Mount Saint Mary College’s Last Friday Knight student production team recently discussed how they work together to shoot, edit, and post their own content on a weekly basis for the Mount community. Left to right: Katie Hogg of Rockaway Park, N.Y.; Josh Zirkel of Lindenhurst, N.Y.; Mike Fallanca of Port Chester, N.Y.; and Emily Araujo of Stanhope, N.J.
Students at Mount Saint Mary College are getting hands-on experience producing their own video content on campus, under the guidance of CADM faculty advisor Merle Becker, Instructor of Digital Media Production.
CADM is the department of Communications, Art, and Digital Media at the college. CADM programs include Journalism, Digital Media Production, Visual Communication-Graphic Design, and Technology and Digital media. The Mount also offers a concentration in Sports Journalism, and minors in Art and Film Studies.
In addition to course requirements, students create their own content as part of Mount Media, a digital production club at the college. Mount Media gives them real-world experience working in a studio and with filming equipment. Each semester the club focuses on a specific broadcast idea, which the students produce on their own.
Their latest broadcast, Last Friday Knight (LFK), has gained popularity on campus. Inspired by the TV show Billy on the Street, hosts ask random questions to unsuspecting passers-by. The show also includes brief interviews, and the crew will often cover events on campus.
“It’s a really fun and funny concept,” said Becker.
LFK is produced by junior Katie Hogg of Rockaway Park, N.Y., and seniors Emily Araujo of Stanhope, N.J.; Mike Fallanca of Port Chester, N.Y.; and Josh Zirkel of Lindenhurst, N.Y. The team creates show concepts, shoots and edits footage, and manages social media accounts on TikTok @lastfridayknight and Instagram @lastfridayknight_ to promote the broadcast.
Hogg, Mount Media president, oversees LFK. She stated that the biggest challenge for her team is deciding which content works, and which content to cut. Her favorite part about producing the show is that it gives her a chance to be creative.
“I love the creative side of coming up with ideas for episodes and posts,” Hogg explained. “And, being able to share it with the Mount community has been awesome.”
Another show, MSPN, was a Mount Media production prior to LFK produced by Zirkel, which served as a weekly sports wrap-up to showcase accomplishments of MSMC athletes and their teams.
Becker has found that the most rewarding part of these programs is watching students get excited and produce content on their own time. She believes this is the essence of being a filmmaker.
“Filmmaking is in your blood,” she explained. “You love doing it, even if it isn’t for a grade.”
Both shows have resonated with the Mount community, which has helped raise awareness for the CADM department and Digital Media Production major on campus.