Le Resume

 Contently Voice

175 Church Street West Orange NJ, 07107 • 609-989-5510 • Voice@Contently.com

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PROFILE:  I am a highly capable and detail-oriented worker, who can demonstrate intelligence with in team environment with diverse professionals. A remarkable listener and communicator who conveys ideas clearly and effectively verbally and in writing. High-level proficiency with Microsoft Office 2007 suite including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Publisher, Outlook WordPress blogger, Facebook, Twitter. Intermediate Skill-level in Final Cut Pro and Photoshop.

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PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Rutgers University (OUCP)-RU Ready For Work Program Assistant                 January 11-March 12

• Administrative assistant reporting directly to program director and senior staff
• Office management, excellent phone etiquette, data entry, and file management
• Lead Coordinator of monthly on and off campus events and programs
• Development of program letters, memos, newsletters, brochures, and presentations

This administrative position provided a great foundation to establish and grow my professional etiquette.  I worked with various academic scholars consequently I was acclimated to the proper way that professionals communicate verbally, through writing, and through multimedia.

Shoesorfood.com Online Magazine-Content Producer/Writer                                May 11-March 12

• Researching, writing, editing, and arranging text, video, and images for a variety of articles geared toward women’s topics including love, fashion, beauty, women’s health and more  
• Demonstrating internet savvy-ness by developing content for internet media which is current, creative, detail-oriented, and produces a loyal reading audience.
• Planning, design, content development, promoting and managing web magazine through various online networks including facebook.com, twitter.com, stumbler.com, and many others.
• Strong knowledge of popular culture including areas of music, movies, fashion, and politics

Writing for an online media outlet introduced me to word-press as well as researching and producing for the web. I wrote material that was relevant and engaging to users. In addition I have the wordpress knowledge to build wordpress sites and create content for them. 

QVC Inc,-Product Coordinator                                                                             November 10-July 11

• Demonstrated ability to multitask, manage multiple deliverables/timelines
• Preparation of all QVC products for digital and video production shoot
• Maintaining a thorough inventory of all products that are in constant rotation for several shoot
• Working directing and cohesively with Videographers, Photographers, and Product Coordinators for all live shows ensuring products are available

At QVC I worked with multiple videographers and photographers. I successfully collaborated with   colleagues who had a distinct style of producing content. This experience provided insight into how content creators use different styles but are consistent with a particular branding. 

           

Backseat Conception LLC- Freelance Prod. Coordinator                           October 10-January 12

• Research and development for potential commercials, TV series and  films
• Successfully booked numerous vendors i.e. catering, crafty, camera and lighting equipment, ect., liaison between vendors, cast and crew
• On set presence, acting as key production assistant, assisting in gaffing and grip work
• Executed specific duties given directly from the producers that contributed to the successful production of 50,000 budgeted commercial shoot

As a freelancer I worked intricately with producers. My responsibilities were both in the production office and on set when necessary. I was to familiarize myself with processes within office and  the on set physical duties.

Contently Voice

175 Church Street West Orange NJ, 07107 • 609-989-5510 • Voice@Contently.com

EDUCATION

The School of Communications Quinnipiac University	Hamden, CT January 2014
Candidate for Master of Science in Interactive Media

                                                                       

Rutgers University	Newark, NJ
Bachelors, Media Studies, Video Production	May 2010

VIDEO PROJECTS

Mentoring and Leadership Training Program 2010

Producer, Director, and Editor

                                                                                                          

RU Ready to Work Summer Enrichment 2009

Producer, Director, and Editor

Contently Voice

175 Church Street West Orange NJ, 07107 • 609-989-5510 • Voice@Contently.com

Links

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnnLCnqarOY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zrIjCUMH6s

http://alexandriamusic1.com/video.html

http://shoesorfood.com/

http://www.publicrelationstheseries.com/castcrew.html

References

Diane Hill

Assistant Chancellor

Office of University-Community Relations

Rutgers University-Newark

973-353-1634

dianeh@andromeda.rutgers.edu

Nick Esposito

Co-owner, Producer

Backseat Conceptions

917-620-6387

nick@backseatconceptions.com

Sharron Grady

Teacher Leader

Visual and Performing Arts

Trenton Central High School

609-915-1619

dgradyx@optonline.net

Generation SnapShot Tobacco

One of the most dynamic advertising campaigns I have witnessed is the anti-cigarette campaign. As a New Jersey youth I was apart of REBEL (Reaching Everyone By Exposing Lies). Yes, completely chessy but kinda cool. This is one of the many campaigns across the country that educates people (particular youth) on the dangerous of tobacco. Even now on TV and other forms of advertising we have some of the most graphic and outright disturbing commercials about the lethal effects of smoking. A snap shot of cigarette ad’s in the 1930’s and 40’s is drastically different than now. Back then men looked cool and women looked sexy, now everyone looks the same, sick. This far-reaching advertising campaign on anti-smoking represents a major shift in how a generation and future generations will think about smoking. It impacted a major industry changing if for better or worse.  And there are thousands of advertising campaigns just like this one that has changed an entire society’s ideology.

In the coming weeks I hope to interest readers by writing about and examining an eclectic variety of advertising campaigns both past and present. Along with writing about the content that we constantly see, touch, and hear I will (hopefully intelligently) explore the subliminal content that provokes specific thought that manifests into actions. In other words “what is this ad’s content saying to me without saying it “? I am interested in learning, specifically for my own benefit, how much advertising impacts my way of life, priorities, values and beliefs. Most of all how can I amore myself as we progress further and further into an advertising driven society. 

Why ContentlyVoice

Welcome to ContentlyVoice. After some thought and even a name change ContentlyVoice seemed appropriated for this blog’s title. This blog’s subject is advertising content, an intricate part of society that is impossible to avoid. Advertising weaves itself into every corner of society; it’s practically the stylish fabric that our society wears. And because there is no shortage of content I have chosen it as my topic of choice. Whether ads bombard us with labels or seduce us with brands, they dictate how we contently or un-contently live our lives.

I have love/hate relationship with advertising content. It eloquently intrudes my life and more displeasing my thoughts. I cannot get away from them! And even when I know I want to, there is that one enticingly wicked MAC poster featuring Lady Gaga’s new lip balm on the wall of my subway train! I digress, this blog IS NOT centered around the woes of advertising targeting women, but advertising.  We are all in this together, just look at the statistics on how much me consume as a country. I am not sure if “advertising” is the cause of prodigal lifestyles, but I know from experience content can be an illusive infiltrator on the unsuspecting mind.

Lastly I think the subject is highly relevant in today’s image driven society and it also has a well-established historical catalog to critique, compare, and analyze. This content has shaped societies, influenced cultures and created trends that have influenced generations even after these ads are long gone. I am the right one to write on this subject. Arguably, if not definitively, was born and breed in the advertising capitol of the world, along with belonging the most advertised to demographics. I am, although micro in size, the perfect focus group, or should I say person. Happy reading all! 

BioVoice

I was born in the small city Trenton, New Jersey. Aside for it being the capitol of New Jersey, its greatest claim to fame is that a secret Government Facility in the movie “Hellboy” was headquartered there. It is a snap shot of your urban DC, Chicago, or Baltimore. This is where I grew up. Listening to the streets sounds, while learning in overcrowded school buildings. I have never been one for remembering things; my earliest memory is filled with agony.  Around the age of 3 possibly 4, I accidentally stabbed myself in the eye with a pair of scissors.  The images of an ambulance and helicopter escape me, but I distinctly remember lying on a cold metal table with an oxygen mask on my face, singing the sedation song “happy birthday to you” knowing clearly it was not my birthday.  Thankfully, I enter kindergarten with two good eyes and a shy personality. 

