Brooklin Gall Communication: Broadcast and Digital Journalism

I chose to pursue Broadcast because I love creating. With Theatre and Interior Design minors, I enjoy the process of both writing and design, seeing how elements come together in a final product. Although this concentration is primarily focused on news production and journalism, I’m interested in other forms of media that are driven by imagination such as film and content creation. I wanted to combine my theatrical background with my intrigue of media production, and I hope that this passion will allow my future to be a fun one.

In addition to my major, I do many side quests as I like to call them. Theatre is obviously one of them. I typically am an actor, but I have dabbled in lighting design a bit now as well. Another side quest of mine is working for 91.1 The Junction. I write my own scripts each week and record them with minor audio adjustments if needed. My newest addition is TAing for Marty this semester in two of his classes. I help him with his classes while he helps me with my own projects. We are also already working on the film coming up in May that will be filmed here in Starkville.

I love that in the Broadcast concentration I get to explore various types of media production. This was great for me as someone that didn’t know what I wanted to do initially. I was in limbo for a bit once I realized that interior design wasn’t the major for me, so taking classes from news production to making music videos was helpful for me to discover what I am willing to do versus what I desire to do. The music video and screenwriting classes I took last semester completely shifted my view of what was possible in this major. I learned many valuable skills and gained experiences that will help me as I move forward and shape my goals for my future endeavors.

As I mentioned previously, I greatly enjoyed my music video production class. It was a refreshing change from news where there is a specific format that you need to follow and many restrictions on what you can do and how information is presented. Music video was great because I got to exercise the part of my brain that likes to be organized by making schedules as Assistant Director while also impacting the art and message of the final product by editing the music video.

Editing the music video was my favorite part of the class. The way that something looks is so much more than aesthetics, it’s a message in itself, and getting to explore that concept was enjoyable and satisfying for me. Every choice that is made in the editing process emits a message for the viewer and having that much influence on the final product and how the storyline of the video would be perceived was exciting for me. Although there is less creative liberty to take in the editing of a news story, I don’t mind doing that either. Editing is relaxing for me. It doesn’t feel like work.

Another project I loved was in my Screenwriting class. The whole class collaborated on an 11-episode web series. Writing my own episode and working with that large group to create a cohesive season was such a fun experience. It helped that everyone in the class was nice, but even so, that environment of bouncing ideas off one another and coming up with fun little bits to put in your writing was awesome. I would readily participate in that process again. I love comedic writing personally, but screenwriting in general provides me with an amazing outlet for my ideas and connecting with others. I want to explore this world more.

My favorite thing to work on would probably be video. I like how many elements go into telling the story you want your piece to tell. I also enjoy writing, but in a more storytelling aspect rather than journalism. Journalism writing is something I am willing to do, but don’t yearn for. Within video, I especially enjoy editing. That is where, with how my mind works, I can leave my mark the most. I also just enjoy the process itself.

In this class, I am looking forward to how I can collaborate with people to make all of our work come together to create not only a cohesive story, but one that can tell us something in every aspect, both withing the writing and its appearance on the page. I’ve never worked on a project with so many different tasks and elements coming together, so I am excited for the process and look forward to the final products that my peers and I can put out.

For my career plans, I am looking into the film industry. As I’ve made very clear, I thrive off creativity and storytelling, and film the form of media that will absolutely allow me to do both. From screenwriting to editing, I want to get hands on experience with the making of a film at all stages of production. Even if I don’t end up in the film industry, I want to have a job where I can work with storytelling media that isn’t just news, but something deeper and more human. We shall see where the future takes me.

Email me at btg152@msstate.edu with any questions.