Russell Whitaker, President / Owner
MediaTech Institute's President and founder Russell Whitaker has been at the heart of Texas music
and recording for over three decades. Russell spent the 70's in Austin where he designed and
operated the Ruff Cedar Recording Studio. Though busy making records, Russell also made time to
receive certification as an electronics technician from the SouthWest School of Electronics. Russell continued his education at the University of Texas at Austin and received a Bachelor of Science in
Radio, Television and Film in 1980. Russell's illustrious career years in Austin included recording
many of the scenes greatest artists. Great performers such as Stevie Ray Vaughan, Asleep at the
Wheel, Willie Nelson, Marcia Ball and more, all relied on Russell to give them their special sound.

After relocating to Dallas and opening the multi-studio facility known as Dallas Sound Lab, he
continued working with some of the best talents in the industry throughout the 80's and 90's.
Major artists to go through Dallas sound lab include ZZ Top, Cheap Trick, Grover Washington Jr.,
Toby Keith, Phil Collins, and the list goes on and on. Along the way, Russell invented and received
patents on his Wordy Birdy Digital Speech Training Device, used worldwide by pet bird enthusiasts.

Russell wanted to give something back to both the industry and the education that served as his
foundation, so in 1998, MediaTech Institute opened it's doors. Occupying some of the Dallas Sound
Lab facility at first, the school quickly expanded to Austin, Houston and most recently into California.
Russell continues his commitment to technology education through his expanding efforts to bring
programs in Audio Engineering, Digital Film and Computer Gaming to new minds and new talents
and lending his decades of experience to students attending Mediatech Institute.














Tracy Terrell, Vice President - tracy@mediatech.edu
Vice President Tracy Terrell knows the Media and Film industries from the ground up. Starting as
a teen she quickly worked her way through the ranks at the acclaimed Levenson & Hill Advertising
agency getting the acting bug through her work there in both the movie and creative departments.
After grooming her skills attending KD Studios the Actors Conservatory of the Southwest, she affirmed
her talent for working behind the camera and Tracy headed off to the world of film production.
While working for production houses such as Bass Communications and AMS Productions Group,
Tracy also found time to freelance in production for a variety of players in the sports television market.
FOX Sports, ESPN, NBC, and CBS all have utilized her expertise. The success of her freelance
career led her to strike out in 2002 and form her own company, T-Squared Productions which
provides producer and casting director services for film and television shoots all over the country.
Notably, Tracy co-produced the feature film "Shtickmen" which you can rent today at any Blockbuster
across the country. As Casting Director, Tracy has cast just about every Texan you've seen on the
prime-time reality TV shows such as "The Biggest Loser", "Trading Spouses", "The Bacholorette",
"Star Search" and more. Tracy's recent credits include production manager for The Speed Channelís number one rated show "PINKS All Out" and casting director of the feature film "A Christmas Snow"
 starring Catherine Mary Stewart to be released in theatres Christmas 2010.














Mike Sandusky, Finance Manager - mike@mediatech.edu
Mike Sandusky graduated from the University of Texas at Arlington in 1998 with a Bachelor of Music, majoring in Music with a minor in Business. He began engineering at the Dallas Sound Lab as an
intern during his senior year of studies at UTA, and just prior to graduation, was hired as an assistant engineer. One of the challenging duties Mike assisted with at that time was the preparation and
installation of the vintage Neve 8058 console, which included totally re-wiring the control room for
Studio "D". Not long afterwards, Mike began instructing one of the Audio Engineering and Studio Techniques classes in the summer of 1999, and still continues to help students to understand the
technical and creative aspects of audio engineering. Mike is part of the administrative staff of the
studio and the school, and continues to engineer recording sessions and teach classes for the Dallas Sound Lab. Some clients Mike has worked with include: Playskool, NFL Films, Disney, USA Films,
Tiger Woods PGA Golf, Madden Football Challenge, HD Vision, Vocal Majority, Acoustix, Kirk Franklin,
Tim Posey, Fallen from the Nest, IBM, DART, various UNT Jazz ensembles, and others.

Pam Trimble, Campus Director - pam@mediatech.edu
Pam Trimble joined Dallas Sound Lab in 1983 as one of their first staff members. Originally
Pam served as Office Manager and as the business grew, she became more involved with
assisting many of the artists and producers recording in the studios. During that time she felt
privileged to assist Stevie Ray Vaughn, Phil Collins, David Byrne, Stephen Stills, Robert Plant,
Jimmy Page and many others.  A musician herself, Pam has also worked as a vocalist in several
Dallas bands and enjoyed recording at DSL on many personal and commercial projects.
Pam left Dallas Sound Lab when her son was born, and then spent sixteen years as a teacher
and tutor in the Dallas area. In 2006 she returned to MediaTech Institute as Campus Manager,
Student Services Coordinator and now as Campus Director.  Pam is well known on campus for
having exceptional skills at motivating and encouraging students to excel. When asked, Pam will
tell you that she loves working with the students, considers them to be the most important part of
each day, and feels honored to be referred to by many as the “Campus Mom.”




