacity
- Learn marketing assets within a company and corporate sponsorship opportunities
- Hospitality skills and customer service
- Event Production and Event Logistics
Qualifications:
- People Skills
- Strong communication skills and customer service experience
- Interest in event planning and execution
- Time management
- Excellent organization skills
- Strong attention to detail
- Ability to stay calm under pressure
- Microsoft Suite proficiency
- Event experience preferred
- Must be able to lift at least 25 lbs.
- If available throughout the festival, these interns must be 21 years of age or older and have access to reliable transportation
Timeframe: All Year. Spring Semester. Summer Semester into Fall Semester