By Kira Sincock
In October, ArtsForce led a Career Trek to PBS Utah, marking it as the biggest trek to date. This organization was especially exciting to tour for the opportunity to witness the day-to-day operations of a television station, as well as for the chance to hear from a few industry veterans.
Students explored the studio floor before stopping to have a chat with Nancy Green, an executive producer at PBS Utah. Nancy kicked off the tour by answering a few questions from the audience and by describing their storytelling process. She mentioned how they aim to shed light on areas that need representation by telling stories that accurately portray our local communities.
The tour broke off into groups to meet with some of the other departments at PBS Utah. We first heard from Phil Isom, a studio manager at the station. He dove deep into the artistry that goes into television, as well as the importance of creating a comfortable experience for the viewer. Phil also provided insight on the major things to be aware of when pursuing a career in a particular facet of TV.
We then walked through the garage to meet Shawn Emery, a videographer and editor, in the equipment room. One of the key lessons that Shawn provided after an extensive career was the value of being adaptable - whether it is picking up new skills, juggling tasks when working solo, or planning for “dry spells” in between gigs.
Our tour rotation ended with the audio department. Students had an opportunity to step into the recording booth and be part of a live “walla” demonstration, in which audio engineers Will Montoya and Brenton Winegar used our shouts to mimic the background noise of a crowd. Will’s career in audio began by simply asking someone to teach him the ropes, noting that people are typically willing to help others learn.
We returned to the studio floor once more to wrap things up with Nancy. Her parting piece of advice was to understand what skills you can offer to an organization, and place less focus on being the right “fit”. She emphasized the value of internships, and that PBS Utah offers them every semester - so keep applying!
Our experience at PBS Utah was more than memorable. One of the key takeaways from this experience is that even though PBS Utah is rooted in the film and television industry, an organization like this has a need for a wide range of skill sets. So, keep yourself open to all opportunities that come your way, even if they aren’t what you expected!
We hope to see you again in the spring at our future treks and at our Annual Networking Event, where we will be celebrating ten years of ArtsForce.
Stay tuned!
Author Kira Sincock is studying Game Art within the Entertainment Arts and Engineering program, and minoring in Drawing. She is an Emerging Leaders Intern with ArtsForce.