The Digital Media, Audio, and Cinema Program (DMAC) at Lansing Community College gives students hands-on training for careers in media. LCC DMAC Faculty Jeff Hamlin and Barry Elmore are in studio to share how students use modern equipment and work on real projects. The program is designed around experiences that build creativity, teamwork, and strong community ties, while also providing support and mentorship to help students succeed.

Mentioned This Episode

Website: DMAC Program

It's time for Inside LCC, an inside look at Lansing Community College's academic programs. We've got you covered with programs that nourish creativity and exploration, cultivate your purpose and guide you to your career. Listen as we explore some of the opportunities at LCC and learn from conversations with faculty members, staff and students.

Welcome to Inside lcc. I am absolutely delighted that we are going to be talking about the digital media, audio and cinema program at lcc.

And I have two of the faculty here to fill us all in. Jeff Hamlin and Barry Elmore. Welcome, guys.

Thank you very much, Melissa. Good to be here.

Thank you, Melissa.

So let's start out. Just tell me your position here. Tell me how long you've been here.

I know we have a little contrast here with Jeff, who's been here a while, and Barry, who's a relative newcomer.

Yes, it's good to see a fresh face in Barry Elmore.

Absolutely.

Mine is a little less fresh. I've been here 24 years now. I believe I just checked my banner thing and yeah, I've been here 24 years now. So my name, as you said, Jeff Hamlin.

And I teach in the DMACC program. I'm the lead faculty in this program area. So it's just really exciting to be here. Thank you.

That's great. And we've had it. I mean, we've worked together for some time. I've been here 25 years. Have you? So, yeah, And I started when it was a film program.

I started as the film internship coordinator. It was Perkins funded. So, yeah. Yeah. A lot has evolved since then, including new faculty.

Including new faculty.

Hello.

Actually, ironically, you might have set up my internship when I was here at LCC because I was in the film program, the M. Tech program, back in the day.

Wow.

So, yeah, I've been here for about two years.

I went to school here and ironically, around the same time Jeff started, I was finishing and then went on to school at Columbia College Chicago and then moved out to LA and lived there.

For about 12 years and decided to come back and bring so much great experience.

Yeah. Covid decided to send us home. So we came back to be closer to family and Jeff was like, yeah, you have to come back to lcc. And here.

And here he is. But he's so modest. By living in la, he was working professionally in the film and television industry and his credentials are just unbelievable.

So we're just so lucky to have him back and working for us and sharing with the students. It's a real treat It's a blessing for sure.

That is marvelous. And I want to hear a little bit more about that and also talk about the other faculty too. But first tell me so digital media, audio and cinema.

As I mentioned, I was an internship coordinator when it was the film program and then it was M. Tech. Tell me, what is this program now? What are students learning when they come here?

So the DMACC program is a two year field of study. We're a vocational program, meaning, you know, very hands on. So when students come here they're going to touch equipment.

And that's been much increased since Barry's arrival. He's a proponent of getting equipment into the student's hands. So two year field of study, vocational. They're going to study cameras.

They're going to learn about cameras, obviously lighting, cinematography, editing. Now we're getting into some other things such as digital signage, podcasting. Certainly is, is a new component of our program.

TV production.

Yeah, thank you. A big live, live sport I miss too. Yeah. Live. Live streaming, multi cam streaming and television production.

Wow, that's pretty comprehensive.

Yes.

And, and the equipment that you have is pretty high end.

Yeah. The benefit of the program is that I mean we're all Perkins funded so we get money from grants to purchase equipment to help students learn.

And all of that equipment is, you know, we have top of the line cinema cameras, we have prosumer cameras, basically all sorts of things that students are paying for with their, their tuition. So you know, my goal is to get it out and let those students use it and learn on it and make mistakes on it and yeah, that's, that's the hope.

How does that, is that pretty unusual for a community college to have this high end equipment?

Yeah, we're, we're very rare.

When we started this, we came from a couple program areas and we merged into dmacc and when we merged we made it our mission statement that we wanted to be the best in the state. And we've accomplished that in many ways. And one of those is equipment. Not many community colleges have what we have. In fact not many.

