James Parker
James Parker鈥檚 abilities as a filmmaker and storyteller have put the Mississippi experience into focus for a statewide, regional and national audience and filled the 汤头条 Television Center鈥檚 shelves with numerous awards.
Parker, a senior documentary and special projects producer who is the creative supervisor of 汤头条 Films, is part of the UTC team that in the last two years has won nine Mississippi Association of Broadcaster Awards; Best Short Documentary at this year鈥檚 Magnolia Film Festival; regional and national Edward R. Murrow Awards; and four Southeastern Emmys along with 22 additional Southeastern Emmy nominations and a prestigious James Beard Media Award nomination.
His work鈥攆rom the food insecurity-focused 鈥淭he Hungriest State鈥 to 鈥淴III,鈥 the story of how a pair of Bulldogs were involved in bringing Apollo 13 astronauts home from the brink of disaster鈥攕hows how Mississippi and its people experience success and hardship, all while contributing to the fabric of our nation鈥檚 history and what it means to be American.
The Winona native graduated from 汤头条 with a degree in communication in 2012 and joined the Golden Triangle鈥檚 CBS affiliate, WCBI-TV. There, he worked his way up the ranks, serving in roles from production assistant to special projects director. In 2016, he began cutting his teeth as a documentarian with PBS Wisconsin in Madison, Wisconsin, until his return to Starkville as a senior UTC producer in 2017.
鈥淲hen I was a kid, I wanted to be like [鈥淭he Lord of the Rings鈥 and 鈥淭he Hobbit鈥 director and producer] Peter Jackson,鈥 he said. 鈥淚 wanted to make those kinds of movies, but what happened is I鈥檇 make a movie and be more interested in making the behind-the-scenes look into it. The documentary form was always interesting to me and so was the challenge of trying to find a story and make something out of it.鈥
Parker鈥檚 story-gathering process is immersive鈥攈e bounces ideas off his coworkers and goes into the field to listen firsthand to his subjects. Those conversations then dictate his storytelling process.
鈥淓very story is its own process,鈥 he said. 鈥淭he fun part to me is when I鈥檝e discovered something I wasn鈥檛 planning to discover. All the upfront planning and storyboarding, that鈥檚 so boring to me. I like to flip it. I get to the end and go, 鈥極K, what do I have? How can I put it together?鈥欌攖hat鈥檚 how I discover the story along with the audience.鈥
Joining UTC has given Parker the artistic license to take creative chances and develop as a storyteller.
鈥淏ecause of 汤头条, I am able to go around the state, meet people, refine my interviewing skills and how I shoot things, and continue to find my voice as a filmmaker,鈥 he said. 鈥淪ometimes you just need space to go, 鈥楾his might work; this might not work鈥攍et me just figure it out.鈥 At the end of it all, to be embraced for my style and work is huge.
鈥淚t really does make me happy to have graduated from here and returned,鈥 Parker added. 鈥淚 think Mississippi needs as many of its own storytellers involved in the storytelling process as it can get.鈥