Awards & Articles
Press Releases
In my second year of the RTA Media Production program, I had the incredible honour of winning a TARA (Television and Radio Award) for Best Comedy Short for the film I wrote, Being Healthy.
Each year, the RTA program hosts the TARAs to recognize outstanding student work across
television and radio, with a panel of industry professionals and faculty members carefully reviewing every submission. From all the projects submitted, four nominees are selected in each category, and one winner is chosen.
Television and Radio Awards (TARAs)
To have Being Healthy recognized in this way was both surreal and deeply validating. Comedy is a genre that requires precision, timing, and a strong understanding of character, so receiving this award affirmed the strength of the writing and the risks I took creatively.
Knowing that the work resonated not only with my peers but also with experienced professionals in the industry made the achievement even more meaningful.
At the same time, the experience reminded me how much talent exists within the RTA community.
Every student who submitted their work to the TARAs should be proud of what they created. Being surrounded by such driven and creative peers continues to inspire me, and winning this award has motivated me to keep pushing myself as a comedy writer and storyteller.
PBS Giving Tuesday
On December 2, 2025, I had the opportunity to work on the Buffalo Toronto Public Media PBS Giving Tuesday broadcast. The opportunity operated through a partnership between Buffalo Toronto Public Media PBS and Toronto Metropolitan University’s RTA School of Media.
The live international broadcast used the Arthur Smith Virtual Production Studio as its Toronto live hit location, giving students the chance to apply their classroom training in a real network environment.
I served as the Assistant Director in the control room, working directly with PBS producer/director Joe Cannizzaro throughout the show. In this role, I coordinated closely with the PBS team in Buffalo and communicated with the assistant director in Buffalo over intercom to ensure seamless transitions between the Buffalo and Toronto segments. I counted the show in and out of commercial breaks and segments, kept the production on schedule, and counted the host in and out live on air.
Being featured in the RTA School of Media article about the partnership and broadcast was an incredible honour. The experience reinforced my passion for live, multi-camera production and gave me hands-on leadership experience in a high-pressure, real-world network setting. Working on a live PBS broadcast confirmed that this is exactly the kind of fast-paced, collaborative production environment I hope to build my career in.
