Bita Ghassemi
Radio-Television-Film
Class of 2018
What do you love about your current position or career path?
I love having the flexibility to work on a lot of different projects, and to choose the ones I want to direct. I love working with people on set and I love that I’m in a leadership position and I am able to assemble diverse crews that prioritize women and POC!
How are you using the skills that you learned at Moody in your current role?
I had the opportunity to direct in the RTF program and I got to make films that I really wanted to make. It was a great time to experiment and find my voice. I am still working on my voice and craft every day but the RTF program gave me the building blocks to build my foundation!
What are some favorite stories that you've worked on as director?
I love telling universal stories that people from all backgrounds can resonate with. My favorite pieces to make show culture and feel authentic. I recently made a spec for Casio that’s on my page that I’m super proud of!
Were you involved in student orgs on campus?
I was really involved in student sets. I produced a lot of graduate student pre-thesis and thesis films, and that hands on experience is what really gave me the skills I needed to continue working in the field after graduation. I also was the President of the German Club and a radio talk show host at KVRX!
Network with your peers. To this day the people I work with on my film sets are people I met in the RTF program, they’re collaborators for life!
What advice do you have for #TEXASMoody students?
I would say the biggest thing you should do as a student is to network with your peers. To this day the people I work with on my film sets are people I met in the RTF program, they’re collaborators for life!
What do you miss most about Moody College?
I miss most the opportunity as a film student to experiment in a low-stakes environment! Yes you had grades and deadlines, but you also had the opportunity to learn and grow and experiment in different ways.
Can you talk about your career path?
I’ve chosen an unconventional career path. I’m a freelancer which gives me the freedom to work when I want to (unlike the traditional 9-5). When you’re first starting out as a freelancer, it can be difficult financially, but if you stick to it for long enough the work will come!
What classes/professors helped the most?
I really enjoyed the hands on RTF classes, particularly @cinemalaboratory by Deb Lewis. I also loved the famous McConaughey producing class, other than the fact that he was the professor I definitely learned a lot about what it takes to make a big Hollywood movie.
IG/Twitter handle/LinkedIn: IG/Twitter/TikTok: @coolstorybita /LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bitaghassemi