I attended about 5-6 different elementary schools. We moved a lot. Some schools were great others not so great. My third grade teacher Mrs. Fitzgerald I will never forget. My fourth grade teacher I wish I could forget.  The most challenging part of changing schools is being the new kid, transitioning from walking to busing, and overall staying out of trouble. Most of the time when I came to a new school I was on the teacher radar, a feeling I despised.  Constantly being felt out “is she a good kid or a trouble maker”? Being a good kid was not always a good because I became the target of the trouble makers.  So eventually I transitioned to the new trouble maker.  Instantly, like any nostalgic kid movie I became part of the cool kid crowd. However this trend did last long.  Not for any particular reason, maybe it wasn’t who I was or it was just a phase.  Consequently I settled into the “ok” kid who wasn’t afraid to defend herself.  

Middle School: For all of my year before this I was a MAJOR tomboy.  I didn’t care much for pretty, but by middle school I wanted to be pretty. I knew what I needed oh yes, a job. Babysitting, hair solon assistant, whatever it took to get the money to get the cuter clothes (a new image). So that’s what I did, mostly babysitting.  And if you asked me then I thought I was cute. If you ask me now I would just shake my head. My shy personality kept me away from fast boys that would be in agreement with my judgment of cuteness then and now. Admitting I wanted to be pretty not for attention, but to be thought of nicely. Which from observing my “pretty” older sister, I gathered people generally think of you in higher regards if you are pretty. Nonetheless my middle school experience was good, filled with cute clothes and mediocre academic performance. So much so I was demoted from gifted and talented into regular classes between my 6^th and 7^th grade years. The best thing that I gained from middle school are my two best friends.

I entered high school with confidence and two friends I knew I could count on. We tried out for the varsity cheerleading team together, two made it and the other one joined the band.  So we were still together all the time. I became a lot more focused on my high school academic performance and boys too. Cheerleading weirdly became a huge part of me and I got a boyfriend. Senior years was good, I was captain of the cheerleading team, homecoming queen, and I got into 3 of the 5 schools I applied to, then I graduated. The four years I thought I never wanted to end ended, along with some other things, looking back now high school flew by.

I started Rutgers EOF program the 2 days after I graduated.  I thought I would hate it. Giving up my entire summer to do some summer prep program. I did hate it, only in the moment however. I appreciated much later in the semester. Like most students I entered undecided. I however, quickly found my way to production in theater form. As a freshman I was a work-study student in the theater. I never took to the stage but I liked being around the set designers and lighting technicians.  After taking a media and culture class I decided that I would major in video production. One night in my junior year at a costume party a meet a boy. After that he occasionally walk me to class, then we regularly went on dates, now we see each other exclusively. During my senior year when my friends were all applying to graduate school I was looking for work.  When May came I was jobless with a degree like so many. 

I free-lanced for the summer landing a couple of gigs in NYC, mostly short films that lasted 2-3 weeks tops. While the pay was decent the work was inconsistent. I ended up moving to South Jersey with my parents.  I landed a freelancing gig, which I detest to write about.  The pay was terrible and the call hours even worse. I found a production company based in Philadelphia with the coolest bunch of films makers I have yet to met. Even while shooting commercials, independent films and getting drunk, I stayed diligent looking for a fulltime gig. In November I landed a job at QVC, only part-time though.  I can’t complain it was a great experience minus to commute. Still persistent I continued to look for a full time production assistant position. And in January I got one! Three interviews and an offer letter later, I got a dreadful phone call the company was going into a hiring freeze. I stayed at QVC until mid summer of that year. Feeling crushed by failure, I gave myself an ultimatum. I would move back to North Jersey and look for work. If I did not find a full time job in 6 months I would go back to school. 

Its funny the way things work. I didn’t find a job in 6 months. In January I started the ICM program at Quinnipiac University.  2 months later I interviewed for a full-time video production assistant position and I got it. No hiring Freeze, just an offer letter with an April 9^th start date.  While I was not exactly enthusiastic about graduate school and I almost gave up on my passion, the two could not have come together in better fashion or with greater correlation. And although I am sometimes overwhelmed, I can honestly say I love this program and my job.

Sample Me

Interactive and social media have the ability to lunge online user connecting and networking into an exponential growth stage. It is happening all around us all the time, especially in cases where the network is already established and has a substantial membership. These components enhance the ability to bolster a large interactive community. The appropriate measure is to create a place where these members can access one another and share on a scale that reflects the size and magnitude of their organization. I will be critiquing a company that is doing just that, Omegahotspots.com. This website is relatively new and there is a great amount of potential and development that I think can be realized.

