Directing and producing a musical performance by Nick Howard, featured on MTV's Jersey Shore and The Hills

CitrusTV hosted a special musical guest this week, Nick Howard, an up-and-coming British singer/songwriter whose music has been featured on MTV's Jersey Shore and The Hills. Nick and his management team contacted CitrusTV before coming to central New York on a leg of Nick's solo tour.

I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to co-produce and direct the four-song set that Nick played late Wednesday night. I worked with three other CitrusTV members, Marie Hankinson, Christina Orazio and Bill Sharp, to arrange the studio and plan the six camera positions.

Check out the entire performance on CitrusTV's YouTube account below... and thanks to Nick for the opportunity and best of luck with his career. Check out his music if you haven't already.



The biggest challenges were making use of our small space, making it look interesting with only one person, and working with limited personnel. We only found out about the opportunity two days earlier - so the limited time didn't allow for much pre-production or crewing.

In the end, we used the plasma screens to create more depth and make the studio look bigger. We had a total of six cameras, but only two of them had operators, who were pressed with getting a variety of shots to make the space seem bigger than it was. Also - we didn't have lyrics or any rehearsal, so everything was just one take and we had no idea what was coming next in the songs.

It was a ton of fun though - and the final product shows.

The Path Ahead - documentary showcased by No. 1 basketball team in country

The No. 1 ranked Syracuse University basketball team is featuring a documentary I co-produced on their Web site.

Uncover the universal human experience of being on a path to dreams, through the story of Marty Headd, a three-year starter on the Syracuse University Orangemen’s basketball team. He dropped out of college in the ’70s, played ball in Europe, and returned home to realize his path and dreams were behind him.

• Watch it now for free on Orange All Access

Originally a class project co-produced by Laura Beachy, Taylor Chestnut and Alexandra Kaplan, peers of mine in the Newhouse School, "The Path Ahead" is being distributed to a national audience on SUAthletics.com.

All four of us worked together on nearly every aspect of the video. Beachy, Taylor and Alex specialized in the creation, coordinating and development of the production, while I specialized in the camera work and final editing.

Interested in purchasing a DVD or learning more? Email thepathahead@ryanbalton.com

Update: "The Path Ahead" is now airing on the Orange Television Network. You can catch it on Channel 2 in any Syracuse University on-campus housing or academic building, or watch OTN's live stream online. It's also being used as a motivational tool for inner-city high school students in Syracuse.

Another update: Click here for the official Web site.

Another update: Watch it now on YouTube below:

Happy new decade

Wishing you all the best in the new decade... click here!

CitrusTV's first full HD show

Watch the first full HD show in the history of CitrusTV... The last 2009 taping of "Juice & Java," Syracuse University's morning talk show, was shot in 1080 HD before the semester ended.

The episode features interviews with the editor of campus magazine 20 Watts, president of the SU Anime Club, and two members of Orange Appeal - the male campus a cappella group that performs "In the Still of the Night" in the last block.

The show was produced by Hannah Kollock and Chris Shepherd, and directed by me.