Rae Nyx, Financial Aid Assistant - rae@mediatech.edu
A recent graduate of Mediatech's Recording Arts Program, Rae has centered her life around
music since she can remember. She has been in school choir since the 5th grade, and has
taken a year of opera training at Stephen F. Austin State University. She is a vocal coach and
audio engineer for some artists in the area. She hopes to be in the music industry for the rest
of her life and help others create music that moves and inspires.
 



Mike Musal, Instructor, AUD101, SIM101 - mmusal@mediatech.edu
Mike has a BA from the University of North Texas with a Major in Music and a minor in Radio / TV Film.
He worked at TM Communications as a house editor putting his touch on many custom and syndicated
radio spots and ID packages produced by the company. In 1988 he accepted a teaching position with
The Art Institute of Dallas as an Audio Production Instructor for their music/video program as well as
teaching multimedia. Mike joined Dallas Sound Lab in December of 2002 as an instructor for our
Audio Engineering and Studio Techniques course. Mike is also a musician. He began playing drums
in the 6th grade and the age of 12…and he’s still doing it! He continues to record regularly  with local
bands and performs occasionally. Our staff and students are honored to have Mike here at Dallas
Sound Lab, we know his experience and knowledge will be very beneficial to us all.




James Dumaine, Instructor, AUD101 / AUD301 / Career Services - jdumaine@mediatech.edu
James DuMaine holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Science in Management and Marketing from McNeese
State University and an Associates Degree in Music/Video business from the Art Institute of Dallas.
He owns and operates Dumaine Street productions, which produces tracks for various styles of music. James works closely with the artists and producers to create, edit and produce songs, commercials,
voice-overs and music beds. He has extensive working knowledge of various aspects of the music
and video industry. James is also an accomplished musician. He plays guitar, drums and keyboards.
His musical background combined with many years of experience in the music and video industry
will prove most beneficial to our students of Audio Engineering and Contemporary Music Theory.




Joe Macre, Instructor, AUD301 / AUD201 / BCM - jmacre@mediatech.edu
Joe Macre is the founder of Cuppajoemusic which Produces Artists and composes custom scores
and sound design for Film and TV. Joe's music career started in high school and proved to be the
start of a phenomenal road to success. Joe worked with major recording artists Crack the Sky,
The B. E. Taylor Group and Wild Cherry. After relocating to New York, Joe became an engineer and
studio musician and performed with artists such as Jim Croce, David Sanborn, The Brecker Brothers,
Marie Osmond, Kieth Green. Clint Brown and many others. As Joe's career expanded into television,
he began scoring and engineering for national clients such as Pepsi, Burger King, McDonald's, Ford, Nickelodeon, Showtime, Bud Light, Corona Extra, and Walker Texas Ranger. As Sr. Engineer/Sound Designer at Post Op Editorial in Dallas Texas, Joe is one of the country's most sought-after mixing engineers. Award winning credits in films such as Monster in Law, House of D and Fire Down Below.
His “Cuppajoemusic" Library and Sound Design is chosen for many national spots such as the award winning Super Bowl Tabasco "Mosquito", Corona "Ship in a Bottle", Nickelodeon, Showtime, Ford, McDonalds, Corona, Hyundai, Oprah Winfrey and more. This past year Joe and CTS bandmate Rick Witkowski's song “Safety in Numbers” was rewritten with British Atlantic Records artist Ellie Lawson
and D.J. Lethal for the film “Monster in Law” with Jane Fonda. He also worked with Erykah Badu on
the film “House of D“ and produced tracks for Erikah for an upcoming project. In addition, Joe recently worked with Quest recording artist Sy Smith and Erykah Badu producer Madukwu Chinwah. Joe Produced/Engineered and performed on the latest Crack The Sky project entitled "The Sale".
He and the original Crack drummer Joey D'Amico recently reunited with the band and are currently
touring the northeast. In addition, Joe is an Instructor of composing/Producing at Mediatech Institute
(Dallas campus) and is an active member of ASCAP, AES and the American Federation
of Musicians.





