I’m a sophmore VMA student, who lived in a triple freshman year before upgrading to a suite my sophomore year. Even in my suite this year I continue to surprise and shock my roommates with strange situations that only would happen to VMA students.
1. You will find strange props laying around your room. Last year I was in charge of a prop gun for a film set I was on, and was storing it in my room before the shoot. Now I told one of my roommates, but forgot to tell the other about it… She was a little unsettled by it, as you could imagine.
2. Also be prepared that if your roommate is the Production Designer on a film shoot, your room will become a literal prop storage closet for a week. Be careful where you step!
3. But sometimes they will come home with leftover crafty. One time I ended up with 30 Bolocco burritos and assorted Panera pastries from set. I mean it took-up like half the room, and developed a strange odor of beef burritos and cinnamon rolls. But my roommates got free food out of it, so really that was a good day for everyone involved.
4. They might ask you to act, maybe even beg if their actor or actresses cancels last minute. But this is another situation where you may be able to extort free food of them. I would seriously consider doing it though, because college is a time to try new things to help you grow as a person. Acting can be a great way to build up your confidence and even improve your public speaking. Also, when you go home you can show all your friends and family the short film you starred in and sound even more hipster and pretentious.
5. Even if you aren’t asked to act, don’t be surprised to walk in to your room or common room and find a film shoot casually happening on a Saturday afternoon.
6. Being awoken by 5am call times. While you may want to sleep in on a Saturday or Sunday morning, your VMA roommate may have a 5am call time. Instead of hearing the peaceful sounds of the green line quietly pulling into the Boylston station, you will hear your roommate scrambling around in the dark. You’re thinking it probably would have been better if they turned on the light for 10 minutes instead of stumbling around in the dark for 20…
7. Don’t be alarmed if you walk in to your room, and see your roommate covered in blood, chances are they are just practicing there special effects make-up skills.
8. The screenings…. You’ll be invited to a lot of film screening or live studio shows, because it can be very stressful to have your work shown, and having a friendly face who you know will laugh at your jokes can be comforting.
9. The Go Fund Me Page… This can be a bit of a sensitive issue when living with a VMA student  Never feel obligated to donate though, they will understand that money can be tight. So even if you can’t give, do them a solid and share it on your social media accounts.
If you can live with these things, having a VMA a student as a roommate can be a great thing! We know aspects of our major (school projects and large productions) can make living with us difficult, therefore we are always happy to return the favor when it comes to your projects and orgs. Especially if you show them support and understanding for their projects, they will become your number one supporter for all your endeavors.