JMC Jams S3

Where does the time go? It's the final episode of Season 3 and, keeping up with tradition, we jam with one of our graduating majors. Daniel Karp is an Advertising Major with plans to go into the entertainment industry. In his four years with us he has achieved a bunch - from deciding on his path in life to experiencing the world outside of San Jose. Join us as we chat about advertising, lessons learnt, future plans and the joys of Study Abroad. And then that's it until the new year.

One of the awesome things that happen here in JMC is the entrepreneurship our students engage in. You may remember an episode where we chatted with a couple of Advertising majors who were launching a music review channel. It lived on Instagram and was called Tower Tunes. Tower Tunes grew from a personal project in the Portfolio class to it's own big deal. Simon and Vinson are back to talk about where it is now and where it will go in the future. From a classroom project to a social media phenomenon with video content and a regular slot on CreaTV (local cable channel), they will be passing the baton on as they ease into graduation and others take up the mic.

This special episode has us jammin' with Ann Telnaes, the 2025 JMC Hearst Award winer. Twice Pulitzer Prize–winning editorial cartoonist Ann Telnaes, joins us for a lively conversation about the art and responsibility of political cartooning, her journey from Disney animation to the front lines of visual journalism, and why humor and courage still matter in today’s media landscape. Tune in for sharp insights, candid reflections, and a breakdown on the events that have taken place around the Award ceremony, from interactive student workshops and press conferences to a lively debate with Mark Fiore and Ward Sutton, fellow cartoonists and animators.

We've jammed with the Ad Club before about all the cool stuff they do, the industry visits and, in particular the annual New York agency trip, but in this episode we get to hear about a really interesting initiative they have only just launched. Join me, Bella and Kimberley as they tell us about the James Lick High School Mentorship idea where ad club members interact with and mentor students from the High School. Their support opens up the high schoolers' career options and understanding of different possibilities for their university experience. It's a great way to engage with the San Jose community and inspire the next generation of possible advertising majors ... who graduate and become the future of the advertising industry!

Episode 8 already and this time round we chat to two of our Update News Executive Team, Angela Nguyen and Sofi Cipriano. Angela is this semester's Executive Producer and winner of the prestigious Fred Zehnder Memorial Undergraduate Journalism Scholarship that is awarded by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. Sofi is the script editor and also has a show on our very own radio station, KSJS FM. The conversation revolves around the craft behind a weekly news show and the tightly knit cohort that makes Update such a wonderful option for students who want to work with storytelling through broadcast platforms, video and audio. We could have jammed for hours and the result is a slightly longer episode!

It's been a year and Del Mar High School are visiting us again. In this episode I jam with their media teacher, Jessica, who has created an amazing program for students hopeful to pursue careers in the media industries. Tune in as we chat about the synergies and relationship between Del Mar High and JMC. This year, like last, we have created an interactive experience where students make short videos and write pieces on the campus and the stories they have learnt. As well as sitting in on the recording of the Update News show, they also get to see all the nooks and crannies of our campus and they get creative in the process. Accompanied by Journalism seniors and a couple of students who are interning at Del Mar, helping them with their media content and guiding them with their productions, students left excited and buzzin' from the few short hours they spent at SJSU.

Weekend Creative are a photographer/art director team who graduated from our Advertising and our Graphic Design programs almost a decade ago. In this episode we chat about their journey from SJSU to their space in the SJ creative community, taking on product photography and Adobe livestreams ... all the way to Adobe MAX in LA. We jammed right after they had finished a two session bootcamp with advertising students where 117 was filled with props and lights and backdrops and products, cameras flashing and a great amount of noise and activity!

Ajay Sohal discovered his passion at SJSU. Switching Majors to Advertising, Ajay used his experiences and his newfound knowledge to develop and grow his brand of hot sauces. An homage to his grandma's hot sauce, that she prepped for him after school growing up, Ajay has made his kitchen-sink project into a really viable business. And now he's coming back to SJSU to work with our advertising students.

In this episode we chat about sauce and inspiration and ambition and working with Belen Moreno's classes to brand and promote his range of sauces. And the future too and how awesome our advertising program is!

One thing we pride ourselves in in JMC is our lively set of student orgs. We've hosted the Ad Club before, and the Adobe Ambassadors. This week we welcome the PRSSA into the studio. Alexis and Karmina both hold roles on the executive board and are all fired up to see the SJSU Chapter rise from the near ashes of the COVID era. Our PRSSA chapter has always been very active, with huge recruitment and amazing participation. After going through a lean period, this year's incarnation has bounced back with passion! We chat about their plans for the future and how they see PRSSA growing over this next year.

This is now an annual event. A group of Belgian students and their professors spend time with us in JMC during their trip to the Bay Area. They visit tech companies and enjoy the best that SF has to offer. During their visit to our campus our students work with them, helping them brainstorm solutions to a brief they were set earlier in the week. This is where the magic happens - forget the specifics of the brief, it is the cross cultural dialog that makes a difference. The buzz that comes from 117 is tangible!

In this episode I chat to one of our Advertising Majors, Avissa, and one of our visiting students, Artur. We talk about the trip, about the engagement in the classroom, hopes for the future and the key takeaways from the experience.

Just before we recorded I introduced our Belgian colleagues to the best loaded quesadillas for miles .... and they loved it!