When not studying or skateboarding, Taylee Gaillard keeps busy writing scripts, setting up the best lighting for a shot, and editing short films at UNC Greensboro.
He’s already an award winner, in no small part thanks to his friendship with Steven Kimmerle ‘24, a newly graduated alum of UNCG. Kimmerle took him under his wing as a rookie gaffer.
“I’d never delved too deeply into gaffing before,” he says. “Steven knew so many lighting techniques and had so much experience. We would bounce ideas off each other. He’d say, ‘Do this now, because it’s going to come back and bite you later.'”
Kimmerle and Gaillard worked with other students and alumni to make the horror short film “Dead Ball” for the Greensboro 48 Hour Film Project. They walked away with five awards, including Best Sound Design and Best Jump Scare.
Their project came about thanks to Carmichael Studios, housed within the Department of Media Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences. There, students collaborate on filmmaking or rent equipment for their own projects. Along with gaffer, Gaillard has been a director, cinematographer, editor, color-grader, and sound designer.
Fun-Focused, Career-Minded
As he builds his portfolio, he also builds appealing job skills. Gaillard majors in hospitality and tourism management in the Bryan School of Business and Economics. He wants to eventually make marketing materials for a large entertainment company like Apple or Sony.
An eye for video and photography is critical to any business today, when many potential customers rely on social media and online recommendations. (Sprout Social, a social media management tool for brands and industries, reports that “consumers are using Facebook (39%), TikTok (36%) and Instagram (29%) to make purchases.”) Companies need to stand out with vibrant, eye-catching visuals.
He first became interested in the hospitality industry while at Mount Tabor High School in Winston-Salem. A teacher gave him a list of schools with strong hospitality programs, one of them being UNCG.
“UNCG had more scholarships – I got a full ride – and I saw their business school was really good,” says Gaillard. “Also, with all the colleges I was looking at, I studied up on the alumni. The UNCG alumni seemed more successful in their fields.”
He’s already done work for one business when his sister got a job with Flavoures. The bakery, based in the United Kingdom, opened a shop on North Elm Street in Greensboro and asked for help shoring up a new customer base.
Gaillard put together a small production crew and shot a commercial. “My sister’s boss said, ‘Does anybody know anybody that does video production?’ And I was like, ‘Yeah, I’ll do it.'”
Carmichael gives Gaillard a space to practice what he studies with Bryan’s Department of Marketing, Entrepreneurship, Hospitality and Tourism. “My accounting courses helped me understand film expenses,” he says. “And the communication classes helped me understand the different ways for my characters to communicate with each other, through how they talk and how they move.”
Growing Social Circle
Along with Kimmerle, one of his best mentors outside class has been Hassan Pitts, lecturer and department technology coordinator of media studies. “I share my work with him a lot, and he’s very empowering,” says Gaillard. “He brings out the best in us.”
Filmmaking is not the only place where he has built a supportive friend network. He joined the G-fluencers, a group of social media content creators. He added a concentration in esports management and got involved in the Esports Club. Gaillard also supports his peers as a student employee for Housing and Residential Life.
He also co-founded a new club. “When I moved to campus, I saw all these skateboarders rolling around,” says Gaillard. “I was still pretty new to it and nervous about skating in front of the more experienced ones. So, I thought, let’s get everybody to come together, to say, ‘Hey, it’s fine if you can’t skate. Let’s build up confidence.'”
He enjoyed seeing the club grow into a special community for UNCG students. “People come and make friends, even if they don’t have a skateboard,” he says. “When we have our meetings, there’s usually people playing music, talking, or just watching people skate. It’s so much fun.”
With all his courses, extracurriculars, and student job, Gaillard learned a lot about balance and time management. “When I first started doing short films, I thought, ‘Oh, this is so time-consuming. How am I going to be able to keep up with classwork?’ But it turned out to be a big motivator. I’m a procrastinator by nature, so I learned to start my work 2-3 weeks ahead of time.”
What jobs does he have under his belt now? He says, “I finished up editing a film called ‘Friendsgiving.’ Then I’m working on a three-part Mafia trilogy, four music videos, the College 48 competition, sound design for a film ‘Rosas Dilemma,’ a seven-minute short film production called ‘The Right One’ for the M.E.T. student film company, and a band short film for another production company.”
That’s just to start off 2025. But for Gaillard, it doesn’t feel like work. “All my friends are filmmakers,” he says, “So, not only am I doing something I like and being productive. I’m also hanging out with my friends.”
Story by Janet Imrick, University Communications
Photography by Sean Norona, University Communications
