HookedIn Spotlight Series: Tyler Pullum

By Eliza Pillsbury in Alcalde Online on September 16, 2024 at 2:48 pm | No Comments

Tyler Pullum
Second-year majoring in Radio-Television-Film (RTF) and African & African Diaspora Studies (AADS)

Coming soon to theaters near you: Tyler Pullum, a sophomore at UT whose ambitions in the entertainment industry are big and broad. Tune in for another edition of our HookedIn Spotlight Series, celebrating one of more than 20,000 Longhorns who are connecting on the world’s premier burnt-orange social network.

ALCALDE: How did you decide on this combination of majors? Do you have any minors as well? 

I had known since middle school that I wanted to go into film, and UT checked all my boxes about price and distance from home. We also happen to have one of the best film programs in the country. Not to brag or anything! 

When I came here, I learned about Black Studies [AADS], but I’m really interested in history, too, so I was going back and forth between them—but knew I wanted to add a liberal arts major. I got interested in Black Studies because the department has this TV show that’s produced through the University with PBS called Blackademics Television, and it’s a space where top academics who do research that affects the Black community talk about their work. It’s been going on for at least a decade now, and it’s a really cool project to be a part of. And then as I’ve been involved with the department, I’ve really loved the professors. They’re awesome, and I just love the subject as well. 

I will also be adding a Sports Production & Broadcasting minor. I’m not the biggest sports person, but I am a big entertainment person in general. I learned about the [Sports Production] class first, and then I found out that there was a minor. It sounds like a really cool opportunity to get more into production. 

How have student organizations and internships impacted your academic career so far?  

I’ve been a writer for The Daily Texan since last fall when I first started at UT, and I love it. It is a lot of work, but I enjoy writing, and I’ve gotten to do really cool things. This summer, I was covering Life & Arts and News, and it was interesting to learn how [the two departments] do stories differently.  

This semester, I will be a video production intern with C3 Presents, which will be a cool opportunity for me to figure out if that’s another route in the entertainment industry I would want to try. 

How did you first hear about HookedIn, and how have you used it as a tool to build your network? 

I stumbled upon the website. I created an account and was amazed at how many resources and connections were on there. I told all my friends to sign up! A lot of people’s profiles will say, “I lived in Duren,” or “I wrote for The Daily Texan,” and you can use that information when you’re reaching out to someone to make an immediate connection. 

Everyone I’ve met through HookedIn has been super awesome. I made a spreadsheet last year of all the people I’ve networked with, and it has details like their contact information, current position, and how I met them. When I was taking a class [called “The Global City” with Dr. Eric Tang] in New York this past summer, one of the things I did was sort the search results by people who graduated from Moody [College of Communication] and live in New York. I was able to contact a lot of them.  

What is your biggest piece of networking advice for your peers?  

Take advantage of being a student. I feel like people are so receptive to talking to students, especially if they went to UT and you emphasize that you’re a fellow Longhorn. Everybody has been in the position at one point where they were trying to figure things out, so make sure that you are reaching out to people and developing the habit of meeting new people and networking while you’re a student because there are so many opportunities and ways to get involved as a student that might be harder to do once you get into the professional world. In entertainment fields especially, there is such a large pool of talented people, so it’s imperative that you do something that puts you over the edge.  

What is your favorite course you’ve taken so far at UT—besides the aforementioned Global City and Sports Production classes? 

I took this class called RTF 308 which is one of the basic, lower division classes that you have to take for the major. I got to learn a lot about the history of the entertainment and media industry and what has changed and developed over time. It was the perfect opportunity to combine two things that I really love—history and film.  

To steal a bit from Letterboxd, what would you say your top four favorite movies are? 

I do have Letterboxd, and my top four movies are City of God, West Side Story (1961), Eyes Wide Shut, and The Fantastic Mr. Fox. 

Get connected with Tyler and other Longhorns on HookedIn, the official networking platform of The University of Texas. 

This interview has been edited and condensed. 

Tags: hookedin, hookedin spotlight series