Centennial College’s Children's Media postgraduate program is a one-of-a-kind opportunity that teaches students how to create and produce the shows, books, and other media that shape the next generation. If you’re passionate about the media kids grow up on, this program can take your career to new heights, even if you already have experience in the field. That’s what Mica Taiah discovered, who travelled all the way from Argentina to Canada to join Children’s Media studies, despite already having a background in it. What she found was a program that helped her refine her focus and pursue her passion right into a children’s media career. Here’s how her journey unfolded.
Looking for something unique
Mica didn’t start her career by going into children’s media, but found her way into it as a working professional back home.
"Back in Argentina, I was working at Discovery, doing general creative writing," Mica explains. "When I started my first task for kids, I realized I wanted to focus in this area" she explains. With the support of her boss, she transitioned into specializing in child-friendly media, working on projects with Discovery Kids. This growing passion inspired her to seek a formal education in it, ultimately leading her to Centennial College.
"Once I discovered that there was a program fully dedicated to children's media here, I was really interested, and I wanted to study that," Mica says. "It’s not everywhere you can find a program like this. It's kind of unique, having the chance to only focus on kids’ and children's media." But that wasn’t the only thing she found remarkable about the program.
Theory, Practice, and Completeness
"I think the focus on kids from different perspectives makes it very complete," Mica says about her time in Children’s Media at Centennial College. "You learn about writing, producing, marketing, and merchandising, all under this umbrella of understanding entertainment for kids, which makes it really unique. Plus, the instructors were all connected to the industry, as professionals, with good experiences for us to learn from." That focus, that specialization component, makes it really special." Another thing that made the program special? Small class sizes.
"We were 10 students, but we were all very passionate," she says. "That empowers a sense of intimacy, where we can really discuss things one-on-one with professors."
As for the program’s content, Mica came at it with a unique perspective. Usually, it’s the practical experience students are after. But in Mica’s case, it was the theoretical aspect, and more specifically, in children’s media literacy. Having already spent significant time in the workforce, she found it helped deepen her understanding and approach to creating impactful content for children.
"In my particular case, I came with professional experience," she says. "I enjoyed the way it gave me more tools in the theory realm, but it was also practical. I enjoyed that every single class had not only the theory and the knowledge, but also put students in hands-on practical cases. For example, we had to choose a current show work to on, and write ideas for. And then we finished writing full episodes."
"This aspect of working with existing shows, both current and classic, gave it such a nice flavour," she says. "It sparked discussions and interesting conversations in class about positive values, representation in children’s media, and what we want kids to take away from the content they watch. How do we see the industry? What do we want the content to become? Kids are such a special demographic, and that connection in between the positive values and execution was one of my favorite parts."
"The instructors were very aware that we were going to be finding work or internships, so they included interesting projects in their courses that connected us with producers," she says. "Some of their courses also included practical assignments for which we had to go and connect one-on-one with a producer of a show or with someone in a current show, and that was helpful for us to build our network." That would be very useful when it came time for her field placement.
Moving out into the world
Mica would eventually get a placement at the Shaw Rocket Fund, as part of the program, but first, she had to earn it.
"We did have to secure our internships ourselves," Mica says, "so that was a good taste of reality. It was not easy, but I had talks with Scholastic, and then with the Rocket Fund, who gave me an offer."
Mica’s time there was filled with opportunities to grow and learn. "Shaw Rocket Fund is an authorized voice in the Canadian children’s media industry. It supports quality content that inspires kids around the world," she continues. "In addition to having this meaningful mission, the team was truly amazing; very highly skilled in kids’ television and in kids’ policies. My internship was a great experience, and I think it's such an added value that our program had that requirement."
Her hard work during the internship didn’t go unnoticed. She started with a variety of tasks, quickly proving herself and being offered a position as a content analyst. "I could focus more on the stuff I liked, which was receiving pitches and creative materials for projects that were applying for funding. I was, luckily, in charge of reading and writing detailed reports where I could evaluate the creative aspects of each submission and make recommendations (decision-making is done by the Board of Directors). And that was an amazing way of putting into practice the analytical part of the program that I gained."
According to Mica, the intensive assignments and real-world focus at Centennial College prepared her well for the demands of this role. "The gymnastics that we had with so many assignments helped me," she says. "The program is really not only complete and well-focused, but very intense. And that was excellent preparation for me to be successful in my content analyst position, because there were a lot of projects, like very long documents to read and to report on. We also had a development course where we were guided in the creation of I.P. [new ideas, stories and concepts] from start to end, so day one after the program we already had at least one idea which was fully polished, ready to be pitched."
What’s next for Mica
"I’ve finished my contract with the Rocket Fund, where I was able to stay for more than a year after my internship," Mica says. "Now, while seeking my next challenge, I’ve joined the Children’s Media Association to contribute with some volunteer work, and keep growing my network in this field I love. I feel passionate about preschool brands that are colourful, fun and safe. That's very much the essence of Discovery Kids’ portfolio of characters." During her time as a creative lead in Discovery Kids’ online platforms, Mica also developed interactive content for animated series, such as Peppa Pig, contributing to the release of over 100 digital titles.
"At this moment, I'm also writing my own children's books. So far, I’ve developed two, in collaboration with a talented Argentinian illustrator," she says.
Advice for others
"Advice that would have been good to have myself is to start looking early for your position, or for your internship," Mica admits. "During the program, you feel like it’s a long way off. But it takes time, so it's good practical advice for everyone studying to also have a parallel plan to start reaching out and start imagining where you will intern or work." And more broadly, whether you’re into Children’s Media or not, is to find your passion, and follow it, as she has.
"If you're passionate about something, make a career from that, because that's an excellent fuel for you to be active, interested and curious, and that really makes you stand out in a market full of other people, students, applicants and professionals."