90 ADVICE FROM ALUMS KEEP LEARNING VINCE ST. GERMAIN Class of 1982 eLearning and Instructional Technology Specialist Grand Valley State University Allendale, Michigan “Become a lifelong learner and continue to grow your skills at every opportunity. Many of the responsibilities I hold and the tools I use today hadn’t been created yet when I first started my career. Being flexible and willing to take some risks will open new doors and opportunities you may not have considered.” LAUREN KOHLER Class of 2016 Video Lead Minecraft Seattle, Washington “Put yourself out there, and always be working on something. While looking for careers, make projects for yourself, do as many tutorials as you can, and implement those fun new tricks into your work.” J.P. SNIADECKI Class of 2002 Filmmaker, Media Anthropologist, and Associate Professor Northwestern University Chicago, Illinois “Rather than follow whatever formulas are presented to you, carve out your own unique vision. If you are adventurous, don’t accept the simplistic divisions that are presented to you, whether those divisions be construed as between fiction, documentary, and experimental forms, or between commercial and noncommercial film, or between amateur and professional. Mix it all up, trust your intuitions, be good to everyone, and most of all have fun.” NICK BEARDSLEE Class of 2017 Video Producer Squarespace Brooklyn, New York “Just make the work. If it’s coming from an honest place, you’ve got to trust what you’re trying to do. Once you stop looking for a shortcut or a big break, you realize good work is about hard work, and that’s where things get exciting. The sooner you can make your film out of what’s right in front of you, the sooner you can grow that into something bigger. Don’t just wait for a seat at someone else’s table. You’ve got to build your own table.” TRACEY NOWINSKI Class of 2007 Producer Meijer Grand Rapids, Michigan “Tenacity is key. Grab every opportunity you can because experience will help you get your foot in the door. The film for the 2006 summer film project was flashed, and I spent a few months helping to correct it in post. At the time, I had minimal skills in After Effects, but working through each scene that had a different problem helped me learn the program in a real-world situation. That experience also helped me land my first gig as a motion artist at a post-production house.” KARL KOEHLE Class of 2001 Lecturer of Game Design & Development University of Wisconsin Stout Madison, Wisconsin “Continue learning from all disciplines of life, surround yourself with a network of supportive people, collaborate, volunteer for a noble cause, and focus on your goals, not the software. Allow some flexibility in how you reach your goals, and most importantly, take care of yourself!” 1 2 4 5 3 6