Four universities have what we have. So the students are blessed that come here to have access to equipment that is really second to none.

So. And why is that so important? Because I know, I mean people say well I can make video on my phone and you know, we.

Why do I need this red camera or the fancy, you know, really nice equipment?

Sounds like you need to take my class. My scimitar fee.

One class I think so I've sat in on one of Jeff's and it was so fun.

Yeah, no, I mean, I think I've tried to set up the programs, the classes to be, you know, hands on and they're making projects so you have something you're walking away with. But equipment base wise, when I showed up, I was shocked at how much equipment was here and how much of the equipment is still industry standard.

I think the key for me and being a vocational study is having things that are used in the industry. We're trying to update our equipment to make sure it's still industry standard.

But we want the students to be able to walk out of LCC and start working. If they're not using standard equipment, they're just gonna seem, you know, like a green on set. They're not gonna know what they're doing.

So having all this equipment that they'll be familiar with on set will just help that next step into their career.

That's great. So you mentioned on set and onset can mean a lot of different things. And so tell us a little bit about what is that?

What are those things where students can land?

And that's the question that mom's gonna ask their student. You know, like when I was a student, my mom was like, how are you gonna make money? So there is that. That onset could mean a ton of things.

And I talk to my students about this because if you wanna stay in Lansing, there's work here, there's commercials, there's corporate stuff, there's insurance companies that are hiring in house stuff. Essentially, when we talk about on set, we just talk about the production side, using the camera, creating, you know, that sort of thing.

So being able to be familiar with recording and getting the best image possible and then that's the hope you walk out and you can work here in Lansing, go to Detroit, there's work there, Chicago, if you want to move to New York, Louisiana, that sort of thing. Just kind of giving people a place where they're stepping out a little higher than other people in the area.

At least other schools, as they leave, they hopefully have a little bit more hands on. They've done it, they feel more comfortable and they can kind of be ahead of people as they jump into the career.

That's great. That's really powerful. And to be here in the Capitol where, you know, just sort of centrally located with a lot of different connections around.

I think for students, you know, coming in, there's a lot of dreams. Yeah, I mean, and it's like that in other areas that are vocational too, but that have a Real creatively.

And, you know, just the film industry, it's the industry of dreams. Those two things somehow have to go together. And you all who work in it know it is an industry.

I mean, it's a. Yeah, for sure. And I don't want to talk. I feel like I'm talking over Jeff. But when I was here, and one big thing is, you know, this was years ago.

I'm not going to say how old I am, but.

Well, we both said, We've been here 25 years.

It was about that before when I was here. So when I was here, the idea of having a career in film was impossible. It wasn't even a thing in my head. I didn't.

I couldn't because it was, you know, you're in Michigan, it's far away from the quote unquote industry. And I was sitting in an editing bay and Jeff was like, you need to get out of Lansing and go to a bigger market because you can do it.

And I'm like, what? This is a career? I thought I was just here for a hobby. And it changed my perspective.

And I think the whole point now is the world is so much smaller than back then. Back then, we didn't all have cameras in our pocket. And yes, I would rather you use a red camera than a phone, but storytelling is storytelling.

So if we are teaching them how to create with a top end camera camera, they can land in any other place and be already far beyond people who are just starting with DSLRs or some other small camera.

Yeah, that makes sense. So, Jeff, you encouraged Barry to spread his wings, in effect, how. I'm sure as the lead faculty, and both of you and other faculty too do this.

But that's a role that you continue to play with students, right?

Yeah, and it's one of the best parts of this job really, is working with students, encouraging the students, seeing where their talents lay and seeing how you can, you know, help facilitate them towards moving into an area of interest. All the faculty here are great at that. And one of the real things, unique things, is that we're small classroom sizes.

So our classroom sizes vary from a video workshop class, which might have six to eight students in it, up to, you know, Barry's class, which maybe has 12. So we do try to limit the sizes so that students can get hands on personal attention.

And in that environment, the instructors are able to interact with the students much more closely than you would in a big lecture hall where, you know, you don't know the students. But here we know our Students, we know their names, you know, we're very close with them, we just work very close with them.

