Intern Spotlight: Ellies’s Path from MNVL Intern to UND Esports Content Manager

Over the years, we have had many interns who helped turn MNVL into the premier MN high school esports league that it is for our students across MN today.

This past week, we got to catch up with Ellie or “RubsterPanda” to ask her about her time as an MNVL Esports intern and where it has brought her now!

What first made you interested in interning with MNVL Esports?

It was completely spontaneous, which is the funny bit. I applied for the Social Media Intern position due to encouragement from previous long-term production manager Nate “Mny3k”. I had a lot of experience with personal content management, and thought it would be fun to work alongside friends and also learn more about esports behind the scenes. I never expected to get the position, but I am very happy that I applied.

What is one of the biggest projects you’ve worked on in MNVL that you are most proud of?

Over the three years of working at MNVL, the project I am most proud of working on is the Spring 2024 Drip Contest. The idea was to inspire teams in the future to bring some swag to State Finals, and show off creative costumes, cosplays, jerseys, accessories and more. The idea was a big hit, and a lot of schools and students were super engaged with it. I always bring a Minecraft Panda to State Finals as a mascot, and that ended up winning the whole competition! I was quite surprised, some others thought the competition was rigged lol.

(Fun fact: we still run this competition to this day for our MN tournaments and even began this competition in our other Fenworks states!)

How has being an intern with MNVL changed your future trajectory? Where has it taken/pointed you?

Working at MNVL made me realize that I know my future is in esports. Whether is competing or working, I know that it’s something I love to do, and something I’m very passionate about. Right now, I am the Content Manager at UND Esports, and I took up that job in a heartbeat because I remembered how much I loved working socials at MNVL. I am now getting a degree at the University of North Dakota in Esports, and I am working on several Esports projects revolved around Minecraft, in hopes to make it an esport, and that inspiration came from MNVL.

What skills did you learn or become more skilled at through your internship?

MNVL taught me a lot about managing a company platform rather than just a personal platform. You are representing an entire company, so whatever is posted is how people view the league. Whether it’s graphics, clips, text tone, and engagement, it’s super important to recognize that YOU are controlling the image of the company. I learned several other skills, like algorithms, graphic design, video editing skills, and using spreadsheets to keep track of numbers. All my learning from MNVL helped me acquire the job I have now, and I still do things I did at MNVL for my job today.

Could you share your favorite memory as an intern/competitor?

I have a whole bunch of memories as a competitor, but I’ll highlight my memory as an intern. My favorite memories were definitely working State Finals throughout the years. Working together online is one thing, but working together in person as a big group, there’s no feeling that tops that. You get to see all the people you worked with throughout the season, and the company of being together in person is so much better than being in a discord call. You also get to see all the hard work and effort fall into place, whether its MNVL’s or the students. All the hype moments, laughing, cheering from the crowd, its all really incredible.

Could you describe the community atmosphere and what it was like playing a role in the esports league?

Continuing from the last question, the atmosphere is something you can’t replicate. Working and competing in MNVL felt like one big family. No matter who you were talking to, there’s always support, kindness, and appreciation going around in the community. Throughout the years, I remember the kindness and sensitivity from my coworkers at MNVL, who were helpful to me. Being a competitor, of course, there was unfamiliarity with opponents, but after games, I’d chat with the other students, and we’d all play together online casually. I still have so many friends whom I’ve worked with and played against in MNVL, who I still chat with daily.

Thank you, Ellie, for helping build the MNVL/Fenworks high school esports league into what it is today!