Six current and former Film, Television, and Media (FTVM) students at San Bernardino Valley College have landed paid jobs on a popular MTV show. The SBVC students and alums hired to work as production assistants on “Nick Cannon Presents: Wild ‘N Out” are all products of the college’s FTVM program. The current students who were hired are Noah Donnelly, Leo Ritualo and Cage Hensley, and alumni are Tachi Mitchell, Michael Contreras and Stephen Prater. Production assistants work as go-betweens for the different areas of the set. 
Lucas Cuny, co-chair and assistant professor of the Film, Television, and Media program at SBVC, said these students have worked hard in the program and are ready for this opportunity. 
“So much of our program and what the faculty and I teach has to do with giving our students practicum that gets them ready,” he said. “We don't hold their hands; our students must get productions done as part of their grades. They thus face the real stress and challenge of a production. That practicum gives our students the confidence to go after these types of gigs.” 
Donnelly agreed, and said the Film, Television, and Media program at SBVC prepared him and gave him the confidence to apply for the gig. 
“It’s one thing to study how to become a filmmaker,” Donnelly said. “But what SBVC does is make us into real filmmakers. They put us in school productions to help us get ready for productions in the real world.” 
Film, Television, and Media students have access to a state-of-the-art lab space, industry-standard cameras, and dolly and track systems during their studies at SBVC, making them career-ready after leaving the program. 
The recruiter for the “Nick Cannon Presents: Wild ‘N Out” is from the Inland Empire, and the producers try to hire local talent, Cuny said. He said SBVC’s Institute of Media Arts Career Specialist Sarai Maldonado was instrumental in helping get the word out to students about the opportunity to work on this show. Cuny and Maldonado helped the students and alumni prepare for the interviews. 
Cuny said SBVC is the only publicly-funded institution of higher education in the state with an established career services person working specifically with media arts students. He said Maldonado was “invaluable” in getting students hired on the gig. 
For more information about the Film, Television, and Media program at San Bernardino Valley College, visit valleycollege.edu/FTVM.