Message From Director

Hello, and welcome to Marist’s Summer Pre-College course in Film and Television. I am already at work planning our two weeks together in the summer.  I plan for them to be busy, exciting, and educational. 

I thought you would like to know something about me since I am the director of the program. I did my undergraduate work in Illinois in theatre, with a concentration in directing and playwriting. A few years after graduating, I decided to expand my interests to film and television and enrolled in a master’s program in Virginia Beach, Virginia. At that time, the Family Channel cable network was headquartered there, and I began a long association with them. Over several years, I worked on everything from 30-second commercial spots to hour-long network specials. My most sustained involvement was Big Brother Jake, an original situation comedy starring Jake Steinfeld, who at that time also starred in the Body by Jake fitness program on ESPN. 

Later, I returned to the Midwest and worked at a series of production companies where I shot and edited commercial spots and local programming, as well as corporate programs. My association with an independent producer, John Wright, resulted in my editing the first-ever High-Speed Chase special for the Discovery Channel. It was the network’s highest-rated program up to that time and would be followed by many sequels.

I started teaching part-time around 2000, and soon realized I enjoyed it so much that I wanted to do it as a second career. By the time you meet me next summer, I will have completed my fifteenth year at Marist. I am the senior production teacher, as well as the resident Avid Certified Instructor. Avid is the film and video editing system that is used on nearly every major network series and feature film. I was instrumental in Marist becoming an Avid Learning Partner in 2008. The following year, I began teaching classes that allowed Marist students to become professionally certified in Avid. I am proud of our Avid certification program because it has opened doors for many Marist students, giving them a foothold in a highly competitive industry.

Here are a couple of links in case you want to find out more about me:

• My faculty page on the Marist website
• My personal web page

And also, each spring I produce a festival and awards ceremony for the best student film and television work. I call it the Silver Fox Awards, and I also serve as emcee.

2020 will be my fifth year as director of this course. My goal is always to make each summer even better than the last.  I look forward to the time we will spend together and the many fun and interesting things we will do.

Sincerely,

Jeffrey Bass, MA, MS
Avid Certified Instructor