The second episode of Mountaineer Playbook has been incredibly beneficial for my growth as a producer. The Monday after taping episode one, our entire team gathered to review the broadcast and receive feedback from our professors on areas for improvement. One of the biggest takeaways for me was the importance of properly framing the anchors on set. This was an area I wanted to address for recording days in the future. I made sure to prioritize this by adding it as the first note in my ever-growing to-do list.
Organization was key to my success as a producer. Something as simple as creating dedicated folders and subfolders on my computer helped me stay organized. Every day, my to-do list grew, but without it, I wouldn’t have been able to keep up with all my responsibilities.
Mountaineer Playbook is technically a class, but it feels more like a full-time job. Two days before each broadcast, we have "fix day," a crucial time for making last-minute adjustments. On fix day, I was one of the first to arrive and the last to leave after a nine-hour day on campus. With multiple responsibilities to tackle, it was time to start checking off boxes on my to-do list. Once the scripts were finalized and printed, I immediately got to work creating the teleprompter script and compiling the list of graphics for the show. These documents had to be in the studio by 4 p.m., making time management essential throughout the day.
Once I completed my time-sensitive documents, I began writing personal notes in my script to use on show day. During the broadcast, I would communicate with the on-set anchors through their earpieces, providing coaching, preparing them for upcoming segments and guiding them to their exact positions in front of the cameras. Because show two was much more technical than the first, I had more anchors on set and additional camera changes to manage. This meant I had more people to coordinate with and more instructions to relay, making my notes even more critical to ensure a smooth production.
Much like the first show, I felt nervous and anxious in the hours leading up to recording episode two. There was a lot of pressure to make this episode even better than the last. Our reporters had worked hard to refine their videos for production, the on-set anchors had spent the past two days rehearsing their lines, and the director had been meticulously preparing. I spent my time reviewing my script, adjusting my notes, and adding to my list of things to do. I wanted to be as prepared as possible to meet the high standards set by my classmates.
Most of my nerves and anxiety faded as soon as I arrived on set. I had a game plan and knew exactly what needed to be done. In the minutes leading up to our first recording, I worked closely with Tyler, the director, to ensure everything was in place. Together, we checked in with the studio staff, our professors, the teleprompter team, and the anchors. We also conducted a pre-production meeting with our classmates to prepare everyone for the upcoming show. The final task Tyler and I completed before recording our first take was framing the anchors across all the cameras. The first note I wrote on my to-do list ended up being the last thing to be checked off.
All the hard work my classmates and I put into preparing for show 2 paid off. My notes were invaluable during the recordings as I communicated with the anchors. My to-do list kept me organized and ensured everything that needed to be done was completed. As we approach show three, I plan to fine-tune my organizational methods. I want to continue to create more complex episodes in the future and to do so, I’ll need to be even more organized.
