Sarah Gabany
Sarah Gabany spent one month studying abroad virtually at the University of Nicosia in Cyprus. There she studied under the Communications department as a podcast and radio intern. During her internship, she wrote, edited, recorded, and broadcasted a series of podcasts that took a creative and artistic approach to questions that often overwhelm us. Sarah created podcasts such as “Where do we go when we sleep?”, “How we came to be”, “What’s out there?”, and “What time is it?”. Each podcast provided a light explanation to rather heavy questions. Despite being a Digital Cinematography and Photography major at Robert Morris University, focusing on the new medium of podcast and radio provided her with the necessary skills to truly design an atmosphere through sound and words. Though it was a challenge to tell a story without moving images, creating a podcast series gave Sarah the fundamental skills to envision and understand how she would like her films and photography to look and feel. Each podcast was broadcasted throughout Cyprus and aloud at local art festivals. During her experience, Sarah was able to connect with her professor creatively and learn the ins and outs of auditory storytelling.
Sarah will never forget her experience at the University of Nicosia. She hopes to one day visit Cyprus in person to make that personal connection with those who listened to her series. She anticipates meeting more students and professors that are interested in podcasts that take on a more cinematic approach. Sarah is ambitious to continue to combine the medium of film and radio to create more exciting stories.
CEE Title Virtual Experience, Global Issue: The Mental Health Effects of Virtual Communication
I found that my CEE experience had become a unique and fulfilling component of my VIH program. I started this journey before the pandemic as a sophomore at Robert Morris University studying cinematography and photography. Once the pandemic hit, I deferred my study abroad journey to the next year hoping I could study abroad in person. Unfortunately, I was still not able to physically study abroad so as a cohort we adapted, and I did a virtual internship at the University of Nicosia in Cyprus where I worked for a podcast and radio department producing weekly content that was broadcasted throughout Cyprus. Upon completing the internship my fellow cohort members at Robert Morris and I decided that we would create a panel to highlight imposter syndrome and the mental health effects of virtual learning and working. During this journey, I learned a lot about myself in this ongoing virtual context. I learned how to adapt to ever-changing situations and to make the most of what can be done. These obstacles helped in making me more creative and confident. While planning our panel we formed a little production team highlighting all of our strengths; this gave me a chance to be creative and present information in a new way. This long journey has led me to meet so many people and has helped me learn and grow in the face of adversity.