Bradley University's creative clubs, explained
Showing how Bradley students create different art by looking at the clubs Hilltop Films, Broadside, and The Edge.
All around us, art is being created. Art has changed from the days of paintings and sculptures. Whether it be movies, TV shows, podcasts, or journals we are surrounded by art of the new era.
Art’s importance cannot be overstated. Art makes people feel better, Art is a place of escape for most people.
Whether that escape is through the form of a book, a movie, a podcast, or any other art, the value art holds is a significant one.
College is a place where students can create this art and show their creativity.
Clubs are a place where creating art can happen. All colleges offer an assortment of clubs for students to join.
Thomas Palakeel, an English Professor at Bradley University believes clubs have value for students. He said
Clubs are important because students come to college not just to study.
College students don’t just party and study, sometimes they join clubs where they can create art.
Bradley University is a college that allows students to show their creativity through the art they create in clubs.
Now let’s take a look at some of Bradley University’s clubs where students can harness their creativity and produce art.
What is The Edge?
The Edge is a resource that Bradley students can use to make their podcasts. The club has a studio in Sisson Hall where students can use the equipment.
The Edge started as a radio station on Bradley’s campus. The club was founded in 1989.
The goal of the club is to “allow students who want to make a podcast to be able to do that,” said club president Brad Dixon. The club publishes student podcasts on its YouTube channel.
The podcasts that are produced can be about any topic, right now one of the podcasts is about cyber security.
Dixon’s least favorite part is when the equipment breaks because sometimes he has to use his own money to replace it.
“My favorite part is seeing what people make,” said Dixon. He enjoys how many different genres of podcasts The Edge can produce.
In the future, The Edge hopes to have more club members. Right now the club has 19 members.
What is Broadside?
Broadside is a literary art journal on Bradley’s campus. They create one journal every single semester, accepting submissions for three different categories: Prose, Poetry, and Art.
The club has been a part of Bradley’s campus for over forty years.
Publishing in the journal is free for Bradley students. According to club editor Alyssa Pagán, the goal of the club is “to take students' work and put them into a journal in the fall and spring.”
Broadside has been a part of Bradley’s campus for over forty years. The club accepts submissions from all Bradley students regardless of major.
Pagán said that many of her favorite pieces have come from engineering majors. She struggles with reading some poetry because the subject matter can be stressful.
The club has to choose from over fifty different entries every time they produce a journal.
” I love seeing the creative mindsets other people have,” said Pagán.
Right now the club has around 15 members but that doesn’t include the students who submit work to the journal. Broadside hopes to have more members in the future.
To find out more about Broadside and creative writing, Listen below:
What is Hilltop Films?
Hilltop Films is a club on Bradley University’s campus that allows students to try their hand at attempting to make a short film.
The club was started in 2019 and currently has one short film on its YouTube page.
Students can work in a myriad of positions within the club, including editor, writer, and actor. Hilltop Films currently has 14 members.
Hilltop Films has three consistent board members. The president is Breanna Watermolen, a sophomore. In her role as president she runs meetings, facilitates the club and has taken on a producer role this semester.
Watermolen enjoys the collaborative aspect of the club. “I love working and collaborating with creative people on projects,” she said in an interview.
Christian Pedersen is the head writer for the club. Pederson likes having the freedom to write what he wants for the club. “I like the creativity of it. We can make it how we want to make it for the most part,” said Petersen.
The script writing for the club is a collaborative process. Pedersen and head editor Cameron Paul as well as many other people in the writer’s room collaborated on their current project.
Hilltop is a way for students who like film can gain experience in film-making and all parts of the film process. “This is a good chance to gain experience, a good place to work on things you enjoy,” said Petersen.
Paul and Petersen both said the hardest part of the filmmaking process was scheduling. Sometimes people are too busy to work on a short film so that means that the club sometimes can’t film on certain days.
The club hopes to publish its short film called Five Days in the fall semester of 2024.
Where can I find out more about the clubs?
All of the clubs can be found on Bradley University’s presence website, otherwise known as B involved. The Edge has a YouTube channel, an Instagram, a Twitter and a website. Broadside has its own Facebook but no other social media. Hilltop Films has its own YouTube channel and an active Instagram account.