UW Oshkosh radio/TV/film students took home 16 out of 74 awards on March 6 during the annual Wisconsin Broadcasters Association Conference.

Titan TV operations manager Brandon Fuller said the WBA is a trade association that represents and supports all of Wisconsin’s radio and television broadcast stations.

“Every year the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association hosts a student seminar in Madison for students to get the opportunity to attend a variety of sessions discussing the broadcast industry,” Fuller said.

Titan TV news director Cody Barnes said WBA is one of the most crucial networking events in Wisconsin for any student to get their foot in the door with any state-owned radio or TV.

“But not only in the state, they have speakers from Minneapolis, New York, etc.,” Barnes said. “So you gain excellent networking skills, great tips to help back here on campus and tips for out in the field.”

Fuller said Titan TV won awards in multiple categories for Sports Play-by-Play, General Entertainment TV Program and Promotional and Public Service Announcements.

“We won first place in Sports Play-by-Play for Nick Bode and Stewart Atkinson’s calling of the UW Oshkosh vs. UW-Stout game,” Fuller said. “First place in General Entertainment for our sitcom Curtain Call episode three produced by Cole Boettcher, Amanda Beistle, Abby Adams and Trevor Woloszyk, and first place in Public Service Announcement for Alex Wright’s radio/TV/film story promotional video.”

Titan TV also brought in seven other awards for second and third places, including second place in General Entertainment Program TV for Wired Up by Aleksandra Milandinovic, Julia Beck, Vincent Platten, Bode and Connor Zornow; second place in Public Affairs TV for Let’s Talk About Arts by Connor Zornow and Beistle; third place in Feature Story TV for Nick Wiesman’s Robotics Competition; third place in General Entertainment Program TV for Sports Play-by-Play for UWO in 30 – Game Night by Crystal Perez, Adams, Chris Bjornstal and Brett Johnson; and third place Social Media for the Titan TV Instagram Page for Jolee Mallmann.

Fuller said it’s unknown how many students were nominated.

“The awards are based off submissions sent in by schools,” Fuller said. “So it’s hard to say how many students were nominated when we send in a multitude of pieces to be judged.”

Barnes said the station is one of the most valuable resources RTF students have available to them.

“Coupled with film society and WRST, these areas of RTF give invaluable experience to students plus an opportunity to check out their options,” Barnes said. “A great benefit of Titan TV is we understand and expect people to mess up because we are all learning and it’s much better to make a mistake here than in the ‘real world.’”

Barnes said if you are an RTF student and aren’t a part of Titan TV, WRST or Film Society, you’re wasting your time.

“There’s only so much you can learn in class,” Barnes said. “Your real education is going to come from working in the field and plain hands-on experience.”

Titan TV station manager Taylor Mueller said she’s been involved with the station for four years.

“I started as a freshman running camera and helping out with shows and moved on to being the host of a show,” Mueller said. “Then I was assistant promotions director and made it officially on the executive board as programming director, and now my last year I am the station manager.”

Mueller said she’s gone to WBA three times, and it’s a wonderful opportunity for students to attend educational workshops and network with professionals.

“The conference is beneficial for students to learn directly from professionals what it is like to work in different industries and learn from other schools what their TV and radio stations are doing,” Mueller said. “We also receive awards for our productions, which is always nice to be recognized for all of our hard work.”

Barnes said he hopes to use Titan TV as a way for potential employers to see what he’s been working on.

“My hope for being with Titan TV is to create great content for my Reel,” Barnes said. “So potential employers can see right out of the gate that I am a hard worker, talented and love what I do.”

Mueller said she highly encourages RTF students to join Titan TV.

“In our industry, someone will not be hired if they have not taken the time and effort to build their résumés and gain experience,” Mueller said. “This is exactly how students are able to gain those experiences. We take the time to teach students everything, and it is better to make mistakes while learning than at an actual job.”