myLoyalist
Home Campus News Loyalist Television and New Media Production Students Celebrate Accomplishments and Career Choice

Loyalist Television and New Media Production Students Celebrate Accomplishments and Career Choice

April 01, 2011

Last Tuesday the final productions of the Loyalist College Television and New Media Production students were screened at the Belleville Galaxy (Cineplex) Cinemas and then on the Thursday evening the students attended the annual Sparkie Awards to celebrate the past year’s achievements. Industry leaders, including CTV, Dome Productions, the Food Network, Rogers Sportsnet, The Shopping Channel, Sony, The Weather Network, and Whistlestop Productions, sponsored awards to recognize the students’ creativity and skill. The awards honoured the “Best” – Director, Major Production, News Story, Remote Production, Specialization Editor and much more. It was a proud and exciting evening for the students, giving them the opportunity to showcase their skills as they prepare to enter a field that encourages innovation, recognizes talent and applauds excellence.

This year the Sony Best Major Production award went to Resident Dork  produced by Paul Duck and directed by Alex Huard. The production tells the story of a bullied high school boy turned hero who rescues everyone from a zombie infestation. Alex Huard described the impact the past year has had on him. “It’s been great. It may sound strange, but I loved being up at 6:00 a.m. preparing for the day’s shoot. I loved being on set with the crew and cast, having a blast shooting a zombie movie. And I loved working in the edit suites for hours on end with the post-production crew. We had some challenges, hit a few speed bumps, but what production doesn’t? That’s what makes the final product so rewarding. When it was complete and I was sitting with my friends watching our production in the movie theatre, I knew – yes, this is what I want to do with my life.”

The settings may have varied, yet Alex’s epiphany was similar to that of Dean Gariepy’s. In November Dean was chosen by CBC Sports to work as a camera operator at the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou, China. “There was a point, when I was on the field of a stadium filled with 80,000 screaming fans, that I saw my shot on the jumbotron. It was at that moment I knew – this is it. This is what I want to do for the rest of my life.”

Loyalist Television and New Media Production Students Celebrate Accomplishments and Career Choice

Dean was the recipient of four Sparkie awards: Best Specialization Director, Best Major Production – as Director of Photography, Best Remote Production and Best Overall Third-Year Student. He described why the Sparkies are important. “This is a great way for the students in the Television and New Media Production program to showcase the unbelievable work that has been produced throughout the year. Anyone can point a camera and press record, but it takes attention to detail and a team of people to bring it to life and make it more than an ordinary shot. The amount of detail in my work is much greater than when I entered the program and the quality of my work reflects that. The skills I have learned and the experience I gained have definitely contributed to that.”

“The Television and New Media Production project screenings and Sparkie Awards capped a remarkable year of achievement for our program,” said Kathleen Bazkur, program coordinator. “It was a celebration of our students’ efforts and creativity, shared with others from the college, the advisory team, friends, family and community members. A joyful way to say ‘well done’.”

For information about Television and New Media Production and other Loyalist Media Studies programs click here.

 

Categories: