Almost five billion videos are watched on YouTube each day, and approximately 300 hours of video is uploaded to YouTube every minute. YouTube’s growing  popularity has inspired several students to create their own channels and grow an interest in film production.

Junior Film Production student Jared Gotherman originally started his YouTube channel Feb. 16, 2014 because he got inspired by other gamers’ YouTubes.

“I just kept learning and watching other YouTubers, so that inspired me and gave me more ideas on how to make videos,” Gotherman said. “If I liked their film, then I would create something kind of like it, and I would try to mirror some of the same shots.”

YouTube inspired Gotherman to find an interest in photography and short films. Film Production has now become a major part of his life.

“I started recording things with my camera, and I started having an interest that led me to videography,” Gotherman said.

According to Gotherman, a better quality camera is important to have in order to create better content.

“I always take my camera everywhere,” Gotherman said. “If something’s interesting, I’ll film it.”

Gotherman quit YouTube with 85 subscribers in Jan. 2018 and deleted all of his videos, but he continues to watch YouTube on a daily basis.

“It takes a lot of effort to make YouTube videos,” Gotherman said. “It’s time consuming, [and] if you’re not going anywhere with it, it’s not really worth it.”

Senior Film Production student Edgar Tejada started his YouTube channel in middle school after finding an interest in video games.

“In elementary, I got involved in video games from older family members,” Tejada said. “As I started getting older, I started upgrading with technology, and I realized that this is something I like to be around. This is something I like to do.”

Tejada had a difficult time editing his YouTube channel because he did not have access to the proper equipment; he only used his phone.

“For most people, filming takes a lot of time, but it’s the editing that really takes a lot,” Tejada said.

Tejada stopped recording during his freshman year.

“I didn’t know what I was doing,” Tejada said. “I would wonder, ‘Should I try something else?’ ‘Should I just stop?’ and I just kind of stopped [YouTube] there.”

Tejada has considered getting equipment and giving YouTube another try in college.

“Most people think in YouTube, you just film something and you got it all down,” Tejada said. “It’s like a first job. You have to be committed; you can’t just go into it without a care.”

Junior Film Production student Billie McNabb started his YouTube in 2010, but did not start uploading content until 2013. Currently, he has 50 subscribers.

“I’m just happy with the content I post,” McNabb said. “I’m not really worried about the views or the subscribers as of right now.”

Lately, McNabb has been slacking off on uploading content and advises others to “always be very consistent with uploads” and “not to make the same mistakes” that he does.

“I have ideas on what I want to do,” McNabb said. “But I just don’t do it because I’m extremely lazy when it comes to it.”

McNabb likes the supportive community that YouTube offers.

“YouTube has brought me up in a lot of my darkest times,” McNabb said. “I can go on there, have a good laugh and forget about everything else. It’s just the small things that really help a lot of people out.”