After Graduation

Film and media studies (FAMS) majors go on to pursue work in a variety of fields. Some find work that directly dovetails with their undergraduate experience, in media production, editing, filmmaking, online video streaming, or screenwriting. Some take the creativity and flexibility of mind they’ve developed and pursue careers in law, education, or medicine.

Ben Greenwald ’12, with majors in film and media studies and mathematics and economics, took the advice of “location, location, location” to heart. He lives in Los Angeles and Lafayette connections helped open the door to his film industry career.

Greenwald has been interning with The Walsh Co., run by Kevin Walsh ’97. “I do research for various advertising and marketing strategies for the film The Way, Way Back [a Walsh production], provide occasional script coverage, and keep the office organized,” Greenwald says. “Mr. Walsh is a talented producer, and I wanted the opportunity to learn the intricacies of the entertainment industry firsthand through the eyes of a producer because I hope to become one.” In fact, in fall 2013, Greenwald will begin his MFA studies in the producer’s program at UCLA.

In a very short amount of time, Greenwald has come to understand how his film and media studies degree prepared him. “The diverse structure of FAMS is important because no theoretical or historical knowledge of film or media would be enough in the entertainment industry. At the end of the day, students need to graduate with practical knowledge and experience in film, television, and new media forms,” he says. The biggest asset to his career, as he puts it, is the ability to write well.

“The most relevant and helpful of those courses has been criticism & review [FAMS 271] with Suzanne Westfall, professor of English. We reviewed theater, film, and television in this course, and I became much sharper critically with Prof. Westfall’s guidance.”

For Alexandra “Hayley” Trowbridge ’12, a degree in film and media studies has provided her with a versatile set of applicable skills and written, visual, and technological literacy.

After graduation, Trowbridge started working as a copywriter for a digital marketing agency called D2 Creative in Somerset, New Jersey, which develops brand messaging content, designs web sites, and implements Internet marketing strategies. Her tasks are varied; she may write content for a client’s promotional materials, work on a script for a video, or get involved in social media on behalf of the company—all in a day’s work.

Trowbridge’s job epitomizes the best of a liberal arts education because she employs different skills and needs to consider her work from multiple perspectives, such as the client and the audience, for starters. While she admits that producing written content is her primary role, because the company is small she is learning about the entire marketing process. “I also get to work with the design team to make sure the content and visuals (architecture, layout, imagery) go hand in hand, and with the development team, to ensure the correct content finds its way into the finished product,” she says.

A marketing company would be nothing without a video department, and here’s where her course work with Andy Smith, associate professor of film and media studies, has come in handy. “I have worked with my boss to write a couple of the scripts for demonstration videos, for which background knowledge of editing and storytelling from Professor Smith’s classes certainly came in handy,” she says.

Although film and media studies did not exist when Paul Germain ’04 graduated with a double major in art and English, he participated in its genesis: Germain took Intro to Film and was in the very first English 340, or “the doc film class,” as it’s colloquially called on campus. Germain (who was also a McKelvy Scholar while at Lafayette) and Amy Banas ‘04 made Superfan, a film about the college’s oldest and most dedicated sports fan, Wilmer Bonney. “If I hadn’t taken that class, I know for certain I would be somewhere else today,” says Germain.

The experience convinced him film was something he could do professionally. After graduation, he made an independent film called Speedy Delivery, a documentary about Mister Rogers’ mailman Mr. McFeely (David Newell). His efforts gained him Best Feature Film at the Children’s Film Festival in Seattle in 2009, and previously, Audience Choice Award, and the Feel Good Film Festival in Hollywood. Germain also received a master’s degree in arts management from Carnegie Mellon University, where he learned the fundamentals of producing and distributing media as a product. It turned out to be great preparation for his work now as a producer for YouTube’s Original Channel Initiative. He describes it as “a job that didn’t exist when I was in college,” he says.

The medium feels natural to Germain. “I had always loved telling stories using video as a means of creative expression, but it wasn’t until I arrived on campus that I was able to approach film and media studies as a serious academic pursuit.” The experience enabled him to see its possibilities, its reach, and the broader context. “Film is more than just entertainment; it’s texts and visual language capable of limitless, meaningful communication and expression.”