Creative Video Producer/Digital Media Specialist
rrberry2@illinois.edu
Session: Anatomy of a Viral Video
Time: April 10th, 9:45 am – 10:45 am
Rachel’s path has been shaped by science education outreach. As a child, she made her first film at a stop-motion booth in the San Francisco Exploratorium, a STEAM museum founded by Frank Oppenheimer. She went on to study at Interlochen Arts Academy and completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. After graduation, she moved to Quezon City, Philippines, to work for a non-profit, then to Geneva, Switzerland, where she advocated for climate justice and women’s rights at the U.N. Human Rights Council. There, she rediscovered film as a powerful medium for storytelling. Rachel’s journey continued in Seattle, where she worked at a homeless shelter for women and children and created videos that were shared by the Seattle Seahawks and legendary grunge band Pearl Jam. She then returned to Urbana and earned an MBA from Gies College of Business. After a brief stint working in healthcare technology and producing independent films in her spare time, she joined her alma mater to make videos full-time. Rachel’s work highlights science, research, and education in the Department of Mechanical Science and Engineering. She absolutely loves her job.