Students in Ferris State University’s Television/Digital Media Production program
gather on Jasper Knob, near Ishpeming in Marquette County, as the production team
works to support a “Mystic Michigan” video. The students traveled to locations in
the Upper Peninsula and on Mackinac Island done in collaboration with 1994 Ferris
Journalism alumnus Mark Jager, of Hersey.
Capturing the splendor of Michigan’s geological formations was as much an opportunity as an assignment for Ferris State University Television and Digital Media Production students and faculty, who collaborated on a recent production of “Mystic Michigan.” Mark Jager, of Hersey, a 1994 Journalism alumnus, hosts the video series. A premiere screening took place recently on the Ferris campus.
Associate professor Nick Kuiper is a TDMP alumnus and served as the video producer and took on other roles supporting the project team. Kuiper said students in TDMP’s Instructional Design course presented their skills in an experiential learning exercise during the Fall 2022 semester.
“We traveled over 1,000 miles to shoot formations such as Jasper Knob near Ishpeming, the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore and locations on Mackinac Island,” Kuiper said. “There were expert interviews to obtain and produce, from Ferris Geology emeriti Fred Heck to Dr. Martin Rhinehart, an Ojibway Studies professor at Northern Michigan University, and Kyle Bagnall, a park naturalist from Mackinac Island.”
According to Kuiper, students benefited from a well-rounded experience developing
a project of this nature.
“This was a great opportunity to build a story from scratch, with the logistics of
travel, carrying equipment to these remote sites along with researching to present
each detail necessary and accomplish our work,” he said.
Kuiper noted an interesting element of this production dealt with Mackinac Island locations with new names reflecting the beliefs of the Little Traverse Bay Band of Odawa Indians, who had settled that area and held these places as sacred.
“There are human remains in what was known as Skull Cave, but a recent effort was made to designate that space as the ‘Place of the Ancestors,’” Kuiper said. “The work renames Sugarloaf and Devil’s Kitchen, which brings greater respect to the traditions of the island’s earliest residents.”
School of Digital Media Coordinator Glen Okonoski said Kuiper’s leadership of the student team was a great asset in this collaboration with Jager.
“The TDMP program is fortunate to have dedicated faculty, and Nick is an excellent example of that,” Okonoski said. “I also appreciate College of Business Dean Logan Jones for attending our screening session. It meant a lot to the program to have his participation and support.”
Kuiper said the Mystic Michigan video is expected to see distribution through Amazon as TDMP Films explores options for the episode to air on public broadcast outlets in Michigan and elsewhere.
“WNMU Television in Marquette has scheduled the first presentation of the video for Sunday, March 19,” Kuiper said. “We are pleased by this, as each PBS station or other community channel that presents our work serves as a real resume builder for TDMP students.”