And that allows us to, you know, help them on their journey from here to wherever it is they may go.

Absolutely. In a two year program they get to know each other too. So there's a real. You can build a nice community, which is really good.

When you want to have a crew and you're trying to actually, you know, accomplish a project in a class, you have people that you can rely on or at least turn to.

Yes, absolutely.

And I want to mention that the other faculty, the people that teach in the program are working professionals.

That is correct.

I mean, there's a couple of faculty who are here as full time media producers. On staff, Dave Wasinger and Rob Edwards.

And we have Lisa Whiting Dobson from Michigan State University. She's full time over there and she works in the industry, still in the television industry. And we have Steve Simonson, he works on the audio side.

We have, of course, Mr. Elmore, myself. We have Peter Fromm who teaches pre production for us.

He's an industry guy as well, a little bit different than media, but he's still in the copywriting, script writing business, corporate work. Who else? Did I miss anyone?

I Hope I did Ms. Brock Elser.

I did miss someone.

That's okay.

Brock. And he's an audio guy as well. Industry guy as well. So yeah, everyone comes out of industry in one capacity or another.

So the students are gonna get a lot of good advice, training and expertise.

I think that also helps build connections in the community too, because these people are working and so they have connections and that is really something valuable. When you're in school. You don't necessarily. You haven't been out there yet.

So what are some of the things, some of the ways that you help students get out and about what are some of the projects that they work on?

Yeah, so in my class we have them do projects for the Michigan association of Broadcasters. And it's a requirement of the class that they'll submit that. It's a jury competition.

But more importantly, they're getting the work out there, they're getting their name out there and they have the event or they have the opportunity to network people, just not only here on campus, but with the association itself and its membership body.

And that's a state. Michigan association of Broadcasters. Statewide.

Correct. Statewide and other things we do. Barry and Rob and Dave went to Ford Field this year for a big Great Lakes media broadcasting conference.

And students were encouraged to go to that event. Barry manned a booth there and set things up and that's one of the opportunities that students have.

And I know the film club, which Barry has recently regenerated, they're doing a lot of really good things over there.

Oh yeah? What's the film club been up to?

Yeah, club is less. It's not watching films and critiquing. It's more about getting out and getting experience and building that community.

Because the first thing I talk about in my intro to class, my intro production classes, is that community. Your name is everything as a freelancer. So you have to build that community. Contacts are everything.

People being kind and feeling that kindness from you, that's all super, super important. So film club is. The idea is trying to create that community here at LCC and then get these students out and actually experience what a set is like.

Because it's just different than doing a student project. And they just finished a short film that they were doing for the Fortnite competition in the Lansing Capital City Film Festival.

Sorry, Fortnite competition. And I just found out today that they were. They're a finalist. So their film did make it in. So if anyone's available, Evergreen go to see it.

But yeah, so the idea is, like I said, just getting to experience that because I tell students all the time, when you work in the industry, you're working 12 hour days. I'm traveling to and from work away from the house 14 to 16 hours a day.

The people you work with are your family and you continue to work with these people. So, you know, I got jobs from people that I worked with here at LCC as students. You know, I've gotten jobs from plenty of people at Columbia.

It's all about who you know and where you are at the time and then having the ability to do it once you. Once you're there.

So there. And there's. There really is a strong community in the Lansing area that's film and video production oriented.

There's the Lansing Public Media center where I think there's at least one. Couple of LCC alumni work there. And they are one of the founders of the Capital City Film Festival that you mentioned.

And that is an international festival that happens in Lansing every year. I forget exactly their claim to. But they're like one of the best of a certain kind of film festival in the world. And they.

You mentioned the Fortnite Film Competition. That's open to any team, any individual who wants to take two weeks and put together a film. And there is an amazing amount.

I mean, it's amazing what people accomplish in two weeks.

So what a great experience for students to, to work on that and then have that submitted and screened and considered for, for prizes, and then to be able to go and mingle with filmmakers who, who are experienced coming in.

It's been really nice. A lot of the, the members of the film club this year have been going. A bunch of them went together to the, to the opening.

