For anyone who missed my first post in May 2025, my name is Mason Garcia, and I am a part of the class of 2029 at Syracuse University. I am majoring in Esports Communications and Management, which is a joint academic program between Falk College of Sport and the Newhouse School of Public Communications. It's the same combination of colleges Luke and Hannah graduated from, which still feels like a pretty cool full-circle thing to be part of.
One of the most direct payoffs to what I learned during my time at Filmiamo last spring has been my role as Content Lead for Syracuse Esports. I'm responsible for creating, or helping create, all of the long-form video content our program publishes. The project I am most proud of creating this past year has been the Boost on the Beach, a 23-minute recap video that told the story of Syracuse’s Rocket League team coming into the tournament and sweeping the competition to take home a very meaningful trophy. I was able to take the video production and editing skills Luke and Hannah taught me during my previous internship and apply them directly to this process through conducting interviews, capturing b-roll, and long-form video editing.
In keeping with my passion for esports, I wanted to make sure that I understand how to tell a player’s story, and competing in esports events has been a key to creating great esports videos. I'm a player on the Syracuse Overwatch Academy team, which competes against other universities in structured weekly matches with film review sessions. During our first semester, we were able to compete in a LAN and finished top 10. On the Hearthstone side, I'm currently the #4 ranked collegiate Hearthstone player in the country. Outside of the collegiate scene, I also compete semi-professionally and I have won a LAN event this year and qualified for the Masters Tour Spring Playoffs America's Invitational. From these events, I’ve learned what it’s like to play on stage and under lights, putting myself in the shoes of a high tier esport player. Knowing what the players feel on stage has helped me better understand how to capture their emotions and tell a story through video production.
A handful of other things I've picked up at Syracuse have ended up being storytelling jobs in disguise. I'm a Falk College Esports Admissions Ambassador, giving tours and answering questions for prospective esports students, as well as a Falk Peer Advisor, helping new students figure out academic planning. I'm also the GESU Club Esports Team Manager, overseeing all of our club teams' tryouts, schedules, and league registration. Connecting with many different types of people through these roles makes me eager to return to Filmiamo and continue sharing and telling stories even if they aren’t directly esports related.
Coming back to Filmiamo for round two, I want to push past the basics I picked up last year. A few specific things I'm hoping to get out of this Summer:
• I want to get sharper on the editing side. Last year was mostly about understanding the shoot, the gear, lights, sandbags, and on-set workflow. This summer I want to spend real time in Premiere with Filmiamo's projects, learning how Luke and Hannah think about pacing, music, and the moments where a cut earns its keep. I've been editing in Premiere for a while, but editing for a client is a different experience.
• I also want to take a bigger role in pre-production. Watching Luke and Hannah handle client communication last year was my favorite lesson, but I was mostly observing. This summer I hope to sit in on more of the planning conversations.
Looking further down the road, my long-term goal is to become a director of promotional content for an Esports team or video game company, running the team that produces the hype reels, player features, and tournament content. Everything I'm doing now, from the Boost on the Beach recap to coming back to Filmiamo for a second summer, is a step toward building the storytelling and production skills that a role like this demands.
Thanks again to Luke and Hannah for round two. Excited to see what we make this summer.
