The modern media landscape is an incredibly competitive scene. Streaming platforms and social media sites are the trendsetters for current audiences, and the high volume of traffic is what keeps them going.
In this modern landscape, success is determined by engagement. The more views or reactions a piece of media receives from an audience, the more benefits companies receive. As such, it’s to a company’s benefit to produce things that attract their intended audiences consistently.
With such a high demand, the competition for work within the media industry is equally potent, if not more. Oftentimes, companies are looking for talent that goes beyond the descriptions of a typical job.
That’s where freelancers come in.
Being a freelancer means that you’re part-time. Without the added benefits and stability that a full-time position might provide, it’s a common occurrence to float between jobs while finding a more permanent investment.
Gabriel Lantz is one such freelancer working in media. With over twenty years of experience, he’s watched the media landscape evolve and its audiences change.
One of Gabriel’s best traits is his versatility. When producers are searching for people to sign on for a project, having skills in a number of different areas means more opportunities.
“I kind of serve as, I would call it like a Swiss Army Knife,” Gabriel said. “You know, because I’m a part-timer. And because I’ve had all these different roles before.”
Freelance Producer Gabriel Lantz talks about his history working as a media freelancer and what makes good media content.
As a part of this versatility, Gabriel’s invested in learning almost every stage of the production process. From video recording to editing to interviewing, he’s become accustomed to a number of mediums.
In the media production process at WTIU, instead of an ongoing development curated by a designated group of people, producers will assemble teams with various skills for help on individual projects. In order to make themselves more marketable, freelancers must know how to adapt to different roles not only effectively, but also efficiently.
Since audience reception in the modern media landscape demands a high degree of consistency, producers need people who can fill the gaps on their team and get things done quickly. Filmmakers and audio engineers alike search for talent wherever they can find it, and what determines the people they choose comes down to a promise of reliability.
It’s thanks to Gabriel’s skills that he’s been so successful in his line of work. Over the years he’s honed his craft as a professional to create the visions his producers are looking for, no matter what role.
Sometimes, he ends up working with clients who don’t even know what they’re looking for, and only want a high quality production with multiple moving parts. Gabriel sees it as another chance to tell an amazing story.
However, Gabriel understood that having good skills was only one part of the equation. Due to freelancers operating outside of the traditional realm of full-time employment, networking became a constant necessity.
“It’s helpful to just start to like, remember people’s names, remember their faces, and find ways to plant seeds with people,” Gabriel said.
Though he admitted he’s not the most extroverted person, Gabriel said learning to become more outgoing helped him a lot. The more producers who knew about his skills through word-of-mouth at WTIU, the more likely he was to be brought on for new projects.
Todd Gould, a Senior Producer at WTIU, is one of the producers who often works with Gabriel. Unlike some of the more fast paced productions found on social media, Gould’s line of work lies in documentary filmmaking. Though the deadlines for his work are far less immediate, a careful amount of planning is required to ensure that things don’t build up.
As such, when it comes time to meet those deadlines, Gabriel’s one of Todd’s first picks.
“The more and more we need people to count on to get that kind of stuff done, then I know Gabriel’s always going to be one of the top people on my list to call to get him to come in,” Todd said. “Because he’s just that good, and that valuable to what we do here.”
WTIU Senior Producer Todd Gould talks about his experiences working with Gabriel and his thoughts on navigating the modern media market.
Alongside his professional skills in both producing and networking, his ability to show up time and again has built him a reputation at WTIU. Sometimes, he gets the opportunity to create his own productions, assembling his own teams and working alongside professionals with the same skill sets as him.
Though taking on the freelance role meant he wasn’t seeing the same benefits of a full-time position, being a part of the process meant a lot more to him than that.
“Media really is a glue, you know, it really helps bond and bring people together,” Gabriel said. “I think that’s the one thing that keeps me doing this.”
Gabriel said it was the media’s ability to go tell compelling stories and create lasting impacts that’s maintained his passion for the craft. With so many stories to tell, he doesn’t plan on stopping anytime soon.
Some of Gabriel’s most recent project work was filming a video production of “The Nutcracker,” performed by the Jacobs School of Music.