And I just hearing from them, like, they're talking to people and they're excited about getting and talking to different people. And it's like that's, that's what the industry is. It's like, you know, it's always talking, meeting people. You know, that's just what it is.

It really is. It's a, it's a, it's, it's a vibe, as they say. And LCC is involved with that in a, in a few different ways, which is, which is really cool.

You mentioned Michigan association of Broadcasters. We've got pretty regularly students who are submitting work and winning awards.

Yes, we do.

And, you know, we all say awards are, you know, we're not working for the awards, but, boy, when you get an award, you're recognized for the quality of your work, the impact for your work. It does mean something.

It does mean something. And that's one of the reasons that I really encourage it in the curriculum and in classes. It just puts the students out there.

You know, we can all get into our own heads and think, oh, this is just Lansing. This isn't going to go anywhere. And I really encourage them to think bigger, think broader, and, you know, put your work out there.

You know, you never know where it's going to go. And we've been very successful.

Not we, but the students have been very successful in getting their work before a jury competition at the Michigan association of Broadcasters. And this year we had, I think, three different students compete and place, which was very exciting and it was great. So I went to the event.

I was there just to kind of be behind the scenes and take pictures of the students. And before they get there, I don't think they really realize the magnitude of the event.

You know, it's just some old instructor telling me, yeah, apply to this thing, submit to this thing, much like the film festival. And then when they get there, they're like, oh, my gosh, this is like, this is amazing.

They're meeting hundreds, literally hundreds of other students from across the state. All networking opportunities.

They're meeting the industry leaders, they're meeting professors from other universities who are giving out grants and scholarships. I mean, it's just. It's a no brainer. It's like we should be doing these things and to see a student do it, it just brings so much joy to my eyes.

But we really encourage it and they've been very successful and we're going to continue that as well.

That's marvelous. And you know, not every program does have an Oscar winning alum.

That is correct. Not everyone does, but we do. And he was a young man out of Potterville, Michigan, and this was great. He came up here and Sam. Sam Davis.

And it was kind of the thing where it was like, you know, mom, what am I gonna do? What are you gonna do? And he came up and he took some classes, primarily the cinema classes, and he fell in love with it.

And you could tell, it's like, you know, I'd like to take credit for his success. You could tell he had what it takes and he knew where he wanted to go. He had an idea, he had a vision, and he was very successful here.

And now he has two Oscars on his shelf and I'm sure many more to come.

That's. That's pretty impressive. This last one was for a film that he directed, the Singers, which is on Netflix. I believe it's still on Netflix.

Yes, it is.

So it is worth watching.

Absolutely.

That is very exciting. Again, the awards aren't everything, but I think it speaks to the quality of instruction and the quality of the program, that it's a program that's.

That's designed that students want to attend and that functions to provide them with skills when they graduate. I was going to say credentials. Tell me about the credentials. What are the degrees or certificates that they can.

Yeah, so we have 2 degrees. We have a standalone associate's degree and that is in film and video production. And then we have a certificate of achievement as well.

So students can work on their certificate of achievement as they're working towards their two year degree, or they may just choose to obtain that and then go off into the industry. But we do offer a couple options for the students coming in. The associate is about 65 credits and the certificate of achievement is around 30, 34.

It takes about two years to get through.

All right. And just some students transfer as well.

Yes, we do have a good. Barry is an example of a student that transferred out. So we do Have a lot of students that transfer out.

We have a close working relationship with Ferris State University that's more specific to broadcasting, you know, live tv, sporting and whatnot. But Michigan State students transfer to certainly. Barry went to Columbia College in Chicago.

We've had students go down to Savannah College of Art and Design and have been very successful. So, yeah, transfer. We know that we're not the end of the road for a lot of students, so that we're going to prepare them for that transfer.

That's great. One thing I want to mention, you talked about Ferris and like, broadcast and sports. I know there's a class here where students actually get to film.

Not film, videotape.

That's okay. I say the same. I say shoot all the time.

Yeah, yeah, I know, I know. Having worked in video shoot is just sort of second nature. But anyway, tell me about that class because that's really exciting.

Okay.

Yeah.

So we have a. It's a multicam. What do we call it?

