Lynnette Carlino ’97
Lynette is an EMMY™ Award-winning Series Producer for The Art Show on THINKTV, a PBS affiliate. After working for a CBS affiliate for 14 years, she launched a half hour magazine-style show, creating the program from the ground up.
After working for a CBS affiliate for 14 years, Lynette left and joined PBS in 2012. Two years ago, she launched a half hour magazine-style show called The Art Show. The Art Show profiles local, regional and national artists and arts organizations. As the Series Producer, she was responsible for creating the program from the ground up. She cast the host, found a space for filming, designed the look of the the set and graphics package and took responsibility for the content and flow of the program. Lynette seeks out local artists and tells their story in 6 to 7 minute segments, and also shares content regionally and nationally with other PBS stations; giving 18 local artists national exposure. She won a regional EMMY award for her work on the first season of the show.
Producing requires much planning, curiosity, writing and teamwork. I need to coordinate schedules and create action plans with my field crew and my editors. Then it’s my job to make sure it all gets executed on time and on budget.”
My first job after GC was for a post production studio in Elkhart. I left that job and joined Mennonite Voluntary Service for a short while and then found myself back in my hometown. I began working part time at WHIO-TV in Dayton, Ohio, as a Master Control Operator. Because I worked on GC Journal (the campus news program at the time), I left GC knowing all the facets of TV production, so I was able to take whatever job I could get, just to get my foot in the door. Then, because I had writing and non-linear editing skills (non-linear editing was still relatively new), I moved into a full time position in the promotions department about 9 months later. I ended up writing, producing and editing in the commercial production department for 12 years until joining the storytellers at PBS.”
New graduates need to be a one man band. Very few organizations these days want JUST an editor or JUST a videographer. They want someone who will save them money by doing it all. And doing it all well. I used to do it all and now I’m grateful to be with an organization that allows me to just be a Producer. I was diagnosed with Breast Cancer in August of 2015. I went on medical leave and my co-workers soldiered on without me. They stepped into roles that may have been out of their comfort zone, but they knew enough to know what needed to be done. This is an example of how broad training is so helpful. It’s imperative to know how other legs of the production work and how they fit together. I have finished my chemotherapy and radiation and will be returning to work part-time in the spring of 2016.”
New graduates also need to be good networkers. The broadcast business is all about who you know. It’s about getting your foot in the door and working your way up; experience trumps education in this field.”