Graduate students in the Department of Communication and Film received a unique opportunity to assist in the production of the University’s new brand video thanks to Agency., a creative and communications firm founded by UofM alumnus Benjamin Rednour (BA ’05).
“Partnering with universities and students shouldn’t be novel; it should be the norm,” Executive Producer Rednour said. “We work for and alongside causes that advance the agency of others. The University of Memphis gave us the capacity to act, and Agency. is the result of that capacity. We sat in those seats, read those books and listened to those lectures. Bringing that full circle by partnering with our alma mater is a milestone.”
Agency.’s mission statement, “We are what we give.,” empowers organizations to take action, create and influence. The firm uses local talent from videographers and actors to musicians, bringing economic development and highlighting the many talented individuals in the city of Memphis.
For this particular shoot, Rednour added, “Not only did we share knowledge with the next generation of creatives on this set, but also hosted former professors and showed them how their teachings continue to impact our careers. Those are receipts of this University.”
Rednour moved to the city to attend the University of Memphis and said that the UofM helped build both him and his community. He hopes that others see that community through the video and come to Memphis to experience it for themselves.
Director Edward Valibus (BA ’05) moved to Los Angeles seven years ago. Being back in Memphis, he was happy to see how much the campus has expanded over the years and that community is still at the heart of it.
“Success to me comes full circle when you are in a place where you can share your knowledge and lived experience for others and to grow the community of creatives around you. I hope the cinematography class had a good time interacting with our production and got to see how collaborative of an effort it is. Twenty years later and I’m still making films and videos with fellow classmates. It really is about who you come up with, how wide of a circle you make for others to join you and being supportive of each other as we all chase our dreams.”
Second-year graduate student Jasmin Settles said, “This experience is great and exactly what we need as graduate students, and this gives us that on-the-job experience.” She said she appreciated that alumni were back on campus and showing students the ropes. “We are the connections to projects once we are out on our own and done with school,” Settles said.
“Partnering with universities and students shouldn’t be novel; it should be the norm.”
– Benjamin Rednour (BA ’05)
The graduate students who participated are part of Associate Professor of Film, David Goodman’s Cinematography class. Goodman (MA ’13), who has been a faculty member at the UofM for eight years, said he was excited to have the opportunity to join the University and to work alongside filmmakers and Professor Emeriti David Appleby and Steve Ross, who were instrumental in building the film program forty years ago. Appleby and Ross taught most of the alumni who were part of the production team for the video.
“Seeing this type of professional production in action is a fantastic compliment to classroom instruction. Students get the opportunity to connect what we’ve been doing all semester to a real-world application,” Professor Goodman said.
“It means so much to see alumni of the program out and actively working in their field of study and doing a fantastic job. It’s also truly wonderful to see their enthusiasm for passing on knowledge and experience to our current group of students in the program.”
Professor Goodman said that several of the alumni who were part of the production crew came through the film program as students back when Appleby and Ross would have been their primary professors. They even got the chance to catch up with Appleby on set.“The bridge between past and present film programs was great to see,” Goodman said.
Cinematographer Ryan Earl Parker (BA ’01), whose latest projects as a cinematographer have been in the Top Ten on Netflix, including: “Untold Swamp Kings,” “The Most Hated Man on the Internet,” and “Secrets of the Saqqara Tomb,” in addition to the film, “Artist’s Wife,” featuring academy nominees Bruce Dern and Lena Olin, gave the class instruction on the varies equipment being used on set, allowing students to try out specialty cameras with one of the student donning a $4,500 backpack rig.
Caleb Suggs, a first-year graduate student majoring in Film and Video Production, said, “One thing that really struck me and my classmates about the production team was how open and communicative they were and how receptive they were to questions and conversation. Film and video sets are fast-paced and can definitely be stressful, especially when you’re working on the clock for a big client. They took the time to genuinely walk and talk with our class and give us a comprehensive look into their workflow and what they were doing. I guess that just goes to show how supportive and welcoming our film community in Memphis really is. This was a great networking and learning opportunity that our department provided for us.”
Parker communicated the importance of renting equipment, particularly when starting out as a cinematographer, to have access to top-quality equipment to learn about the different lenses and features, while also remaining budget friendly. “Lenses are just tools, use whatever works best for you,” he told the students.
The musical talents of students from the Rudi E. Scheidt School of Music will be showcased in the video, including the Lorraine String Quartet and the musical score, which was composed by Marie A. Douglas (DMA ’24).
Other alumni involved in the project included Sean Davis (BA ’08), still photographer, Dindie Donelson (BA ’12), production assistant, and Erik Morrison (BA ’05), vice president of Innovation at Lensrentals.
To practice their craft, Lensrentals, the largest online rental provider for photography, videography and lighting equipment and accessories in the United States, and headquartered in Memphis, provided the grad students gift cards during one of the production days.
“Years ago, as we graduated from the University and joined a growing online photo and video equipment rental house, the education and creative foundation we gained there played a key role in the company’s early success, whether we were handling technical support calls or helping clients choose the right equipment for their projects,” Morrison said. Morrison said many of the early employee of Lensrentals came from programs at the UofM and many hold leadership roles across the company today.
“When the opportunity arose to support this project, there was no shortage of enthusiasm to give back to our alma mater and its students,” Morrison said. “From the start, Ben and Edward emphasized the importance of involving University of Memphis students in the production, offering them firsthand experience of a working set and the chance to connect with alumni with jobs in the industry. For many of us, that period in school was one of the most creatively charged and formative times in our lives. The gift cards are a small but meaningful way to invest in that same spirit of creativity and to support the next generation of artists and storytellers coming out of the University.”
Professor Goodman said, “The involvement of Lensrentals is wonderful. They are an excellent resource in town for our students and, of course, to local filmmakers. It’s great to see yet another example of ways that Memphis filmmaking resources can connect and help grow the future of the film community.”
The excitement continued downtown when Agency. showcased the energy and Tiger spirit during Memphis Madness’ Ballin’ on Beale celebration.
Suggs, who was on set and one of the students featured last year on the UofM’s episode of “The College Tour” said, “Can’t wait for my next time working on a big set. Who knows if I’ll be in front of the camera, behind the scenes, or both!”
Morrison said, “It was such a blast getting back on set and catching up with so many of my old production buddies. Honestly, it felt like a homecoming.”
The new brand video will debut in November.
Behind The Scenes Photos Courtesy of Agency.
Slider Image 1: Left to Right: Erik Morrison, Benjamin Rednour, Sean Davis, Ryan Earl Parker, Professor Emeritus David Appleby, and Edward Valibus.
Slider Image 2: Dindie Donelson (BA ’12) with Professor Emeritus David Appleby.
Slider Image 3: Left to Right: Ryan Earl Parker, Benjamin Rednour, Erik Morrison, Professor Emeritus David Appleby, and Edward Valibus.
