Tune Into Coog Tv's Creativity

The University of Houston is well-versed in success. Some would point to the school’s basketball team, others would point to the C.T Bauer School of Business. Though many seem to neglect the rising success of CoogTV. Originally founded in 2010, the organization has grown infinitely over the last few years. 

A lot can change in fourteen years, and CoogTv is no exception. Over the course of the 2023-2024 school year, the organization has accomplished great feats and proven that they can compete with the higher-ranked groups on campus. Though CoogTV would be nothing without it’s founders. The chairmen over the years have managed to turn the organization upside down. The group was approved in 2010 by the SFAC (Student Fees Advisory Committee), consisting of about twenty or thirty members. For the first couple of years, the org was focused on recruiting new members and finding its voice. Eventually in 2015, they rebranded, changing the title, now known as CoogTV. 

In comparison to the organizations start, today CoogTV has surmounted a record eight hundred members. The group is led by five chairmen, all over their respective departments including: News, Sports, Entertainment, Life and Arts, and Media. All students are encouraged to join the org, with no experience necessary.  The chairmen consistently emphasize that there is room for everyone no matter your background. One of the unique parts of being a CoogTV member is the opportunity to work with professional filming equipment. In addition, the group is open to all ideas, whether it be for a new video, editing style or marketing strategy. And the most compelling part of these projects is that they are all completely student led, making the entire process far more collaborative. 

The best example of this is the CoogTv film festival. The festival was founded in 2021 by Executive Producer, Joe Michael. The executive producer created the festival in hopes of showcasing the organization's creativity. CoogTv routinely produces and shoots videos that fall in line with thematic ideas such as sports, music, pop culture and current events. And while all these shoots are extremely beneficial to the org members Joe Michael wanted to push the envelope, and with that he started the film festival which allowed students to showcase their imagination and bring new ideas to life. 

After establishing the film festival and encouraging creative innovation, a new idea was brought to the table for the organization. CoogTV member, Erin Bernardo proposed the idea of a film challenge for the festival. The idea was eventually orchestrated in 2022, bringing great success. Though the real growth was seen at this year's film festival. The event featured twelve different films, four of which participated in the film challenge. In addition to the film challenge, the organization managed to incorporate films from other schools such as Baylor, Rice and HCC.  The inclusion of films from separate schools demonstrates just how much reach CoogTV has. Not to mention the four hundred audience members in attendance. Though, the showstopper was the film challenge, genres ranging from thriller to action. I spoke with one of the film’s crew members, Adam Rodriguez. The freshman’s role in production was geared toward photography and assisting with the execution of different shots. Adam described how CoogTV has helped his confidence grow infinitely. Going into the school year he was nervous about finding his footing, but he knew he wanted to join CoogTV. He admittedly was “very intimated about joining such a big organization” but went on to say that everyone was “extremely nice and welcoming”. Adam said that the group's culture is what inevitably led him to join CoogTV. And now looking back on his freshman year, he's glad he took the leap of faith. Over the course of the year, CoogTV has not only led him to make more friends but also pushed him to “think outside of the box and consider angles he's never thought of before”. And to top it all off, the film his group submitted, “Can’t Talk To You” won first place in this year's film challenge. When speaking of his freshman year, Adam says that without CoogTv he wouldn't have grown the same as a student or creative. If CoogTV manages to continue with events like the film challenge, the organization has ample room to grow and build a long-lasting foundation at the University of Houston. 

For years CoogTV has been overlooked, but over the course of the past few years the organization has transformed and proved that they hold up among the ranks. The group is truly a diamond in the rough as they bring loads of fun and creative ideas to the table. With the success they've had as of recent, their future is looking bright both on and off the screen.