Brandon Lotspeich, Studio Technician - brandon@mediatech.edu
Brandon, a native of Arlington, TX has centered his life around music and the recording
arts since learning to play the guitar in 1998. After attending Mediatech, he has employed
all his energy and passion into his audio career. As someone who is eager to please
and help in any way; he fits right in with the Mediatech staff. You can find him playing
music of all kinds, and freelance engineering with artists of various genres, such
as Van Darien, producer Dave Alexander, The Sugarmen, and Hannah Madison Taylor.




Perry Schrag, Instructor, AUD401 - p.schrag@mediatech.edu Known to have many passions,
Perry is never bored with life. His first passion, music, led to what became his second - live sound.
Playing tuba in orchestra and guitar in Jazz band landed Perry a full ride scholarship to Johnson
County Community College in Kansas City. There he earned an associate’s degree studying music.  
Originally Perry wanted to play tuba in the orchestra for Manheim Steamroller but it wasn’t meant to be.  “Sometimes, you just have to acknowledge your limitations!”  While music performance didn’t work
out, the recording studio, Sound Recorders, opened a different door. Perry found himself recording
radio and TV commercials during business hours and cutting tracks for bands at night.  Some of the
bands needed help with their shows.“That’s how I got hooked on live sound….the excitement and
energy of a live audience and the power of pushing that fader up ….it’s a high unto itself.  For the
last 20 plus years Perry has been doing live sound production for theatre, all types of music, and
corporate events. More than 10 years was spent at AVW Audio Visual, one of the nation’s
larges t AV production companies. 

During his tenure at AVW, Perry carried out sound system design and building as well as audio
training for other production personnel. Systems Perry has built range from simple bi-amped
conventional arrays to complex line array systems with networked digital processors powered by
more than 200,000 watts. Perry and Randy (another MediaTech instructor) have trained production personnel on analog mixers digital consoles, digital processors, general audio principles and the
use of audio tools such as SMAART.      

“I enjoy working on a production team… seeing what we’ve accomplished together… the completed
stage and the energy when you hear the sound and see the lights and video.”  Being part of a greater synergy may be what draws Perry to yet another passion – Politics. Perry has been a city
councilman for almost nine years. When asked about again running for re-election, “being i
nvolved in your community is important, but I’ve been teaching at MediaTech since 2006 and I
have a new appreciation for education. I plan to continue in the political arena, but I would now
like to focus on education.”

 

Randy Williams,Instructor, AUD401 - r.williams@mediatech.edu
In the early 80’s (around 82’) my brother and some friends started a rock band in Shreveport,
Louisiana. I had no desire to be on stage but found a guy in the crowd that was mixing the sound
and found my calling. Stayed mixing bands in clubs thru 1985 and then went to Recording Workshop
in Chillicothe, Ohio to see how the recording side lived.

In 1986, I moved to Dallas to start a sound and lighting company with a partner from Louisiana.
I stayed with this adventure doing everything from 5th grade plays to concerts for 10,000 people
until 1991.

1989 was my first shot at working with Showco, Inc. which was one of the largest touring sound
companies in the world at the time. I ended up working for over 10 years with them traveling all over
the world multiple times. During this time I worked as a sound engineer with such bands as:
Alice Cooper, Clint Black (3 tours), Megadeth (2 tours), Stone Temple Pilots, Phil Collins, Bob Seger,
Luther Vandross, Anita Baker, Alanis Morrisette and John Fogerty.

I started work with AVW in the summer of 1996 which is one of the largest AV companies in the
country after deciding to get off of the road and enjoy the family life. While working here I’ve been
exposed to Digital consoles, line array speaker systems, dealing with CAD drawings and a multitude
of other new cutting edge technologies. I’m still working here today even though the name has
changed a few times, the latest is Freeman AV.

Started teaching at Mediatech Institute April 06 after receiving a call from a friend that was working
here then named Belinda Swafford. What started out to be one semester filling in has turned out to
be now getting ready for the 10 semester over 2 years later.




Tim Kimsey, Instructor, AUD401, PSD101 - tim@mediatech.edu
One year after graduating high school, and having no idea of how to get into the “music business”
Tim found a studio in Ft. Worth, Texas that was willing to give him an opportunity to learn music
production, and recording. While working in Ft. Worth at Buffalo Sound Studios, Tim went from an
assistant, to second engineer, to chief engineer in approximately 2 years. Not only was Tim learning
how to record & mix in the studio, but was also learning the PA business through a Dallas based
company called Dallas Backup.

Tim spent almost 6 years in Ft. Worth as chief engineer at Buffalo Sound, and was approached by
THE largest audio production facility in the southwest known as Dallas Sound Lab where he was
one of 5 engineers working on everything from demo recordings to mixing to picture. Within 1 year of working at DSL he became the chief engineer and remained there for the next 3 years before making
the decision to become an independent engineer and traveling to various cities in the US & Mexico.

