producing his “Magnum Opus”

STORY By Erin Holton

Self-proclaimed “sports junkie” Jimmy Tsiantoulas ‘25 might have started his time at Marist College wanting to be in front of a camera, but he found his true love in production and behind-the-scenes work. 

As a die-hard New England Patriots and Boston Celtics fan growing up in Massachusetts, sports always seemed like something to watch and be passionate about. It wasn’t until a conversation with his mom that he realized he could pursue sports communications as a career. 

“[She] asked me over the counter, ‘Hey Jimmy, did you ever think about going into sports communication?’ I was just kind of sold on it to begin with,” said Tsiantoulas. “After that, I applied to all the schools declaring as a sports communication major. So when I came here, I immediately had my [path] set in stone, and I’ve never once regretted it.” 

When Tsiantoulas got to Marist, he, like many other sports communications students, had a desire to be on camera. 

“I feel like a lot of people, when they come to schools like this, their immediate want is to go in front of the camera, be that play-by-play guy, color analyst or whatnot – and I'm no different,” he said. “I wanted to be the guy being the announcer for my hometown sports teams because I was so ingrained in them as a kid.”

During his freshman and sophomore years, Tsiantoulas slowly got acclimated to the offerings at the College. He started editing and operating cameras, finding a passion for the behind-the-scenes work that goes into a show.

Tsiantoulas discovered his love of production through involvement in the Red Fox Report, a halftime show airing on ESPN+ and YouTube, where he was its lead producer during his junior year. As captain of the ship, he creates ideas for segments and manages his team, guiding them toward his vision. He has created several segments and expanded on the debate format of Halftime on the Hudson. This show on MCTV, the College’s in-house television station, was his entry into production at Marist, and he knew he wanted to make some changes.

Illustration by Izzy Nuzzo

“We've revitalized Halftime on the Hudson to be something that I'm very proud of,” said Tsiantoulas. “We still have discussions between the two co-hosts, but the debates used to be pretty stale.” 

Tsiantoulas and Eugene Barbieri ‘26, his friend and co-producer of Halftime on the Hudson, worked together to create the show’s electric atmosphere. Leaning into the popular format of “hot-takes” and fun, intense discussions seen in the industry, Tsiantoulas swapped mundane debates for something fresh and engaging. Participants now get fired up and enthralled by the topics, something that Tsiantoulas believes makes Halftime on the Hudson more enjoyable to watch and produce.

Tsiantoulas has a knack for being a leader on the production side, a position he’s grown into. Through mentors and a lot of self-teaching, he acquired the skills needed to be an influential part of production teams.

He credits his friend and peer, Matt Spirio ‘23, the inaugural lead producer of Red Fox Report, and Chris Riviezzo, former interim director for the Center of Sports Communication, for giving him mentorship and leading him to where he is today. Friends of his gave him tips on editing and creating highlights, while others helped him with his writing abilities; he consistently acknowledged how he got to where he is now through his own merit and with the help of others along the way.

“As much as everything [I know] is self-taught and as much as I take pride in that, I will never not give people credit where credit is due because they have laid the groundwork for me, and I'm just building off that,” he said.

Tsiantoulas is paying forward the experience and lessons he was taught, becoming a mentor for those who will come after him. Barbieri, the incoming lead producer, credits Tsiantoulas with teaching him precious skills. Halftime on the Hudson was the first model production that Barbieri had been involved in, and he says that Tsiantoulas helped him learn throughout the process of production. 

“[Jimmy] being a year older than me, it was kind of like [having] a mentor. This was the first thing I was involved in,” said Barbieri. “So I've really learned a lot from him, considering that was the first sports production I worked on, and he showed me the ropes.”

Even though Tsiantoulas loves what he does, there have been times when he had internal doubts about the field he was pursuing. However, his passion, knowledge and love for sports production propelled him forward and made him even more driven. 

“There have been times where I'm sitting in my room, and I'm like, ‘Wow, I like taking in so much sports media. Is this what life’s going to be like?’ But at the end of the day, I am doing something that I 1,000% love and will never not love,” he said. “I just can’t see myself in any other field.”

Mentoring Barbieri is one of the steps Tsiantoulas has taken to prepare for graduation, but throughout the years, he has set himself up for success in many ways. His drive to learn and teach himself skills has made him extremely valuable to Red Fox Report and Halftime on the Hudson; he knows that his experiences at Marist will make him a stand-out candidate for jobs after college.

“If I didn't get involved with any of this stuff, I wouldn't know where my left shoe was from my right shoe. [But because I got involved,] I have a fully fleshed-out plan for what I want to do post-graduation,” said Tsiantoulas. “I'm going to apply for jobs as soon as possible. Having all this experience on my resume already, people will see that I have that, and then maybe [I could be] a better candidate than someone else.” 

As someone who benefited from strong advice and mentoring, what does Tsiantoulas tell those in the spot he was in just a few years ago? Getting involved is the most important thing to do.

“Take that leap of faith. You need to put yourself out there because you're going to put yourself in the right position.”

With one semester left of producing, Tsiantoulas will continue learning and is excited about all of the things ahead of him. In his own words, “My magnum opus is yet to come.”

Photography by Rebekah Hendricks

Video by Lizzie Baumgardner, Rebekah Hendricks and Christopher C. Smith