A Fogged Lense: Media arts alumni gives advice to students unsure of their future

By: Nicole Vickers '16 and Mahala Nelson '16

When a student chooses a major, it is generally because they have a specific job in mind. The degree is just means to an end. But for a lot of creative majors such as studio art, creative writing or media arts, sometimes the path isn’t always so clear. 

For Daven Sprattling-Mathies ’07, he wasn’t sure what he was going to do with his media arts degree, but that didn’t stop him from enjoying every moment of his college life. 

“I still get teary-eyed thinking about my time at Pacific,” said Sprattling-Mathies. “I remember the big picture, the undocumented value in the experiences I had and the people I met. Not all of those experiences were good, either, but they were all important to who I am now.” 

For many who walk into college with an idea of what they want to become, that can change during the course of their four years of undergraduate. Students may find that what interests them may not be what they originally thought. 

This applies to all students who feel as if they aren’t sure where their education is going to take them. No matter what major a student chooses, there are always options and different doors being opened. As long as they feel that they are going in a positive direction then who knows what kind of opportunities might present themselves. 

“You get out of your education what you put into it, and that goes beyond the classroom,” said Sprattling-Mathies. “I think that's incredibly important for any student to realize, but especially for Media Arts majors who don't have a clear path to follow. You have to motivate yourself to keep going even when it feels like you're stumbling around in the dark.” 

Sprattling-Mathies started as a media major and realized that it was in the technical side that he belonged.

“I think media arts represent the union of the arts and the sciences,” said Sprattling-Mathies. “I also love to write, but I felt I had lot more to learn from video production because of all the tech involved.” 

Once out of college, Sprattling-Mathies found a job working in a bank, but soon realized that it was stifling and so decided to start up a photography business with a fellow Pacific graduate, Corey Bennett ’09. Currently Sprattling-Mathies works in a marketing department and has been able to make seemingly small decisions that have large impacts in his work. He has a personal investment in his company and enjoys his work there. 

 While it isn’t always advisable to quit a career, it is advisable to make sure that whatever job you are working in, that it allows you to have whatever creative freedom you want. If you are stuck in a stifling career, it never hurts to try and do something about it. Whether that is being open to a pay drop or to a new and completely different career path than originally planned, Sprattling-Mathies advises to never forget your passions, be open and know that everyone walks their own path at their own pace.

Forging his way into Filmmaking

By Tristan Stoch ’11 

For many people, pursuing the arts is not viewed as a realistic career path.

Whenever I told people I was a film student the conversation would go one of two ways: either people would jokingly ask me to buy them a car once I made my millions or they would ask why I was paying tuition to pursue a hobby that I could do in between waiting tables.

Since my graduation, I have discovered neither of these extremes to be true; filmmaking is a viable career path full of opportunities. The last two years have been exciting and I owe it all to the Film and Video Program.

Stoch '11 in action

My senior project was a short film called “Clarity” and it was made with a crew of Pacific film students and actors. Jennifer Hardacker and Enie Vaisburd, the two film professors, are wonderful teachers who work with their students on a personal level to accomplish their projects and foster their growth as filmmakers.

Because of their support, “Clarity” is still on the film festival circuit. It won “Best Social Message” at the 2012 Columbia Gorge International Film Festival, was nominated for “Best Screenplay,” “Best Student Film” and “Best Supporting Actress” at the Maverick Movie Awards and was winner of “Best Student Film” at the 2012 Oregon Independent Film Festival. Watch an excerpt from "Clarity."

After graduation, I filmed a documentary for the Acupuncture Relief Project. The film was my first documentary and is about a health clinic that employs acupuncture to treat patients in rural Nepal. I got this job because of my experiences at Pacific and the reel that I made as a student. The film was finished in May 2012 and premiered at the Hollywood Theater in Portland. It went on to several film festivals, winning “Best Local Documentary” at the 2012 Columbia Gorge International Film Festival, right next to “Clarity.” Watch the documentary

In the last half of 2012, I dedicated myself to freelancing and worked on a variety of documentary and commercial shoots around Portland. Recently, alumnus Sean Grasso '12 and I started a production company called Cineastas, Spanish for “filmmaker.”

We make video portraits for small businesses, artisans and craftspeople that are designed to be effective promotional tools for the businesses. Our first portrait was made for the HiiH Gallery in Portland and very well received online. We have several new projects we are working on for clients at the moment and are excited for the future.

Granted, I have not made my millions (yet), but I am doing what I love for a job. I have been making a comfortable living, keeping my bills paid and have been having a great time at the “office.” Ultimately, this is why I went to college; to provide myself with a future like this one.

Most importantly, I am not an exception amongst Pacific film graduates. The Media Arts Department is proving itself to have a high success rate. Many of my peers work in the field at companies like Laika (the company behind the Oscar Nominated “Paranorman”), NBC’s television show based in Portland “Grimm,” CW News, and Dawson Media Group.

Other film grads include a videographer in Portland, a feature length documentary director, a professional actress, a traveling documentary filmmaker, and a video editor at OHSU. Because of our time at Pacific, we are getting jobs in a field where we have been told it would be impossible to find work.

Stoch '11 has recently been hired back at Pacific University as Media Production Coordinator in the Berglund Center for Internet Studies.