MANCHESTER, Tenn. — Students and faculty from Middle Tennessee State University are working to bring audiences across the world to one of Tennessee's biggest music festivals — Bonnaroo.
They will handle live television production for 25 performances, which will be featured on Hulu. MTSU said the assignment is part of their partnership with Bonnaroo, and students will capture images and sound from 35% of the concerts that the music festival has to offer.
“Our students are handling video production for Hulu on two stages, with some of those performances occurring at the same time,” said Bob Gordon in a release, an associate professor of media arts at MTSU. “Paid professionals are handling the other three. But we’re all doing the same thing ... Our production efforts at Bonnaroo are as ‘real world’ as it can get.”
The production team is made up of around 50 students and faculty. Students from the college's School of Journalism and Strategic Media will file daily stories and photos for the university's student news program, named Sidelines, as well as the Seigenthaler News Service and the MTSU Student Voice.
Photography students will also roam through the festival grounds, known as The Farm, to find visually compelling stories.
Students will have access to MTSU's Mobile Production Lab, known as "The Truck." It's 40 feet large and functions as a rolling TV studio and classroom, used to teach students about multi-camera production at around 30 live events each semester.
Students will be there for four days, starting on Thursday and lasting until Sunday. Anyone who wants to watch their work can visit Hulu's page on Bonnaroo.