It’s that time of year again.the days are getting shorter, the temperature is starting to drop, kids are writing their letters to Santa Claus in time for Christmas and the production students at MATC are working with MPTV to produce a show on that very subject.Aptly named Letters to Santa, the show covers Santa Claus as he reads the letters of Milwaukee-area children. It also covers topics such as spending time with family over the holidays, Christmas tree decorations are created and cookies are baked for Santa.

As stated earlier, all of the work that goes into producing the show is done entirely by MATC production students. Scott Brewer, a first-semester production student at MATC, said, “The TV program gives the students vital exposure to an industry that is always changing.

“This program uses valuable instruments and practices to prepare the student for the work world. It is a very involved program,” he added.

“This semester (for me) was the first exposure to working in a television studio that I’ve had. The shows that I’ve worked on include Adelante, Interchange and Letters to Santa,” Brewer stated.

Typically, students work on television programs in “workshop” during their second semester of the first year and the first semester (or summer) of their second year,” Brewer said.

Although the show is not broadcasted on public television until mid-December, the students start working on the show the first day of the fall semester.

Brewer said, “The students vote on who will fill what managerial roles and production assignments are given.

“The students are responsible for their own work and area. We work on this project from the first day of class until the middle of November.

“We have meetings and work with the instructors on issues that might come up.”

If you’re interested in watching one of the episodes of Letters to Santa, you can watch them on www.mptv.org right now, or watch them live on Milwaukee Public Television from December 21 to December 24.