Dyson College of Arts and Sciences

D Y S O N Y E A R I N R E V I E W 2 0 2 2 – 2 0 2 3 8 W hen Rachel Skopp-Cardillo '20 learned that she had been nominated for an Emmy Award for her work as associate producer on the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, only two years a er graduation from Pace, she called two very impo ant people in her life. The first was her mother. The conversation felt a bit like déjà vu, because as a young girl, Skopp-Cardillo was once seated at a local Emmy Awards ceremony, holding the iconic statue e recently won by her mom, Lauren Cardillo '80, Literature and Communications, a three-time Emmy Award–winning documentarian whose subjects included Olympic swimming hopefuls and races across the Sahara Dese . Back then, the elder Cardillo had been recognized for The Mother Road, about a Route 66 road trip she and her own mom, Irene Maruzzella Cardillo '51, Chemistry, had taken together. Skopp-Cardillo had always known that she wanted to work with the Olympics, and her ultimate win was well earned, the result of hard work and team effo . As pa of her role at NBC Spo s leading to the Emmy, she was deeply involved in the Highlights Factory, a large space occupied 24/7 by shot selectors, production assistants, editors, producers, and directors that published highlights, compilations, interviews, and inspiring stories on NBC's YouTube channel and official website. With so much footage coming in, Skopp-Cardillo's role was to help select the best and share it with the producers and editors. She also directed camera feeds of the swimming competition from Tokyo—a challenging task as there was permanence to her decisions. Skopp-Cardillo's talent was developed and suppo ed by her studies as a Digital Cinema and Filmmaking student on the Pleasantville campus, which brings us to the second person she called a er learning of her Emmy nomination: Professor Maria Luskay, EdD. As pa of her enrollment in Professor Luskay and Professor Lou Guarneri's (MFA) Producing a Documentary class, a course that has garnered many accolades for its travel documentaries with an environmental or sustainability focus, Skopp-Cardillo learned technical skills and teamwork through the making of Pue o Rico: Hope in the Dark (2018) and Hawaii: Living on the Edge in Paradise? (2019). "Working on a PaceDocs documentary is one of the best ways to experience hands-on learning outside of the classroom at Pace," she said. "With roles as first assistant director and colorist, I was able to thrive as a filmmaker and gain confidence in knowing that this is what I am supposed to be doing with my life." When Pace Is Home Mother-daughter Emmy Award winners and a trailblazing grandmother are three generations of Pace women Rachel Skopp-Cardillo '20, with her Emmy Award. Lauren Cardillo '80 at her graduation. Rachel Skopp-Cardillo '20, as a child, with her mom, Lauren Cardillo '80, at an Emmy Awards ceremony. PHOTO BY NITARA ORTIZ '19

• Cover