108: Teaching and Tech in the Creative Industries

Catalyst is a Creative Industries podcast, from Chapman University. Each episode features Chapman students who have completed a Podcasting course through the Center for Creative and Cultural Industries at the university. Students who had no podcasting experience or technical ability in the genre before taking the course were able to contribute all the segments to Catalyst this season with the goal being that they will take this ‘hands-on’ experience and carry it over to the launching of their very own series. Each episode of Season 12 will feature one to two different interviews conducted by CCI students, exploring different aspects of the Creative and Cultural Industries.

We jump into this week’s episode of Catalyst Sofia del Rey and her interview with Ryan Metzler. Metzler, a educator whose focus is in media production and the film industry has worked with students that range from middle schoolers to college. Metzler talks about his role in helping students to develop the vocational and creative skills necessary for those pursuing careers in the film industry. They also discuss what he sees as the importance of fostering community within his classrooms, teaching students that they must rely on the support of those around them. In closing he touches on the challenges of working in the Creative and Cultural Industries, but they wrap the interview with Metzler’s advice for those pursuing a career in the arts.

To close our episode this week Maya Caparaz talks with John Lacy, a veteran Film Industry lighting technician from the Bay Area who has more than 30 years of experience. Lacy’s career illustrious career includes credits on such films and TV projects as Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, American Sniper, 13 Reasons Why, and Captain Marvel. Maya and John discuss how his interest in filmmaking as a child influenced him to study film in college. They then talk about John more recent projects such serving as the chief lighting technician on Freaky Tales, a film that premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival and is set to be released in theaters with stars like Pedro Pascal and Tom Hanks.  Through the interview John explains the work that he does as a chief lighting technician including working directly under the director of photography to implementing their ideas for the lighting while also taking into consideration the budget that the producers have decided for the lighting department. They conclude the interview with some of John’s thoughts on the influence of lighting on the acting and story of a film or television show.