Student Spotlight: Kevin Nepitabo

Second year Interactive Media Arts student, Kevin Nepitabo, answers some questions in this Student Spotlight.

Can you tell us a little about yourself? Where did you attend high school?

Hi, my name Kevin Nepitabo. I’m originally from Thompson, Manitoba. I moved to Brandon about 13 years ago for work related opportunities.

I dropped out of school in grade 6 and worked a lot of dead-end jobs. I wanted a little more in life and decided to go back to school. I attended high school at the ACC Adult Collegiate in downtown Brandon and graduated in 2012. From there I decided to further my education and decided to attend ACC in the Aboriginal Community Development program. During my second year of the program I realized it wasn’t what I wanted to do. However, I did notice another program at the college that was more along the lines of what I wanted to do, Interactive Media Arts. So that’s where I am now and not a day goes by where I regret my decision. The atmosphere of the college makes me feel really upbeat and I love coming here everyday.

Have you been to Brandon before? How are you enjoying your time here?

I actually lived here when I was age 6-9 and attended New Era School and Kirkcaldy Heights School. I moved back to Thompson for a few more years before coming back to Brandon.

Brandon is a place I feel at home, it’s big enough and has a lot to offer yet it’s still small enough that it feels personal and has a strong community. It’s definitely a place that I enjoy and would recommend to other people.

What made you decide to come to ACC? Why did you choose Interactive Media Arts?

Radio broadcasting has always been an interest of mine. When I was a kid I always pretended to be a radio host. I’d record myself and host my own shows. I guess I just kind of forgot about that and it wasn’t until I discovered the IMA program and had the chance to see what other people in the program were doing that brought back those memories and really pushed me in the direction I’m heading in now.

When coming into the program did you have an idea which specialization you wanted to follow? Media or Interactive?

Nope, not really. The interactive and web side was never really my thing. When I read through the courses for the Media specialization it had everything I wanted to learn and interested me the most. There was no doubt in my mind about the path I wanted to go.

How has your experience been so far?

Everything has been pretty good so far. I’m in my second year of the program and this year is focused on improving my on-air abilities. In the second year we specialize in either the technical side of things or our communication skills.

I also just recently had the opportunity to shadow one of the hosts from BOB.FM. I got to help out on-air and learn some things from them first-hand. That was pretty cool.

Has anything surprised you about the program so far?

How structured it is. When you learn something from one class or lesson it you find yourself using that knowledge in the next class or project you’ll be working on.

I understand you are part of the ACCTV series. Can you tell us a little about that?

The ACCTV series is an event guide or show that showcases events happening around the college. We post our videos to the ACC YouTube channel. It consists of us interviewing people around the college or showing off some the activities at college events. For example, I interviewed Cecil from the Cultural Centre for one of the episodes during one of their movie nights.

The class is split into groups of two, a host and one camera operator. We take the raw video and do some post editing and production adding before posting the episode.

Are there any other projects you and your classmates are working on?

We’re actually working on pitches for MTS. We’ll be creating short documentaries about local stories or people. My documentary is going to focus on adult learning and upgrading education. I’m going to focus more on the instructors behind these programs and the adults they’ve helped become successful.

We also have a web series coming out that one of the instructors is producing. I don’t have too much information to share since it’s still in production but I’m one of the cast members. We have cast members from Brandon University, some high schools, and other classmates in the IMA program helping with production. I can’t get into too many details but it involves paranormal activity and other strange things we’ve found locally. We’ll hopefully be able to share more soon!

You use a lot of different software in the program. What’s your favorite software to use?

Anything Adobe related, we use a lot of them. We use a lot of Adobe After Effects and Photoshop.

Which do you enjoy the most? Being in front of the camera or working behind the camera?

I enjoy being on-air and on the radio. Once I get on air I feel like I can really be myself and things come pretty naturally. I’ve hosted my own show on the college radio station (CJ106 FM). We rotate every week and sometimes I’ll be on-air and other times I’ll be news or production. We’re encouraged to be creative and make our show unique so we do things to stand out. During my time slot I have a segment called Advice Time where we answer questions or emails sent to us and try to help people out.

What are your classmates and instructors like?

Our instructors are the best. They make time for each student and always help us out. My classmates are the same way; if one of us doesn’t understand something we’ll help one another.

Is there anything in particular you’re excited to learn about?

We’re starting News Line, a college run news station that will be aired on local access TV. I’m looking forward to getting in front of the camera and talking. On the radio I only have to worry about my voice but now I’ll have to prepare myself to perform in front of a camera with a lot of people around.

I understand the program goes on industry tours. Is your class planning on going on any this year?

Last year we went into Winnipeg to check out some local media outlets. This year we went to the Broadcasters Association and had the chance to ask industry professionals questions and attend some panel presentations. For our year-end field trip we’re heading to Las Vegas to the NAT Conference where we’ll get to meet some of the biggest industry professionals in the world.

Did you do anything to prepare yourself coming into the program? Do you have any advice for other people looking to take Interactive Media Arts?

Ask a lot of questions. Don’t be scared to reach out to the college or talk with the instructors about the program or specific courses. Since there are two specializations researching each path beforehand helps a lot when it comes to making that decision.

Get an external hard drive with lots of space, the program has a lot of big projects that take up a lot of room.

Do you have any plans for after graduation?

I want to work for a commercial radio station. I plan on working my way up and eventually getting the chance to be on-air.

What’s something about you that would surprise people?

I play the guitar. I learned it to play by ear, I don’t actually know how to read music.

Are you involved in any activities outside college?

Not much besides the web series we’re working on at the college and school projects.

What’s your favorite food?

That’s a hard one. I’ll go with Lasagna

Do you have any favorite TV shows/movies or hobbies?

I like a lot of action or crime shows. Sons of Anarchy, Breaking Bad, Boardwalk Empire. For movies I’m a big fan of Martin Scorsese so I like the movies he’s worked on like Goodfellas, Casino, and The Departed.

Thanks for taking the time to sit down with me Kevin.

My pleasure.