Tim got most of his experience in Orchestral recording in the late eighties, and most of his rock,
heavy metal, pop, R&B, jazz, blues and rap recording experience in the early nineties, working
with such people as Grover Washington Jr., B.B. King, Steve Perry, Lars Ulrich (Metalica),
King Diamond, Pantera, UGK (Under Ground Kingz), & Paula Abdul.

Currently Tim is freelancing as an independent engineer for various producers in various styles
of music, traveling from coast to coast, and from Canada to El Salvador, with the desire to build a
remote truck for capturing live performances, and concerts.




Patrick Keel, Instructor, BOM101 - patrick@mediatech.edu
Patrick Keel is a record producer and co-owner of Dragon Street Records in Dallas, Texas.
He teaches the Business of Music course at Dallas Sound Lab as well as Collin County Community College, sharing his inside knowledge of all things related to the music business with his students.





Eric Jewell, Instructor, DFP101 / DFP201 / DFP401 - eric@mediatech.edu
Eric began his film career at the early age of 13 when he decided to make a his stop-motion and live
action epic trilogy "Killer Jell-o", about a rampaging blob of evil Jell-o. He won various awards over
the years for his short films, culminating in a Video release of his early works called "Explosive Shorts!". While attending the University of North Texas, Jewell also started a video production company,
specializing in commercials and corporate videography. AMS production Group hired Jewell as a
Director of Photography, Director, Producer and occasional Editor. Over the years he produced
videos for many fortune 500 companies such as Microsoft, Texas Instruments, EDS, Pizza Hut, Levi's,
and many, many more. He has won more than twenty industry awards such as the Communicator,
Telly, Radio Award of Excellence, Katy, DV Award, Vision Fest Screenwriting Award and more.
Eric also co-directed the feature film "Shtickmen", a multi-award winning movie available through
Netflix and Blockbuster. Eric is the Department Chair and Head Instructor at Mediatech Institute.




Keith Duncan, Instructor, DFP401 - keith@mediatech.edu
20-year industry veteran and is a board member of the Dallas Producers Association
(www.dallasproducers.org) as well as a founding member of the Texas Motion Picture Alliance.
Keith has numerous commercial and feature credits that are listed on the Internet Movie Database
and was educated at the University of Texas, Dallas in art with a film emphasis.

Keith has founded industry efforts such as the non-profit Texas Company, The MOVIE INSTITUTE,
teaching youth how to create movies and commercials of their own, and also a production company, ThinkTank Entertainment, a creator of independent motion pictures and other entertainment.

Keith has worked in the film and video industry as a producer, director, writer, videographer, assistant cameraman (Film), special effects make up artist, effects coordinator and grip for companies such as
Aries Productions, Storer Cable, “Hot On!” Episodic TV Show, Studios at Las Colinas, Santa Fe
Railroad, Minyard Foods, S & A Corporation, Southwestern Christian College, Fox, The Bass Family, Special Olympics International and Tracy Locke. Keith has also worked on several independent
feature films that include “The Dark Dealer”, “Repligator” and “Ramming Speed” (1997's USA Film
Festival “must see” from The Met Newspaper). He was Executive Producer and Producer on the independent feature, “After Sundown” released to domestic home video in 2006 through Barnholtz Entertainment/ Lions Gate. “After Sundown” was also the winner of the 2005 Deep Ellum Film
Festival Audience Award for favorite festival feature.

Currently he is in development on a low-budget western, a comedy feature and some TV programming.




Abe Kotara, Admissions Representative - abe@mediatech.edu
Abe is a recent graduate of MediaTech Institute, receiving a diploma in the Recording Arts Program.
Music has been a passion of Abe's since he began playing drums about a decade ago. He has
engineered and produced a number of albums through the course of his education, and continues
to work on his own music projects. While he still remains an avid drummer, Abe has found a calling
in sound for motion picture. Most recently, Abe became involved in the development of a local
production company specializing in all aspects of film and television production, where he
functions in the role of Sound Supervisor and Chief Engineer.

Given his fervor for the program and knowledge of the curriculum & studio facilities, Abe is a great fit
as our Admissions Representative for Dallas. Abe will most likely be your first point of contact at the
school and will act as your personal tour guide through the campus. You will find Abe eager to
answer your questions and help you through every step of the enrollment process.




