NGU students win awards at NRB 2022
Nelson Shwe, Staff Writer and Graphic Artist
A group of students from North Greenville University placed first in a news challenge and third in the film challenge at the National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) 2022 convention in Nashville.
NRB convention is a gathering for Christian communicators. Even though it is called national, NRB is international.
Shurajit Gopal, assistant professor of communication at NGU and chairman of intercollegiate national religious broadcasters (iNRB), explained, “… media professionals: film, television, radio, new media, internet, church media. They all come together from all parts of the world. So, you actually come in contact with some top-ranking media professionals in every field – Christians – from all over the world.”
At the convention, students from different schools compete in the 24-hour film, news and radio challenge. Education sessions are also held for students and faculty where they can hear from top-ranking professionals and speakers. There are three sessions, one each about film, news and radio.
Austin Hughes, a senior and broadcast media major at NGU, took part in the 24-hour film challenge. He and his partner Olivia Hupfauer were tasked to produce, shoot and export a three-minute film while following a prompt. The challenge started at 9 a.m. the day the prompt was given to 9 a.m. the next day. Hughes describes it as hectic but fun.
Hughes and Hupfauer’s process included brainstorming, writing and rewriting the script, filming and exporting. Based on the 24-hour challenge prompt they had to include a quote that they were given to use and include three props that were listed. Hughes explained that they ran into trouble and had to rewrite their script to fit the prompt.
Hughes and Hupfauer’s film took third place in the 24-hour film challenge. One thing that Hughes took away from this challenge is to have multiple back plans. He said “We had an idea going in and then that idea kinda fell through. So, we had to come up with something else.”
This is Hughes’ second time attending NRB and his advice for students wanting to attend NRB next year is to know the story. Hughes explained, “If you know your story, it makes it all the easier to do it. You already know what it’s going to be so you can go ahead and get it done.”
Adrianna Austin, senior broadcast media major, also attended NRB 2022 and competed in the news challenge on a team with Mary Margaret Ellison and Grace Dufresne. Their news package received first place.
For the news challenge, Austin explained that they had 12 hours to write, shoot and edit everything by the deadline. Their prompt was given at 9 a.m. and they had until 9 p.m. to finish.
The topic for the news challenge was “What is NRB?” Austin said that the team brainstormed and came up with a way to story tell about the topic. They choose included two subjects, a first time attended and some from the staff. The team interviewed a new attendee and a faculty member while also filming b-roll. After this team started writing scripts, logging interviews and editing everything together.
One thing Austin learned from this event is that it is important to talk to people and see the deeper meaning of why they are there. One of the people her team interviewed was a first attendee from Georgia. The attendee was there for film and Austin said, “He wanted to spread the gospel through film and reach secular communities.”
A piece of advice Austin would give students wanting to attend NRB is to manage their time wisely. She said, “Time goes by really fast and you should be attending the secessions and doing your news package and making sure your interview is good, your interview good.”
Any students from schools that are members of iNRB can attend the convention. The students do not have to be communication majors. Gopal explained that NRB is open to all students and faculty. When asked if students should attend, Gopal answered, “Absolutely, without any hesitation.”
*Featured Image: Group photo of NGU’s students and faculty that attended NRB 2022. Photo courtesy of Austin Hughes.
