The City of Fayetteville has chosen Douglas Bankston as the City of Fayetteville’s Director of Media Services. The Media Services Division provides production and programming for the Fayetteville Government Channel (FGC), provides management for the operation of the City of Fayetteville Television Center, and supports the City’s internal and external audio and visual communications. The Media Services Division also manages contract services for Fayetteville Public Access Television (FPTV) that are provided to the public through nonprofit media production specialists Your Media.
Since 2012, Bankston served as a Video Production Technician for Media Services, producing a variety of programs for the City and for the Fayetteville Government Channel. He has produced the public service announcements for the City’s Recycle Something recycling awareness campaign, one of which received a 2014 National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) Mid-America EMMY Award, as well as an EMMY nomination for editing. The Recycle Something PSAs also have garnered three Telly Awards and three Communicator Awards for outstanding production.
“I am honored that the City of Fayetteville has entrusted me to guide the Media Services Division,” says Bankston. “A solid foundation had been laid, and I look forward to continuing the exceptional service that Media Services provides, as well as expanding our offerings to the City Administration and the citizens of Fayetteville.”
Trained in journalism and in film and television production, Bankston combined those trades into a successful entertainment journalism career, having written for The Hollywood Reporter, Variety, and DirecTV. He served on the editorial staffs of Digital Video and American Cinematographer, helping to guide the latter magazine to numerous Folio Awards for editorial excellence and earning a Western Publications Association (WPA) Maggie Award for best feature article. He also contributed to the American Cinematographer Manual Ninth Edition, which was awarded a Special Commendation by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), as well as to the book Digital Cinematography: Fundamentals, Tools, Techniques and Workflows (Focal Press) by cinematographer and visual-effects supervisor David Stump, ASC. He contributes regularly to the public relations efforts of Eastman Kodak, Panavision and other entertainment industry technology companies.
In tandem with his journalism endeavors, Bankston has worked in various production capacities on commercials for brands such Anheuser-Busch, Nytol, Olympic, and Sunoco, as well as for television series and independent features. He wrote and filmed the Best Film of the 2010 48 Hour Film Festival in Little Rock, Arkansas, and has had films play in numerous festivals across the country.