CONVENTION 2006 GETS A BIG THUMBS-UP FROM ATTENDEES!

Harvey Levin said executives at Warner Brothers laughed when he told them he was invited to speak about the digital revolution in television at the 2006 APTRA Convention, but that’s exactly what he did and did very well!

Levin, APTRA’s keynote speaker, shared his experiences with the new entertainment website TMZ.com. Levin, whose career has involved primarily mainstream television, is the managing editor of the website and discussed the differences between working on the world wide web and commercial TV.

The convention also included breakout sessions headed up by author and KGO TV Reporter Wayne Freedman and Producer Peter Shaplen. Other highlights included the Saturday afternoon awards ceremony for videography, editing and radio sound awards. And, a Sunday morning business breakfast and seminar session  hosted by Avid to discuss the  future of digital newsrooms. They also raffled off a $7000 Avid Newscutter EP.

The convention, which started with a terrific Friday night kickoff party at Disneyland, ended with a sense of accomplishment by midday Sunday.