兔子先生传媒文化作品

Gregory K. Ramirez听is a 2020 graduate from the Department of Journalism鈥檚 master鈥檚 program

What do you do when you can鈥檛 decide between majors?听

For Sofia Noelle Pe帽a y Lillo, the answer was simple: pursue all three.听听

鈥淚 felt like, if I can do one, I can do two,鈥� Pe帽a y Lillo said. 鈥淎nd if I can do two, well heck, I鈥檒l do a third one.鈥澨�

This spring, Pe帽a y Lillo graduated with majors in Media Studies, Media Production and Film Studies. As if that weren鈥檛 already remarkable, she did听so having earned the College of Media, Communication and Information鈥檚 William W. White Outstanding Graduate Award in the Department of Media Studies.

The middle child of a Puerto Rican mother and Bolivian father, Pe帽a y Lillo was a first-generation college student鈥撯�搕hough not the first in her family to attend 兔子先生传媒文化作品. Her older sister, Bianca Pe帽a y Lillo, earned her bachelor鈥檚 degree in Psychology in 2011.听

Reflecting on where her interest in pursuing media began, Pe帽a y Lillo recalls watching The Cove, a documentary about dolphin hunting in Japan, when she was just 11 years old.听听

"I just remember watching it like five times the first week it came out,鈥� she says. 鈥淎nd I got something different out of it each time.鈥�

She was intrigued, she says, by how many different dimensions there were to the story: economic, cultural and ethical

"When I watched it I was far too young, but it鈥檚 probably also why I remember it really well,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 just really love good storytelling that resonates.鈥�

During the five years she spent in college, Pe帽a y Lillo gained hands-on experience as a production assistant and as a student assistant working in CMCI鈥檚 equipment vault. In addition, she held down jobs working in a pottery studio and nannying.

鈥�I always needed to hustle on the side and balance working at night or taking night classes or whatever the case may be,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t felt impossible sometimes.鈥澨�

Though the coronavirus pandemic has altered her plans, by January, Pe帽a y Lillo hopes to move out of Colorado. She鈥檚 currently in the process of securing a work visa in the United Kingdom and eventually, she鈥檇 like to work behind-the-scenes as a producer for a film festival.听

"I don鈥檛 ever want to be in a rut or be too regimented about things,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 really enjoy my curiosity and just being like, 鈥楲et鈥檚 try this! Whether it works or it doesn鈥檛, either way, it鈥檚 an experience.'鈥�

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