Over the course of the semester, directing has become something I genuinely enjoy. During our producer meetings on Thursday nights, when we review packages and decide who makes the show, the first thing that pops into my head is how I want to present it. I think through camera cues, angles, effects, and more because I want our shows to be the best they can possibly be. My goal for each show this semester is to become more and more technical. We’re all in college, and this is the time to push ourselves before we graduate in a month and a half.
For this show, Sam and I had a goal: to incorporate a VOSOT. We’ve been talking about this all semester because it’s a different challenge compared to a standard VO. While writing the script, we made sure this portion of the show would be executed perfectly. Then, we found out that no other Mountaineer Playbook crew had ever done a VOSOT before—and that only fired us up even more. We wanted to set a new standard and prove that we could take our production to the next level.
The best way to describe the layout of Show 3 is like a Frankenstein—it had elements from our previous shows but with some new additions. The A-block was hectic, with moving cameras, VOs, and VOSOTs. The B-block resembled Show 2, while the C-block mirrored Show 1, with one long package taking up most of the time. Sam and I were confident in our class’s ability to execute this show successfully.
On the morning of show day, I was reviewing my script when I got a Slack notification: “Hey guys, Maggie won’t be in today, so Trent will be on video playback, and Aidan will be the TD.” For some reason, I felt zero stress. I had full confidence in those guys to step into those roles and do their absolute best. I’ve had classes with them for two years, so I know what they’re capable of—this was nothing for them. As the director, I didn’t even flinch.
When I walked into the studio, I saw Trent and Aidan studying the WVU News control room like they were preparing for the SATs. I could tell they were stressed, and that taught me something important: as a director, I need to stay calm, cool, and confident for my crew. I kept reassuring them that everything would be fine and that I had their backs. The director and AP positions have really helped me develop as a leader.
After that, I held my pre-production meetings to make sure everyone was on the same page. I called out each technical group and explained what would be happening throughout the show, especially since we had two new people and two from WVU News in the audio room. At the end of the meeting, I gave a short speech about mistakes. No matter what we do in life, mistakes will happen—that’s a guarantee. What matters is how we respond to adversity because that’s how we grow. I love quotes, and one I live by is, “L’s in life don’t stand for losses; they stand for lessons.” That quote reminds me that no matter my age, I’ll always be learning.
Finally, we recorded. The first take had very few mistakes, which was impressive considering we had a mostly new production crew. Takes two and three were perfect in my opinion, with everyone locked in and executing their roles flawlessly. The energy in the control room and studio was electric—we all felt like we had really hit our stride. This was definitely our best taping yet, and it proved how much we’ve grown as a team. I’m so excited for our last two shows and to see how much further we can push ourselves before the semester ends!