{"id":9377,"date":"2023-04-11T08:57:43","date_gmt":"2023-04-11T13:57:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin-new\/?post_type=campus_story&p=9377"},"modified":"2023-04-11T08:57:43","modified_gmt":"2023-04-11T13:57:43","slug":"fully-focused-uw-stout-video-production-majors-gaining-industry-experience","status":"publish","type":"campus_story","link":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/story\/fully-focused-uw-stout-video-production-majors-gaining-industry-experience\/","title":{"rendered":"Fully focused: UW-Stout video production majors gaining industry experience"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Photo<\/a>
Student Delaney Hoffman looks through a viewfinder at Cinequipt on an Arri Alexa camera, used for high-end motion imaging.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Class tours Cinequipt in Minneapolis; student\u2019s videography business receives two national honors<\/h3>\n

Being ready to step into a career is one of the hallmarks of an education at UW-Stout. A group of\u00a0video production<\/a>\u00a0majors, including one already working professionally, are a couple of steps closer to that reality.<\/p>\n

Recently, students in the Advanced Video Production class toured\u00a0Cinequipt<\/a>\u00a0in Minneapolis, adding an important piece of industry knowledge: How a high-end video and cinema rental house and sound stage operates.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s such a huge industry, but you don\u2019t realize how small of a world it actually is,\u201d said Jacob Phillips, a junior from Grantsburg who has started his own business, the award-winning JLP Films. \u201cBig studios like Cinequipt are accessible to us, and they made us feel like a team. Everybody in the film industry has one goal, and that\u2019s to create content.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Photo<\/a>
UW-Stout students, faculty and staff from the video production program gather during their recent tour of Cinequipt in Minneapolis. \/ UW-Stout<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Classmate Marshall Jacklin, of Slinger in southeastern Wisconsin, who is eyeing a career in the outdoor national films industry, said the friendly reception students received from Cinequipt \u201cjust makes the filmmaking industry that much more enjoyable. You get a community or family feel.\u201d<\/p>\n

Because of the high cost of specialty equipment and logistics, videographers of all types including corporations, filmmakers, advertising agencies and television shows often rent studio space, cameras and supporting equipment for their shoots.<\/p>\n

The tour included video equipment demonstrations, such as set-up and lighting. \u201cEven the professors were geeking out about all the equipment,\u201d Phillips said, noting a high-end Arri Alexa camera.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey have so many cameras you don\u2019t need every day,\u201d Jacklin said. \u201cThe amount of gear was insane, like an armory.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cinequipt has been a mainstay of the Minnesota, Wisconsin and Upper Midwest film and television production community for more than 50 years. In 2021, it joined the nationally based Red Star Rentals, which has provided additional resources.\u00a0Red Star is from Madison.<\/p>\n

\"Photo<\/a>
From left, students Nicos Wiard, Robinson Ohman, Evan Rosenberg, staff member Ed Jakober and instructor Colin O\u2019Neill examine a Fisher dolly at Cinequipt. \/ UW-Stout<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In 1993, Cinequipt supported the filming of Hollywood\u2019s \u201cGrumpy Old Men,\u201d in Wabasha, Minn.; and on the day the UW-Stout students visited, a major Twin Cities corporation was filming in one of the studios.<\/p>\n

\u201cTaking the theory of the classroom and seeing those theories at work in the real world is a crucial educational piece for anyone,\u201d said Mitch Thompson, Cinequipt branch manager. \u201cAnytime a program takes the time to expose students to the nonacademic reality of this industry, they are really preparing their students to\u00a0be\u00a0better prepared to enter the workforce.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt also begins to create connections. Savvy students take business cards, follow up with staff, discuss internships, get advice for an upcoming project or learn about finding ways to break into the business,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Assistant Professor Keif Oss, who led the trip, and other professors in the video production program encourage students to network with their classmates, alumni and industry contacts.<\/p>\n

\u201cAdding the Cinequipt tour to our repertoire of student experiences is an extension of the hands-on, industry-aligned relevance we seek to offer students,\u201d Oss said.<\/p>\n

\"Photo<\/a>
Video production student Jacob Phillips, who owns JLP Films, recently received national awards for his wedding videography business. \/ UW-Stout<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The trip included several other instructors, as well as staff members Nick Dangeur, technical engineer, and Ed Jakober, media specialist, who support the program.<\/p>\n

Students in the class also experienced an annual workshop on campus presented by Canon. They had hands-on opportunities to work with special video equipment, including for filming class projects.<\/p>\n

The Advanced Video Production class in general exposes upper level students to a range of highly complex camera systems, audio equipment and studio\/location lighting gear \u201cthat absolutely requires a focused team to operate safely and effectively,\u201d Oss said.<\/p>\n

Career-minded videographers<\/h3>\n

Jacklin and Phillips are more than a year away from earning their bachelor\u2019s degrees, but they came to UW-Stout already with video production careers in mind.<\/p>\n

Jacklin enjoys hunting and fishing, and he works part time at the Menomonie Outdoors Sport Shop. He is aiming for a career in the outdoors industry, hopefully someday filming for the National Geographic or Discovery channels.<\/p>\n

Phillips plans to start his career by growing his\u00a0JLP Films<\/a>, a wedding videography company. Recently, he received the 2023 Best of Weddings award from the Knot and the Couples Choice award from WeddingWire, leading national websites for wedding vendors. The awards, based on customer reviews, put him in the top 5% of wedding videographers nationwide, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cSeeing that (recognition) unfold is an amazing feeling,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Inspired by YouTube sports highlight videos, Phillips started filming his high school football team in 2017 and then in 2019 a few weddings for family and friends, at first on a cell phone.<\/p>\n