Live multicam production.

Live multicam production. So one of our professors teaches it.

It is.

They actually do the live feed for both basketball and volleyball and working on baseball for next year, I think. But the students will go in, they'll learn how to switch live, do all that sort of stuff and stream live.

But they're also the people who are manning the cameras and actually recording those basketball games and. And volleyball games. So it gives a really great experience of being there live, part of this team creating something.

And it goes directly to be viewed. So it's, you know that you're part of it right away. Right. Just doing it as it's happening. So it is a fun class. And I think it's.

Hopefully it's just gonna grow. Hopefully.

That's exciting. That's wonderful. Well, LCC has great sports.

Yes, they do.

And great facilities.

So, you know, you say facilities, and I just want to jump in there real quick. We get students in here.

In fact, just recently, we had a group come through and everyone to a person is just like, I cannot believe the facilities you have here at lcc. From the campus, from the grounds to the buildings, you come into one of our classrooms and look at this equipment.

They're like, I can't believe this. It's like a hidden gem. Nobody knows about this. I mean, a few people do, but maybe through this podcast, others. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

We have amazing facilities.

We really do.

We're very lucky.

We are. We are right here in the heart of Mid Michigan, in the capital.

One thing I want to mention, because I would Think that people who are listening to this, even if they're not going to necessarily enroll to become a digital media, audio and cinema major, maybe they're majoring in something else. Are there classes that they can take without being a major?

Yeah, I mean, I think Jeff could probably speak better to this.

I know there's World Cinema, but. Which is a cool class.

Yeah, it's a great class.

Production wise, we get a lot of students, maybe from the comm program marketing program, they want to come over, they want to learn, you know, how do, how do I do a basic edit, how do I do a basic shoot? So DMACC130 would be a great class. Other students want to get into simple audio production, basic podcasting.

DMACC120 is a great place to start there.

So those are the two classes that primarily we see students from other programs coming into to kind of experiment and say, you know, I want specific, a little bit more video specific, a little bit more audio. And then from there we can feed them out into, you know, other areas of the curriculum.

We do have the ethics of.

Yes, we do. And that just got on course.

What does that mean?

So can you name the whole name.

Of our listeners for the media? Michigan Transfer Agreement, basically. So we have a class called Media Ethics.

And so any student that would take that here and wanting to transfer to a four year university, they would transfer out to all of the, you know, Michigan State, Central, Grand Valley, all those classes. So it wouldn't be a wasted class. If you took it, it would transfer.

That's great.

Yeah.

Boy, what a, what an important class to be offering.

And today more than ever.

Yeah, it is, it is.

It's a slightly off topic, but does the program address misinformation and is that in the ethics class or is that sort of woven throughout in terms of how you're telling stories and what your responsibility is?

That's a huge question.

Okay. And you know what? We are almost at time, so let's have you guys back and we will talk about ethics and misinformation.

AI is, you know, every. It's coming for everybody, but, you know, it's a thing that we have to think about in video and film.

Great. Well, I would love to have you back and talk about that.

We could have a few other people and have a really interesting conversation about AI in a number of fields. But because we are just about at time, I want to find out where listeners can go for more information. The LCC website for the digital.

Okay, I'm going to include in the notes for this podcast, the website. Does the program have a Facebook or social media?

We do, but it's a bit long in the tooth and we haven't updated it lately. But we're going to be. But we do. It's out there. It's the DMACC program on Facebook.

All right, great. I'll add that to the notes, too. And.

And more things are coming, I promise.

Yeah. Oh, I'm sure they are. I'm sure they are. Well, you've got to focus on what's in the classroom and what's all related there. But what a great program.

What exciting things are happening and, you know, great work that the students are doing. So really proud of everybody.

Thank you very much for having us. It's fun to talk about.

Good, good. I'm glad. Thank you. Barry Elmore.

Thank you.

And Jeff Hamlin.

Thank you, Melissa.

And I'm Melissa Kaplan. And you've been listening to Inside lcc.

This has been Inside LCC. If there's a specific degree and program you want to hear more about, let us know by contacting us at LCCconnect.org. Thanks for taking a listen Inside LCC.