As she enters her final semester at Ball State, Video Team Master Jaylee Copeland plans to immerse herself in her work just like she has during the course of her college career. With a big passion for video production, Jaylee has learned a lot about herself and her skillset by diving in headfirst to whatever opportunities come her way. She describes herself as someone who learns better from experience rather than from a textbook.
“I do so much better working hands on. If I’m learning about a camera, I don’t want to watch a video about it, I want to get my hands on it and try it for myself.”
This approach makes her a great fit for fast-paced work, like the Show Promos project, where the Video Team records a ‘first look’ video about an upcoming stage production during rehearsal, and then quickly puts together and delivers a promotional cut that can draw up interest for the show.
The turnaround for this project is very fast, normally due the very next day. This includes filming, editing, and revisions. Although this sounded intimidating to Jaylee at first, she embraced and appreciated the challenge.
“Working under a tight deadline on this project showed me that I can handle working quickly under pressure in future jobs.”
Due to the inherent creative nature of a project, it allows the Video Team to be more creative with every step of the video production process, from planning shots, all the way to making final editing decisions. For Jaylee, the more creative freedom she gets, the better, and she particularly enjoys editing to music.
Having experience on different kinds of sets is also something Jaylee has a lot of experience, not only from the Corps, but from her classes in general. As a Media Production major, she spends lots of time on sets, preparing and filming. Jaylee cited her Radiance Cinema class as one of her favorites, as the class allows her to work on a big set with multiple roles, such as director, producer, and audio operator. Jaylee thrives in environments like this as she is someone who likes to work in all video-related roles.
Developing key skills for the workplace and post-grad life has been one of the highlights at the Corps for Jaylee. Networking and building her own personal brand are both things Jaylee enjoys doing, each of which have contributed to her acquiring her own freelance clients. Jaylee pursues many kinds of clients when it comes to her freelance work, even recently filming a wedding. She also edits promotional videos for small businesses in her hometown.
Jaylee quickly rose the ranks at the Corps, becoming a Master after just a few semesters. This role allows her to mentor other students—and Jaylee enjoys the collaboration aspect of the Corps, and the video industry in general.
“Working with so many different people is the best part of the field. You aren’t always surrounded by the same groups, so you get to learn from each other, which is something I really like.”
Outside of the Corps and the classroom, Jaylee enjoys jogging, cooking, painting, baking, and making art, but ultimately her favorite hobby is doing video editing, proving she’s working at the right place. With such a wide range of skills that she genuinely enjoys applying in a video production setting, the future for Jaylee is bright, and we can’t wait to see her next move!
