Arkansas 4-H Video Crew members learn by doing; gain production skills
By Rebekah Hall
U of A System Division of Agriculture
Oct. 22, 2025
Fast Facts:
- Crew members learn video production skills from industry professionals
- 2025 4-H Video Crew has 17 members from 11 counties, largest in program history
- Crew responsible for livestreams of large 4-H events
(1,070 words)
(Newsrooms: With art)
LITTLE ROCK — As lighting director for the 2025 Arkansas 4-H Video Crew, Amanda Berryhill, 16, hopes to pick up production skills for a future career in the film industry.
“The goal has always been to become a movie director, but you have to work up to that,” Berryhill said. “You have to do all of the other jobs that lead up to that spot.”
Berryhill, a member of Grant County 4-H, joined the Arkansas 4-H Video Crew in 2024 and will return as part of this year’s crew. The program is offered by Arkansas 4-H and the Communications department of the Cooperative Extension Service, the outreach branch of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture.
Since launching in 2015, the program has provided dozens of Arkansas 4-H members with immersive, hands-on training in video production, including camera operation, controlling lights and audio, using production switchers and more.
Kerry Rodtnick, extension videographer for the Division of Agriculture and adviser to the Arkansas 4-H Video Crew, said several alumni of the program have gone on to pursue careers in the industry.
“We have had many of our crew members move into a variety of production jobs, whether through college or directly out of high school,” Rodtnick said. “We have kids who are now adults working in Kansas City, Nashville and Oklahoma, and working for the Walmart Amphitheater and Walton Performing Arts Center. This year’s group has the potential to grow into similar jobs if that’s where their passions take them.”
2025-2026 Arkansas 4-H Video Crew members:
- Amanda Berryhill: Grant County
- Isaiah Breshears: Pulaski
- Sean Breshears: Pulaski
- Alivia Daniels: Drew
- Qasim Dyer: Pulaski
- Camille Ennett: Pulaski
- Teegan Henry: Arkansas
- Jesika Henson: Drew
- Jacee Hoobler: Polk
- Ethan Lanthrip: Drew
- Grace Laymon: Faulkner
- Kennedy Pennywell: Ouachita
- Kinsey Stem: Baxter
- Kayla Stengel: Franklin
- Alyssa Tiner: Prairie
- Alyosha Wood: Washington
- Anvari Wood: Washington
Industry level instruction, hands-on learning
The 2025 Arkansas 4-H Video Crew is the largest in the program’s 11-year history, with 17 members from 11 Arkansas counties. Rodtnick said this is due to the newly expanded structure of the crew, which will form three internal teams: a running crew, a technical crew and a documentary crew.
“We are moving toward a production crew mentality, rather than simply a video crew,” Rodtnick said. “Our group is becoming responsible for more aspects of the events we livestream, including lights, sound and graphics. So, we are taking on more kids this year and training them in more topics that better reflect their interests and hopeful career paths.”
The running crew will perform specific tasks during large 4-H events and livestreams, including State O-Rama, an annual three-day competitive event held at the University of Arkansas campus in Fayetteville. These crew members will run cameras, operate a production switcher, and control lights and audio for three multi-camera, live broadcasts.
The technical crew will set up gear and ensure it is ready prior to each event, as well as identify and prepare visual graphics and media. “We will also explore the technical crew making suggestions and preparing media for the 4-H website and social media accounts, in cooperation with 4-H state staff and state officers,” Rodtnick said.
The documentary crew will “focus on capturing video and photos during our state events but also be trained to create media for their counties and district events,” Rodtnick said.
“Many of our crew members have said that they enjoy and want to pursue filmmaking and ‘telling stories,’” Rodtnick said. “So, it’s a natural move for us to begin training them in a craft that can inevitably benefit 4-H and even recruitment for future Video Crew members. We are creating real 4-H products while giving a higher skill set to students in their interests.”
The program will kick off in November with an initial training session, where new crew members will learn about the equipment necessary to produce live events, and returning members will advance their understanding of production techniques. As part of the curriculum, crew members will also tour different local production facilities, such as the University of Arkansas at Little Rock television department and the broadcast facility at the Jack Stephens Center.
After a winter training in February and a spring session in April, members will produce a live broadcast at the Teen Star & Hall of Fame Banquet at the Arkansas 4-H Center in June. The year will culminate with three broadcasts at State O-Rama in July.
Future filmmakers
Berryhill said Rodtnick and Benjamin Aaron, extension video production specialist for the Division of Agriculture, were “very helpful with explaining technology to us.”
“I had no camera experience, and now I have a lot,” Berryhill said. “I can put a whole camera together by memory. I’ve also learned how to run a light program. I want to pick up more skills when it comes to cameras, filming and editing.”
Teegan Henry, 14, a member of Arkansas County 4-H, said she was inspired to apply for the Video Crew after her older brother had a positive experience as a member.
“I heard a lot of great things about it,” Henry said. “I’m interested in videography, and photography is one of my 4-H projects. My brother was on the Video Crew, and I got to hear about what he did when he was a member. So, I went with it.”
Henry said she is looking forward to “being able to meet new people and have new experiences.”
“I’m excited to learn about the production part, and operating the cameras,” she said.
Rodtnick said Video Crew members receive training that may not be accessible to them otherwise.
“Many of our Video Crew members come from communities and schools that aren’t equipped with updated production facilities where they can learn the technical skills they are interested in,” Rodtnick said. “We are able to provide them industry level instruction and hands-on experience that allows them to move into a college or career path with an advantage over others.
“They learn industry terms and gain experience with actual live broadcasts,” he said. “Our goal is to expose them to these opportunities and prepare them for their next step in production. 4-H has prepared kids for the future for 100 years, and now we are doing the same with new technologies and methods. The Video Crew’s focus on media production and creative art is a fresh approach to a proven method.”
Learn more about the Arkansas 4-H Video Crew at 4h.uada.edu/youth/leadership/video-crew.aspx.
To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit www.uaex.uada.edu. Follow us on X and Instagram at @AR_Extension. To learn more about Division of Agriculture research, visit the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station website: https://aaes.uada.edu. Follow on X at @ArkAgResearch. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit https://uada.edu/. Follow us on X at @AgInArk.
About the Division of Agriculture
The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture’s mission is to strengthen agriculture, communities, and families by connecting trusted research to the adoption of best practices. Through the Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service, the Division of Agriculture conducts research and extension work within the nation’s historic land grant education system.
The Division of Agriculture is one of 20 entities within the University of Arkansas System. It has offices in all 75 counties in Arkansas and faculty on three campuses.
Pursuant to 7 CFR § 15.3, the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs and services (including employment) without regard to race, color, sex, national origin, religion, age, disability, marital or veteran status, genetic information, sexual preference, pregnancy or any other legally protected status, and is an equal opportunity institution.
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Media Contact:
Rebekah Hall
rkhall@uada.edu
@RKHall_
501-671-2061