What is Norsemen News?
Prior to my education at Grosse Pointe North, I had only ever attended small, private schooling. It might seem like an insignificant detail, however, I truly believe attending a larger school with what seemed like endless possibilities was eye-opening. I visited my high school in eighth grade and what still stands out to me today is the Norsemen News. After watching the crew complete the announcements live, I knew this was where I belonged. Freshmen year, I made sure I was enrolled in the course, excited to build my way up to becoming an anchor for the show. The Norsemen News is the daily broadcast show for my high school delivering students and staff with updates, important information, sports and more. It is the advanced course for TV Production.
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Crew
The other parts that make Norsemen News possible are the crew. Crew consists of several jobs and responsibilities that help or newscast air smoothly. My favorite job out of the crew positions is easily director. I work surprisingly well under stress and I like having the control of how quick and sharp the cuts and transitions will be. The images above portray what is displayed at the end of each episode. This is our version of credits, representing everyone including those who contribute to the show from behind the scenes. For these episodes of the newscast, I was audio and camera. When I was on audio, I was in charge of muting, stabilizing audio levels and music selections. When I was on camera, I made sure every camera shot was exactly what the director wanted.
Talenting
Talenting is one of my favorite things in the world. Talenting, being a talent, is one of the crew positions for the newscast. It is like being an anchor on the local news and is my favorite because I love being social and talking. After years of being a talent for the Norsemen News I am not shy when it comes to being in front of the camera. I am so grateful I stepped out of my comfort zone and tried being a talent one day as it opened me up to a passion I instantly fell in love with. I enjoy hearing feedback and building my 'on air' persona and dialect off of constructive criticism. Some of my favorite things I hear is to 'keep smiling' or that I have the voice of a 'sports announcer'. I dream to continue down this path and report in front of a camera for sports in my future. The link to access every Norsemen News episode this school year is at the top of the page. To view clips of just myself talenting and some action shots, keep scrolling.
Opportunities
Along with growing my voice and developing my passion for digital media, TV Production has provided me with immense opportunities, opening my eyes to the sports broadcasting world. I have had the privilege to attend the Great Lakes Broadcast and Sports Media Academy both my junior and senior years. This amazing event takes place in the heart of Detroit, Ford Field, with several different schools in attendance. At this conference, I met several names in the industry and was able to gain connections through social networking. I even got to see MIPA during the career fair exploration.
Deepening my passion for digital media
TV Production and the Norsemen News are the reason for my love of digital media. I owe these programs everything. Words cannot describe how grateful I am for them. As previously mentioned, Norsemen News is for the advanced TV Production members, so you have to build you way up to this level. I started as a timid freshman, only wanting to use iMovie to edit, and have transformed into a confident and efficient editor on Premiere Pro, the same program used for editing Marvel movies. Aside from being one of the Norsemen News's leading anchors, I do several things behind the scenes to improve the overall quality of the show. Here's where I pay homage to my digital media skills, and most importantly my incredible teacher Mr. Brian Stackpoole. He's taught me everything I know, especially to believe in myself. He inspires me to be my best and is always my go-to person when I am in need of feedback. Because of him, I have fostered the digital media skills to create videos for the news. I love having human elements and "raw" reactions, adding a wholesome and inclusive element to the show. I believe just because you aren't in TV Production, that it doesn't mean you aren't a part of the Norsemen News. I am so proud of how far I have come and hope you enjoy some, but nowhere near all, of the intros and content for the news I have created. I believe they reflect my love for creating digital media and how my skillset had grown.
As previously mentioned, above is the link my best TV Production works. While they certainly aren't perfect, the videos reflect how I have grown in the digital media world. Prime examples of this are my Jolly Jokes Christmas Videos. One was made in 2022, and the more recent one was made in 2023. Again, although improvement and future growth can still be made, I believe the year in between these videos displays my willingness to learn and be my very best. While my first rendition of Jolly Jokes takes a more simplistic route, reflecting how scared I was to make a mistake editing, my latest rendition is a complete flip. I was a risk-taker and key-framed almost every single camera shot. I used key-framing to add a comedic effect and highlight reactions, laughter or simply who was talking. I also used higher quality mics, determined to improve the audio compared to my previous video. While the song was a bit choppy sounding towards the end, I see so many more strengths as opposed to weaknesses in the latest version. I believe spending more time and putting thought into the video prior to editing was the total game-changer. I inserted sound effects, slow zoom-ins, key-framed the Fortnite candy cane pickaxe and more. Although it was uplifting to hear positive feedback from viewers, the most rewarding feeling was noticing my progress. I will never give up because I believe there is always room to improve or ways to continuously learn.