Student manager Kyra Harrison spearheads Bevo Video Productions’ expanding services

The room buzzes with sharply dressed students eager to network, but Kyra Harrison’s focus is elsewhere. She weaves through the crowd, camera raised, capturing moments. 

Harrison is here as the production manager of Bevo Video Productions, a full-service video production company on the UT campus. Three years ago, Harrison walked on the Forty Acres with no film experience besides creating home movies with her friends. What she did have was an abundance of enthusiasm to better her craft.

“I was a very eager freshman,” Harrison said. “I wanted to get my hands on a camera any way that I could. I was harassing seniors who were shooting projects, like, ‘Please let me come work,’ or, ‘Please let me come be your second AC (assistant camera).’”

Harrison, now a radio-television-film junior, is the first student production manager at Bevo Video Productions. She works alongside managing director Jordan Knul and handles a mix of client outreach, student recruitment and shoot coordination. 

Launched in 2019, Bevo Video Production (BVP) is a production unit operated by Texas Student Media and the Moody College of Communication. UT students working under professional supervision provide a wide range of video services for campus and state entities needing quality content for promotion, storytelling and more.

“We will do anything from shooting short-form content to shooting commercials,” BVP managing director Jordan Knul said. “You name any kind of UT event, we’ve recorded and edited it.”

During the summer before her third year, Harrison was in Austin and determined to work as much as possible. She had priority notifications on for David Schneider, BVP’s former managing director, so that she could always be the first to reach out for a gig. 

“Anytime he sent out an email, I would respond and be like, ‘I can work.’” Harrison said.

As Schneider left to take on a full-time teaching position and Knul stepped up, discussions about hiring a student manager started to surface after BVP joined Texas Student Media as one of its official units in 2025. Harrison seized the opportunity as soon as she heard about it.

“I was like, ‘Well, if you guys do hire someone, I’m open,’” Harrison said. “Every time I would see Jordan, I’d be like, ‘Oh, are you guys thinking about hiring someone? Where’s the application at? How do I apply?’ I just kept pressing.” 

Knul says the choice was easy. Schneider had spoken highly of Harrison throughout the summer, and her work had proven that she was capable of managing projects more independently. 

“She knows her stuff,” Knul said. “She knows how to communicate with clients, she understands cameras and lighting. I can trust her.”

One of her first major projects as production manager was running “Longhorn Weekly,” a show hosted by play-by-play voice Craig Way and featuring Texas Football head coach Steve Sarkisian. BVP staff are tasked with filming and editing the hour-long show all within 24 hours.

“The coach’s show is awesome,” Harrison said. “I think most BVP students want to do it; it’s a pretty sought-after gig.” 

The most difficult part of the job for Harrison was learning how to lead her peers. While coordinating BVP crew members, she directed students who may have been older and in the industry longer than her.

“It required me to grow in confidence,” Harrison said. “I had to take the initiative to be like, ‘Jordan, teach me how to use every single camera that we have, teach me how to do audio on every single camera so I actually know what I’m talking about.’”

With over 150 student members, BVP requires copious internal communication to ensure every event is staffed. Knul says Harrison’s role has brought more opportunity to the organization. 

“If it were just me, all these people wouldn’t be trained,” Knul said. “Bringing Kyra on has allowed us to take on more work and bigger-scale projects.”

As her final year at UT approaches, Harrison looks back at the most important thing she has gained from her experience working at BVP: independence. 

“I go out on a lot of gigs by myself or sometimes it’s me leading a team of students,” Harrison said. “I don’t think I would have learned that from an internship or an entry position at any company.”

Recently, Harrison was selected by the Texas Student Media Board to lead again as the 2026-27 BVP production manager. She advises students to express interest at bevovideo.com and take advantage of the resources and opportunities that BVP provides. 

“I think it’s a great learning ground and it’s a great way to build your portfolio,” Harrison said. “You get to learn the more corporate side of work. If you want to do photography or social media, we have space for you too. If you’re interested in athletics, we do a lot of camera work for the broadcasting. And honestly, if you just think working with cameras and stuff is cool, BVP is the place for you.”