Ferris students in the television and digital media production program are offered hands-on opportunities that are found at few other colleges.
“Our program teaches students to be generalists,” said Chris Gill, senior in television and digital media production. “It introduces every aspect of production from pre- through post-production. We get exposure at being producers, videographers, editors, directors, and writers.”
Seniors in the program produce a 30-minute live television show every week called Ferris State Live. Eight students collaborate to record the show, which is broadcasted every Thursday at 10:30 p.m. on Fox 32.
“It’s really great because the students take turns actually producing the show with some help from Sandy Gholston from the University of Advancement and Marketing who is our executive producer,” said Kyle Mayer, senior in the TDMP program. “We get hands on experience planning a live television show, from getting guests for the show to getting footage to play during the show. We get so many opportunities to get real world experience in the regular curriculum.”
“I knew I wanted to major in television production, and Ferris offered the most hands-on and real experience out of every other college in the state,” said Gill. “Our program does a great job exposing students to different areas to let them figure out what they like most.”
The program also produces a 30-minute magazine style show called Ferris in Focus, which is available at FerrisState.tv. The show is produced every other week.
“Ferris in Focus is a fun show that is targeted toward other students,” said Mayer. “This show focuses more on the demographic of students, whereas our Ferris State Live show is targeted toward people out in the community.”
Students in the program are required to complete a six month internship before graduation. Gill said he will be interning at a place called VBS.TV, which is based in Brooklyn. Mayer will be doing an internship with Big Shoulders Digital Video Productions in Chicago. Following his time there, Mayer plans on finding a job as a video editor or a videographer.
“Our program and major is a lot of fun,” said Gill. “We get to tell stories about people, places, and anything else we can think of that without our program wouldn’t be able to be told. We have a lot of creativity and freedom to produce a lot of really cool videos.”
“Everybody should check out FerrisState.tv; it has all the videos that are produced by our program and I think it’s got something for everybody,” said Mayer. n