Students Rachel Hodges (second from left) and Brandon Primmer (right) are pictured with BRTF professors Peter VandenBerg (left) and Bruce Gilbert (second from right) at the BEAC awards ceremony in Halifax, where Hodges and Primmer were honoured with national awards for their work.
Two Niagara College Broadcasting students capped off their college years as national award winners.
Just weeks before graduating from Niagara College’s three-year Broadcasting – Radio, Television and Film program, Brandon Primmer and Rachel Hodges were each with honoured with a National Student Award from the Broadcast Educators Association of Canada. The BEAC awards recognize the unique combination of creativity and technical excellence demonstrated by students in radio, television, video and new media.
BEAC president Ashif Jivraj noted that the BEAC’s National Student Awards recognize excellence in media production from students across Canada.
“Recipients are chosen by industry professionals and faculty that look for creativity, and technical quality. Productions selected reflect the highest standards exemplified by BEAC member institutions in Canada,” said Jivraj. “Congratulations to Rachel and Brandon for their awards. Seeing their outstanding work gives me a renewed confidence for the future of our industry.”
Welland residents Primmer and Hodges both won the awards for work they completed as part of their studies: Primmer in the video category for his music video, “Let Yourself Go,” and Hodges in the audio category for her newscast that aired live in December on NC’s student radio station, CRNC The Heat.
Primmer, who is originally from Owen Sound, created the music video for his film production class.
“It was an incredible experience for me personally, to take a pen and paper idea and transform it into a full-fledged professional video where a dedicated crew worked on it for the course of a month,” he said.
He currently works as a videographer in Hamilton for AMV Productions and hopes to run his own production company someday specializing in music and corporate videos or commercials.
“This BEAC award winning video has shown me my true potential in reaching that goal,” he said. “Combined with a skill set refined by Niagara College, I truly believe I can achieve what I set out to do after graduating.”
Winning the national award was a welcome surprise to Hodges on the brink of graduation. Hodges, who is originally from Orillia, said she was grateful for the award and the experience she gained in all three streams of the College’s Broadcasting program – radio, television and film.
“It has always been my goal to work in the news industry so being able to add a national news award to my resume will certainly be beneficial in the future,” said Hodges, who is currently putting her education to work in the field as an intern reporter at News Talk 610 CKTB. “It will help me stand out among a number of other talented and qualified applicants which is important in such a small and competitive industry.”
At the end of May, the students were accompanied to Halifax by BRTF professors Bruce Gilbert and Peter VandenBerg to receive their awards.
“Seeing our students win national awards reinforces that our Broadcasting – Radio, Television and Film program produces high-quality grads that leave with the tools necessary to get great jobs,” said Gilbert. “It was a privilege to represent Niagara College that night.”
Primmer and Hodges both graduated from the College’s BRTF program on the morning of June 24.
For information about the BEAC student awards visit www.beac.ca/2016-student-award-winners/
Watch Brandon Primmer’s award-winning video:
m.youtube.com/watch?v=YZO2zWdhl8Q
Listen to Rachel Hodge’s award-winning newscast:
soundcloud.com/rachelhodges/radio-news-demo
