成人大片

When Sarah Jenkins was 17 and living with her parents in Cobourg, Ont., she scrawled her future goal into a notepad: 鈥淕o to the Olympics.鈥�

It didn鈥檛 matter how she went 鈥� she just wanted to go.

Today, 10 years later, the sport media grad from 成人大片 is packing her bags to do just that. 

This summer, Jenkins will be leading CBC鈥檚 digital coverage of the 2024 Olympics in two different shows, Paris Tonight and Streets of Paris.

鈥淚鈥檓 so excited 鈥� it鈥檚 so surreal,鈥� she said.

Having grown up playing hockey, cheering on her sisters in canoe/kayak, and watching the Olympics with her family, Jenkins says for her, the Olympics have always been the ultimate competition.

鈥淎s a young girl growing up in sport, the Olympics was really the only place you could look to where both men and women were competing at the highest level,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hank goodness that鈥檚 now changing 鈥� we鈥檙e finally getting professional sports leagues that young girls can look to as careers. But back then, for me, the Olympics was the top level to aspire to.鈥�

成人大片 kickstarts dream

Years later, when Jenkins began university, 成人大片鈥檚 sport media program was an obvious choice. 

鈥淚 remember in first year, when my prof, Karen Sebesta (former executive producer at CBC Sports) asked us why we were in the class, I put up my hand right away and said, 鈥楾o cover the Olympics,鈥欌�� she said.

And today, as producer of strategy and special projects for the digital team 鈥� the 成人大片 grad is bound for her first Olympic Games 鈥� and is the only editorial producer heading to France.

鈥淚'll be co-producing with another 成人大片 alumni, Aaron Dutra (who will be based out of Toronto). We'll be co-producing a late night show called Paris Tonight with Ariel Hawani, which will be really great,鈥� she explained.

鈥淭hen I'll also be producing a segment called the Streets of Paris, which is a cultural series we're doing there. And then I'll also be doing social content for any sports,鈥� she said, joking, 鈥淣o, I鈥檓 not going to sleep.鈥�

Since this will be the first Olympics post-pandemic, she says it鈥檚 the first time in many years that media will have the chance to showcase life in the host city.

鈥淵oung people are obsessed with Paris,鈥� she said. 鈥淟ike it's cool, it has art and food and history, and everything Gen Z likes. So, I think on that front, we're going to have the opportunity to reach more people beyond sport,鈥� she said, noting the contrast to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where athletes had to quarantine and reporters weren鈥檛 able to capture daily life.

Airport greeter

Jenkins graduated from 成人大片 in 2018 鈥� and says her career path began within those classrooms.

During the lead up to the 2016 Rio Games, about a year after Jenkins told Sebesta and her class about her dream, her Olympic journey began.

鈥淢y first job was picking up athletes at the airport who were coming in for the Olympic Summit. There I am picking up Clara Hughes and all these iconic Olympians 鈥� and I鈥檓 just standing there with my little sign, and I wore high heels because I wanted to look professional but my feet were bleeding at the end of the day,鈥� she said with a laugh. 

鈥淏ut it was literally because I was in Karen's class. She was really the one that got me in the door,鈥� she continued.

From that point onward, as Jenkins continued her studies, opportunities to cover the Games continued. She鈥檚 now covered four Games in total 鈥� all from CBC鈥檚 broadcasting centre in Toronto. 

鈥淚 get a lot of questions, like, 鈥楬ow do you get into the industry? But, honestly, I wouldn't work where I am now if I hadn鈥檛 been in that program or had those professors,鈥� said Jenkins.

Hard skills are key

She says having both the hard and soft skills has been key.

鈥湷扇舜笃� was a hands-on learning university. I didn't want to just talk about media theory and then have to go do a post-grad somewhere else,鈥� she said.

鈥淚f we need to pick up an edit while we're on the ground, I know how to edit, create graphics and do Photoshop. I can be a self-sufficient producer, editor or host, if needed, all of it,鈥� she continued.

Storytelling at the core

To be successful in a constantly shifting digital world, Jenkins says she follows a few key rules.

For instance, if a new platform emerges, it鈥檚 not about changing the type of content that鈥檚 produced, but rather, looking at how it can be adapted for that new channel.

鈥淔or example, Streets of Paris is the same concept that鈥檚 been on TV for 10 years. It鈥檚 just going to be told in a slightly different way. That might just be adding a punchier opening on TikTok to catch attention 鈥� but I鈥檓 not changing my entire strategy just because an algorithm changed,鈥� she explained. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 how we stay current 鈥� we don鈥檛 change our values 鈥� we adapt for the platform but stay focused on the storytelling.鈥�

She also says that in the social space, listening and reacting has been crucial, as opposed to overly planning.

For example, when in Paris, if audiences seem hungry for content of behind-the-scenes tours, she鈥檒l focus on that. But if her audience seems curious about what athletes are eating in the Olympic Village, she鈥檒l shift gears.

鈥淲e don't pre-produce nearly as much anymore from a digital perspective, because we can鈥檛 know what鈥檚 going to go viral. If it's the stuff that just happens in the moment, I can't plan a TikTok trend right now, because it's not going to be the same trend that's two months from now. So you just have to be aware of what's happening, and react to it at the moment.鈥�

Classmates to colleagues

As for advice to current students, in addition to honing practical skills, Jenkins says to nurture their relationships with classmates, since 鈥渢hey will be your future colleagues鈥�.

鈥淚n my career so far, anyone I have either hired or worked with 鈥� it鈥檚 all sport media alumni. I think we look out for each other, and we also all know the type of quality that we produce and the type of skill sets we have because we all went to the same program. Literally, the reason I work in sports media in Toronto is that program. I wholeheartedly believe that.鈥�

And, it鈥檚 given her the chance to live her dream.

鈥淚 mean, they, the only time the world comes together is over war or over the Olympics, right? And so, I just feel like this is a chance to add to that culture, and do something important,鈥� she said.

Related:

• Olympics-bound Rams coach aims for medal in Tokyo
• Paralympic sprinter on track, dreaming big
• Changing the game: Sports journalist Shireen Ahmed fights for gender, racial equity