Alum Spotlight
Tell us about a favorite film project while at UM. What were the origins of that project, your role(s) on the project, and if/how it has been viewed or showcased?
I have wonderful memories from all of my projects from my time at the University. “The Invite List” stands out to me as one of my favorite films because it’s, for better or worse, the closest I got to my original vision. The film itself was an assignment for my directing class, so I had to write and direct it and make my voice heard. I chose to make a comedy and had very stylistic choices I wanted to make with the blocking, colors and with very fast editing. Many of those ideas were challenged in class because they seemed kind of ‘out there’, but I stuck with it and was very pleased with how it all looked in the end. We were able to screen the film at a handful of festivals, but the best experience was at the Magnolia Film Festival where the audience really leaned into it and laughed the whole time.
What skills/knowledge learned in the program have you found most valuable in your post-graduation years?
Being a part of the first cohort of the film program, we ran into some challenges with scheduling and competing with a variety of other things going on, on campus. We still had to get all of our projects done on time, so problem solving and efficiency were crucial to our success as film students at that time. That is certainly a valuable skillset or mindset to have post-graduation working in film and in other fields as well.
Tell us about your post-graduation career experiences.
I have been working as a freelance video editor since graduating from the University. I have a few different clients I edit wedding videos for and have done work for a documentary as well. I have also worked as a background photographer on film sets which has been super enjoyable.
What advice do you have for incoming film majors?
My advice to incoming film majors is to foster a safe and trusting environment with their cohort. Creating a positive atmosphere around critiques is so important to help students feel encouraged to get their best work done. So put kindness and constructivism first. The friendships and working relationships formed can be very beneficial to their careers after graduation and you’ll never know who you meet in your cohort, I met my wife!
What do you see as the value of studying film production in today’s world?
Studying film production is incredibly valuable in today’s world, because not only does it prepare you for work in the industry, the qualities you learn are beneficial to a variety of fields. Learning to manage projects, deadlines, and large groups of people is useful for all sorts of careers and is basically all-in-one in film production.