Meet Our HU Students: Sydney Pastor-Poe

Name: Sydney Pastor Poe

Hometown: Newton, NJ

Major(s): Video/ Television

When you were young, what did you think you wanted to be "when you grow up?"

Oh, gosh. I think I really wanted to be everything: a doctor, a lawyer, a teacher, a psychologist, a singer, an actress. I think that’s why I chose TV, actually. I love to create; I love creation itself. When I write or produce something, I get to nurture it from A to Z. I’m very thorough as a person, and writing really allows me to create a world where “anything” and “everything” can co-exist for as long as I deem possible. Also, I think at one point I actually wanted to be a dream interpreter before I realized that they didn’t really exist.

What career do you hope your first job after graduate will be?

I’d really love to be an NBC Page. The selection process is ridiculously demanding, but that’s never stopped me before.

What experience have you had so far that you think is best preparing you to reach that goal?

I love working on Thursday Nite Live here at Hofstra. I’m only a freshman so I haven’t been involved with TNL for long, but it’s really given me a great opportunity to be absurd… which I very much appreciate. I write for the show, and I’m also a cast member. In our first episode, I wrote a sketch with another writer called “The Wizard of Phi Zheta” which had Dorothy, Swolecrow, Tinderman, and Cowardly Ryan all try to navigate a Frat Party. It really turned out hilarious, and it was such an incredible learning experience going from the initial pitch meeting, to writing and revising the script, to hearing the first read-through, to watching the first run-through, and then actually watching a live-studio audience react to it. I had a blast with all of it, and I can’t wait for the rest of the season.

What advice would you have for others who are pursuing this same career?

Don’t? Be a practical human being? Work at a desk? Just kidding, of course. To pursue a career in the film or television industry, you really have to be very flexible. So much is prone to change in the creative process that if you get too attached to anything, you’ll have a hard-time adapting. That being said, it is also important to have a clear and distinct voice and to know what you want. You also have to have a lot of grit, and you have to be really hungry for opportunity. I can’t think of a more exciting career path than working in the film or television industry, but you really can’t do it lackadaisically.

Who at Hofstra has had the biggest positive impact on you?

Well, in my all-inclusive-two-months-of-Hofstra-retreat, the wait staff has been exquisite, and my maids are getting exceptionally better at remembering to put the mints on top of my pillows instead of underneath them. In actuality, I’ve had several really great influences on me as a student and a human being. I love all of my colleagues at the Career Center. My professors are absolutely brilliant. I have a great support system between my advisor, my friends here, and my friends and family back home. Hofstra in general has been a great positive impact on me and a great resource for me. I can’t wait to see how the rest of my time here unfolds.