Althea Yi is the first MEC resident to have the David and Liliane Stewart Scholarship, offered by the Macdonald Stewart Foundation to a Canadian student who wishes to pursue higher studies in Paris. Thanks to the scholarship, her accommodation at the MEC will be financed for 10 months.
Canadian born in Toronto, the scholarship winner lived two years in Montreal before coming to Paris for her master’s degree in Management of cultural organizations.
Althea is an inspiring and determined woman. Her background is not linear and she proves that this is not a problem at all. On the contrary: the opportunities that appeared for her undoubtedly presented themselves thanks to her curiosity in several areas and to her open mind. This explains her background in Radio and Television, Linguistics, Cultural management and Web development!
Find out more about her :
Could you talk about the moment when you found out you would have the scholarship ?
It was a total relief! I wasn’t supposed to come this year for my master’s degree, but next year. There were administrative errors and I learned in May that I had to come this year. I was not at all prepared to come and having this scholarship relieved me a lot. I don’t really know what I would have done without this.
Why did you choose Paris?
I’ve been working in web development for 6 years, but during the pandemic I started to be interested in cinema and I made some short films. So I realized that the creative part of a project is more fluid for me than the administrative part. That’s why last year I decided to look for a course that could help me fill this gap in order to be able to manage my projects. I found a master’s degree in Management of Cultural Organizations at Paris Dauphine, which has a specialization in audiovisual. I made the request and I said to myself: “we’ll see what happens…”. And they accepted me…
Would you rather work in management or in creation?
Rather creation. Everything creative comes more easily to me. Knowing how to run a business is more difficult, because I’m not very good with numbers. This is why I prefer to study everything related to management, which I find difficult, and to be more self-taught in everything relative to creativity.
You have been a web developer for six years. How did this appear in your life?
I did a master’s degree in linguistics and that was when I started web development, because I wanted to make a website for my dissertation. So I started finding small web jobs.
And do you like it?
For me it’s quite functional. I wanted to develop a website for my dissertation. I learned how to do it. Afterwards I had a job, a job like any other and then another and another and another… The last job was the one that interested me the most because it was a software for the film industry.
And what would be your ideal project, the project of your dreams?
It’s also a question of money, but the ideal would be to direct a feature film and also to write some novels. Yes, that’s my dream project: to be an artist and make a living from it. But it’s not easy. I am still aware of the fact that there are finances to pay so I may return to web development from time to time.
Can you talk a little about the internship you are currently doing?
I work as a production assistant in a company that manufactures glasses. I’m in the image department and I do everything : photo shooting, finding filming locations for their advertisements, etc. It’s still creative.
How do you feel here, in the MEC?
I feel very comfortable in the MEC. The kitchen on my floor is clean and the residents are very friendly. I am also part of the residents’ committee, as secretary. It’s a lot of work, but I like it!