Jennifer Osbourn, Financial Aid Director - jennifer@mediatech.edu
Jennifer completed the Business Administration at ATI in 2003 where she began working there as a financial aid advisor. For five years she has continued within the financial aid industry at local colleges expanding her knowledge of finance. She is a member of TASFAA and has received certification/
training from the Department of Veterans Affairs, third party servicing agencies, as well as the
Department of Education to name a few. Jennifer has a special place in her heart for music and its
power, which stemmed from the DFW music scene freelance writing reviews for the Harder Beat
and DTS Underground. She continues to be involved with music being a devoted concertgoer
and music appreciator!

Kirk Gilfillen, Lab Supervisor - kirk@mediatech.edu
Kirk brings an exciting dynamic to Mediatech where he works as a lab instructor for the 201 course.  Originally from the Bronx, N.Y.C., Kirk served in the Gulf War in 1991 and graduated from the Art
Institute of Dallas in 1994 after completing the Music and Video Business Course. While keeping
active in the audio industry Kirk works closely with the students to transform themselves into audio professionals. He does not own a cell phone or have a myspace page and shakes hands the
old-fashioned way.




Robbie Alvis, Lab Supervisor - robbie.alvis@mediatech.edu
Robert Alvis, a graduate of Mediatech Institute, has been employed as a lab supervisor for the past
four years. He is a proficient recording, mixing, and mastering engineer and has worked with many
local acts including Epitas, Ahummin Acoustic Acupuncture, and Redefine. Robert is also an
accomplished musician as well as being well versed in MIDI production and has been playing
and writing music for over fourteen years.




Ryan Urbanovsky, Studio Technician - rurbanovsky@mediatech.edu
Ryan started as a student at MediaTech and graduated as an audio engineer. He enjoys playing,
producing and engineering all types of music. He looks forward to a long career in the music industry.

Blake Starks, Studio Technician - blake@mediatech.edu
A recent graduate of MediaTech’s Recording Arts Program, Blake, a.k.a. DJ Kid Qupid breathes
wit and enthusiam to the Dallas Sound Lab.  This industrious fellow was born into a musical family
where his passion for the art began.  During his formative years, Blake was tickling the ivories for local
bands in his hometown of Abliene, Texas.  Out of high school, Blake was behind the console running
sound for live shows. Subsequently, his zeal for turntables and the electronic scene followed. In 2006,
he became the host and resident DJ of his own show, “The Sound of the Underground” featured on
XNDradio.com.  Lover of all musical genres and a genuine beat artisan, Blake can be found attending
live shows and of course giving MediaTech a fresh spin.

 

David Brehm, Instructor, DFP201
David L. Brehm is the President, Co-founder, and Creative Director for Blue Logic, LLC, and his 3D
animation background includes the Academy Award nominated "Jimmy Neutron" feature film (an
subsequent television series) plus the syndicated TV special "Olive The Other Reindeer," and the 3D
animated feature film "The Ant Bully." David's live action directorial credits include "The Sarah Wetsman
Davison Tower" featuring Natalie Portman, and "The Zone" featuring Garth Brooks and Troy Aikman.
As a live action cinematographer David's credits include "Humans Versus Zombies," "Royal Lane,"
"Balaam Gimble's Gumption," and numerous music video projects. David holds a bachelors degree
from the University of North Texas where he studied Art and Music, plus he holds an associates degree
(with honors) from The Art Institute of Dallas, where he studied computer animation and multimedia.






Lee Shapiro, DFP101, DFP301 - leedshap@gmail.com
Lee Shapiro studied film, animation, and screenwriting at the University of Central Florida. His first production, a documentary entitled "On Art and Inspiration," won third place at the Alamo Film Festival.
He has lent his talents to a number of motion pictures, from the independent thriller "Jack-O" to Oliver Stone's "Born on the Fourth of July." His other production work includes production design on the TV
pilot "A Twist in the Tale," assistant direction on Disney's "The Hunt for EPCOT Ed-Ventures," and art direction on corporate projects for Citibank, Bell Atlantic, and the US Air Force.

Lee's gifts lie not only with visuals, but also the written word. These two talents merged when he wrote episodes of the animated series "The Tick." He also wrote and directed a PSA about breast cancer
starring Michael Winslow ("Police Academy"). He co-wrote and stared in the comedy short "Crooks"
which won five awards (including best actor) and was broadcast on the CBS show, "Comedy Night
School," and shown at the Melbourne Film Festival. His studio features include a screenplay adaptation
of H.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds, "Batman: DarKnight" (for Warner Bros.), and two original works:
"From the Ashes" and "Sinkhole." The latter two have won several writing accolades. His other writing credits include some Orlando Predators commercials, the pilot episode of an animated children's series entitled "Remnant" and a couple of episodes of the syndicated series "SciFi Wasabi".




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