Club Central: Media Club

PJP’s Media Club is dedicated to providing PJP families with school updates via PJP’s Morning Show and by videoing various school events held throughout the year. There are currently 66 students who participate in Media Club ranging from grades 8 through 12. Moderator Mrs. Jovanovic, Co-Presidents Marshall Thompson and Jackson Marble, and Vice President Madison Lin recently participated in an interview to give further insight into the responsibilities of Media Club members throughout the school.

Moderator Mrs. Jovanovic, who started Media Club in the fall of 2012, depends on Media Club members to handle events such as Mass setup, morning shows, graduation, football games, and other events that require footage. She hopes to soon teach Media Club members the skills necessary to incorporate lighting into their setups. Mrs. Jovanovic would also like to make an impact “by making sure that we have a way to get information out to the general public. The morning show is not just for the student population, but also for parents and grandparents too. It could be parents overseas who are in the military… [We want to] make them feel a part of our family.” Madison, a current junior and 2-year member of Media Club, appreciates “handling all the technological aspects of it. It’s something I’m pretty passionate about and I’m glad to have this unique experience.” Marshall, a current senior and 4-year member of Media Club, enjoys being behind the scenes, especially when he works with the microphone systems. He states that “it’s a good feeling to be serving from behind the scenes”. Jackson, a current senior and 3-year member of Media Club, enjoys being “in front of the camera because joining the Media Club helped me get out of my shell. It helped me be more open to conversation.” This actually accomplishes one of Mrs. Jovanovic’s goals in Media Club. She hopes to allow Media Club to give all students the skills necessary to become a public speaker. “[Media Club] gets [students] comfortable and a part of something. It also helps them start verbalizing.” Madison’s experience working with cameras behind the scenes allows her to see “the growth in our anchors from people that say they could never speak in front of the camera to people who are able to talk comfortably and even add their own flair to the show. It’s a pretty proud moment to see and it even motivates me [to put] myself out there.” Additionally, Media Club members have been enjoying the new Green Room to record morning shows every morning. Jackson states that “being in the Green Room is more spacious than the old corner of the library. It gives more room to move without being crowded with cords and other equipment.” Media Club members were limited in the amount of time that they had to move into the Green Room, but impressively, they quickly completed their transition and advanced Media Club’s opportunities to record events. Before the end of the year, Madison hopes to get “more people interested in the technological aspect” of Media Club and also add new technologies to enhance their productions. To participate in Media Club, students can be an anchor, crew member, liaison, or barista. Anchors report announcements in front of the camera every morning on the Morning Show. Crew members work behind the scenes with cameras, computers, camera effects, microphones, sound effects, and eventually lighting. The Media Club Liaison is typically a 2 year position that works alongside Eucharistic Ministers, Liturgy Team, and Music Ministry to assemble a slideshow for each Mass. Baristas work in Jag Java to help raise funds to purchase cameras, computers, and other equipment for the Media Club.  All Media Club members have the opportunity to help setting up materials for Mass, such as microphone systems and projector screen. Media Club hopes to begin recording more events, particularly one important game for each sport, to advance the amount of broadcasted events at PJP. Thank you to all the Media Club members for all the hard work you put into ensuring that many events around our school are recorded!