Let me start by commending Omegahotspots.com. I think  the efforts they are taking to enhance sharing and communicating are genius and long over due. The site provides a global network where information on community service initiatives and social activates can be accessed. It also keeps members updated on general news within the organization. The organization itself is over 100 years old with tens of thousands of active members, basically the foundation is there.  For an organization of this magnitude a site such as this is really a vital need as the organization moves into the future.

When online users initially open the homepage of  Omegahotspots.com they may be a little taken back by its aesthetic appearance. The images appear to be distorted and not attractive as they potentially could be. This page includes a sliding picture feature, in which a variety of flyers are displayed representing different events. Unfortunately the effect loses its appeal because the writing and information on the flyers is distorted. The sliding grid does use a click feature that prompts online users  to specific event pages where the flyers then become more legible and more detailed information is given. The homepage also does not feature enough social media links, at present it only features Facebook and Twitter. As the first impression of the website the number one responsibility of any homepage is to pull people in and keep them engaged immediately. It should be aesthetically “great” looking and the information displayed should be clear. In addition, the presence of participatory social media should be increased by incorporating website links to stumbleupon.com, tumbler.com, and delicious.com to start with. Another component that would drive traffic to the site is the addition of a RSS feed.

The task menu on the left leads you the next page which is “Districts”. This page displays the different regions members reside in. This is an overall plain page that simply lists the 9 districts in chronological order, by no means is it engaging. My suggestion would be to insert an interactive map that allows you to click on each district prompting images and a small amount of information pertaining to that district. To engage online users even more a link could be added encouraging people to  “enter this district”  creating another feature of interactivity. Online user will feel they are choosing what regions they visit based on the regions appeal and their personal preference.

The next page on the task menu is the “Centennial” . This page features a ceremony which took place on the 100^th year anniversary of the organization. I imagine this would draw a lot of members to the site.  As such there should be additional content other than one video. This plethora of content should include videos, picture albums, notable places visited and ultimately it should translate into a digital experience of the actual event. This is a momentous event celebrated by this organization. Organization members who visit this page should immediately recognize the content and be able to connect visually and emotionally.

The omegahotsspots.com spotlight page features vendors, events, and people who are worthy to be spotlighted. The problem with this page is that it looks exactly like the events page.  The “spotlightees”  in some cases are presented without a image or video. If this page is truly going to be a spotlight page users should immediately recognize who is being spotlighted, not a list.

The entire page should be devoted to the current “spotlightee” and their message should be communicated through images, video, and text. Online users want to connect with the mission or cause that the “spotlightee” represents. I great way for Omegahotspots to accomplish this is by devoting the entire page to the current “spotlightee”. This presents them in a manner that focuses all the attention on them and their accomplishment. If users would like to see previous “spotlightees” they should be able to click forward or backward arrows that move the appropriate “spotlightee” on screen in the same fashion. This way there is one spotlight candidate being showcased at a time.

The most concerning issue with this site is the way it handles video. There is no video content page on the website. Instead there is a youtube channel that displays favorite and liked content by Omegahotspots.com. I think this is a major disadvantage for the website. Mainly because it directs people away from the website and on to another site. The Omegahotspots website has the ability to host video, so why doesn’t it have its own page to support video, which could potentially triple the views, clicks and amount of time spent on the website overall. This would be one of my first suggestions to change. The Youtube channel should only serve as a tool that directs potential viewers to the omegahotspots website. It should never navigate online users away from the website.

The Omegahotspots website has the correct components to be a highly successful site. The audience is established and the information is readily available. Most of all there is a huge need, members of the organization who access the website will benefit and the organization itself will flourish. A major critique is to use a more current web design program such as word-press to design the site. This will quickly and completely change the aesthetic look, website experience, and social media  access capabilities. All of which are major to a website that wants to create an interactive atmosphere. If the website can accomplish this it’s audience will continue to grow and more importantly it will gain loyal users who return over and over again.