Hatching Chick Media’s Second Winter Showcase
An interview about the event with HT Fleming, the production group’s founder.
On Friday, January 26, 2024, Hatching Chick Media hosted its Second Winter Showcase at Pacific’s Long Theater. Doors for the event opened at 5:15 pm.
The showcase featured works from musical and media creatives throughout the University of the Pacific. Film and live music acts were accompanied by food, friends, and family on the red carpet.
Julian Leal, Staff Writer for the Pacifican, conducted a virtual interview with HT Fleming, founder of Hatching Chick Media, about the event.
Please briefly introduce yourself.
“I’m HT. I’m a 4th year Media X major with minors in Spanish and writing. I’m an outreach coordinator for the Pacific Humanities Scholars program as well as a senior program and facilities specialist for the Media X program. Outside of school, I’m a storyteller from the Bay Area. The vast range of people and experience[s] the region exposed me to from a young age heavily influences my storytelling. I’m also the founder of Hatching Chick Media Group.”
Please briefly describe the events that took place during the showcase.
“During the second Hatching Chick Media Winter Showcase, we were able to create a platform for three different University of the Pacific (UOP) musical acts to perform in front of a crowd of nearly 300 people. The musical acts were Laminated List, KZA, and UOP Neo Souls. They all did phenomenally! This year’s showcase also included a special, private red-carpet event for our company’s debut film, Samantha & The Fisherman’s Dream. Cast, crew, family, and friends of the project came in for an early look at the movie before it became available to the public.”
How long did it take to plan the event?
“We began planning this event in late September [of 2023]. It was mostly outreach to the cast and crew to see who’d be interested in attending until we sent out the first round of invites in November. The heavy lifting came in the two weeks prior to the event.”
Who contributed to the planning and execution of the event?
“Taryn Brown! Taryn was the project's production coordinator and helped us relay information internally and with our lengthy invite list. Benjamin Shafer edited the movie and helped us set up the event in the days leading up. Jose Flores-Jiminez, Jamarcus Oliver, Jevohnte Fields, and Charlie Ostner were critical in making the event run smoothly on the day of. Peter Williams and Andrew Garcia were superheroes in documenting the event! The entire Media X staff is to be thanked for the event’s success. Julius Crouch of ESPN designed [the] main movie poster that we printed, and Gavin Henderson designed our character posters that were scattered about the theater.”
How did the event turn out compared to your expectations?
“Anytime you can put people in position to do something they love in front of people that enjoy what they’re doing, it’s a success. Honestly, I thought we’d have an even larger crowd, but that was tough due to what I’ll address in the next question. I was thrilled to see each of the music groups shine on stage! And it was fulfilling to see so much of the cast and crew come together to celebrate each other's hard work. Almost none of the cast saw the full script, so they were all excited to see how things came together. I believe the film exceeded everyone’s expectations, including Ben and I’s. We never knew (and still don’t) how big the project could be, we just believed if we worked our hardest at each step of the way, we would be headed in the right direction!”
What was the most challenging aspect of hosting the event?
“The most challenging aspect of hosting it was navigating the obstacles that came with moving the event up from Saturday to Friday. Though it was out of our control, it caused dozens of our cast, crew, donors, and guests to not be able to attend the event, including actors Jataun Gilbert and Jessica Chaves. Maybe it was a blessing in disguise because the event almost certainly would have sold out if we hadn’t moved the date, which could have been difficult to deal with. Another challenge was sacrificing my time on the red carpet to run around and make sure things went smoothly for the musicians, but it was certainly worth it!”
Do you plan on hosting more winter showcases in the future?
“I do plan to continue the Hatching Chick Media Winter Showcase. I hope it can grow into an annual celebration of the region’s creative talent, and become an artistic crossroads where connections are made and ideas are birthed.”