This week, we started filming the first podcasts, which we had been planning for a long time, writing scripts, and getting equipment. Things didn’t go exactly as planned, but we made progress.

Magazine Meeting

Early in the week, Mr. Marc proposed a big idea: a magazine and annual report to release in January 2026. Since I work on The Reporter at Stetson, I volunteered to help with the design. We sent out a Doodle poll, scheduled a brainstorming session, and I promised to bring sample spreads from my past layouts. Seeing my skills combined with Phoenix Generation’s tasks feels like a perfect match. It also reminds me that my InDesign skills are still useful in a video-heavy internship.

First Podcast Shoot – Diverse Talks 

Monday was our first official recording day. The concept is simple: gather students from different countries and share culture-shock stories. We created a Google Form, informed our guests, and prepared questions like “What’s a stereotype about your home that’s wrong?” Fifteen minutes before call time, one of the guests texted that his car broke down and he could not make it. Five minutes later, another one canceled too. We had two empty chairs in a recording studio, and we had to figure out something as the time of recording just keeps going. The other podcast intern and I switched our behind-the-camera roles, jumped on set, and started being recorded. Surprisingly, the conversation felt natural – probably because we didn’t have time to overthink. We ended up with solid footage and a valuable lesson in solving problems quickly. 

Second Podcast Shoot – Let’s Get Deep 

Wednesday’s episode used a card game with different types of questions (Icebreaker, Deep, Deeper) to encourage conversations. I reviewed every card beforehand and picked prompts that fit our theme – this was a good choice because some were unrelated and would make the video not interesting to watch. We adjusted the camera angles and had a couple of guests switch seats for balance. Once we started recording, the dialogue flowed smoothly. There were fewer problems than on Monday, and overall it went great.

Dealing with the Raw Footage 

After video shoots, we began the tedious task of data organizing – labeling audio tracks, syncing camera files, and organizing everything into clearly named folders. I believe that it is an important part of video editing as it makes the video editing flow faster.

Reflection 

Week seven taught me two important lessons: plans can fall apart, and you need to be ready for it, but preparation still pays off. When two of the guests dropped out, we adjusted quickly, and I am grateful that we were able to figure it out on the spot. Even though the magazine project is still in the brainstorming phase, it already feels like the next big challenge. This internship keeps pushing my skills in every direction – design, photo, video, and crisis management. I wouldn’t want it any other way.