Download my resume here: Kaila Burns-Heffner | Resume
Education
Clemson University – May 2017
- Bachelor of Arts in sports communication, Magna Cum Laude
- Recipient of the College of Behavioral, Social and Health Sciences Dean’s Award for Professional Engagement – April 2017
- Sports Communication Representative for the Dean’s Undergraduate Student Advisory Council: Spring 2016 – May 2017
- Communication Ambassador: Fall 2015 – May 2017
- Lambda Pi Eta National Communication Honor Society: Spring 2015 – May 2017
- Entrepreneurship minor
Experience
Associate Producer | ESPN – September 2021 – Present
- Live-produce Monday Night Football’s sponsored halftime re-tease, produce all high-end edit content
- Hire crews, coordinate, research, produce, direct, and manage budgets for onsite NFL shoots
- Onsite producer for the 2022 and 2023 NFL Combine and Draft player shoots
- 2022 NFL Draft stage manager for Chris Mortensen
- Tape producer for the green room, draft stage, and NFL team draft room cameras (2023)
- Produce written and digital features for Special Olympics and ESPYS/Sports Humanitarian Awards
- Managed all ENG content and field producer/talent schedules at the 2022 Special Olympics USA Games
- Write features for espn.com in addition to full-time production responsibilities to reach fans across all platforms
- Manager for 2023 event production intern, providing mentorship and overseeing career growth and development
Content Associate | ESPN – January 2019 – September 2021
Award Shows and NFL Draft
- Produced nominee packages for the 2019 College Football Awards, and field-produced for Maria Taylor
- Sourced content from SIDs and agents to edit player and team storyline pieces for the 2020 and 2021 NFL Draft
- Produced bumps and feature content for the 2020 ESPYS Countdown Show, 2021 ESPYS and Sports Humanitarian Awards
- Served as the on-site talent handler for the 2021 Sports Humanitarian Awards musical artist
Monday Night Football
- Edit advancers to promote upcoming games for use on the broadcast and SportsCenter
- Pitch storylines and collaborate across multiple departments to create and edit broadcast content
- Track social media and relevant news in-game to enhance content
College Sports
- Pitch storylines, work with producers and analysts to edit teases, advancers, telestrations and all broadcast enhancements for the ACC Network’s inaugural Primetime football crew
- Travel weekly with talent to produce, shoot, and edit features for ACC Network studio shows
- Produce and edit ENG and sales shoots while field producing for the sideline reporter during games
- Generate content for the ACC Network social media platforms including at the CFB Playoff and National Championship Game
- Served as the lead Content Associate for the 2019 college baseball season
- Prepped all specialty elements prior to the season as well as contributing to the production of a 30 minute show on FSU legendary coach Mike Martin
- Produced high-end edits for regular season games and the SEC Tournament
- Traveled to the College World Series to work on features and provide video content for ESPN game broadcasts and SportsCenter
- Produced all the specialty edits for the Alabama and Clemson spring games on ESPN2
Production Assistant | ESPN – August 2017 – January 2019
Remote Events (April 2018 – Present)
- Assisted in the production of college sports events through gathering television and sales elements, editing video content for air, and facilitating the shipment of other necessary production equipment
- Worked on college softball, volleyball, and basketball
- Traveled to the 2018 Volleyball National Championship to assist in the production of the semi-final and final matches
Studio (August 2017 – April 2018)
- Screened both domestic and international shows and live events to ensure company standards were upheld
- Maintained detailed and accurate logs of games including play-by-play descriptions, promotions, sales features and commercial breaks
- Made editorial decisions regarding which content would re-air when cutting down events to fit program formatting times
Intern | ESPN The Magazine – June 2017 – August 2017
- Conducted research for print and digital stories, fact-check and edit magazine proofs
- Pitched and contributed ideas for content on both print and digital platforms
- Content from interviews I conducted and pieces I have written were published in ESPN’s 2017 Body Issue, The College Football Preview Issue, The Fighting Issue, and the NFL Preview Issue.
- Contributed to espnW.com through writing about what’s happening on social media for The Buzz:
Correspondent | Sports Illustrated Campus Rush – August 2016 – May 2017
- Produced, shot and edited video, wrote and conducted interviews to create digital and social media content for Campus Rush’s platforms including a feature on current Pittsburgh Steelers running back James Conner and the friendship he developed with a fellow athlete while battling cancer.
Sports and News Intern | WSPA-TV – August 2015 – May 2017
- Worked with anchors and reporters to help shoot, produce and edit packages, cut VOs, and VO/SOTs, while also helping conduct interviews and create shot sheets
- Produced content for wspa.com including news stories and interactive content
Sports Reporter | The Clemson Insider – August 2014 – May 2017
- Conceptualized weekly written articles regarding Clemson football, basketball, and baseball
- Reported on-camera, conducted player and coach interviews and attended press conferences
- Created graphics for social media during games and produced video content previewing and recapping games
Contributor | ESPNU Campus Connection – April 2015 – May 2017
- Assisted in the shooting of promotional videos for the 2015 College Football Playoff
- Pitched, produced, shot, edited, and reported on-camera to create video features
Clemson News Now Multimedia Journalist – January 2016 – August 2016
- Pitched stories, scheduled interviews, shot B-roll, wrote scripts, interviewed, and edited video to create weekly news packages for Clemson’s website and ClemsonTV
Director of Communications | Gaithersburg Giants – June 2015 – July 2015
- Wrote game stories and features, conducted player and coach interviews, and operated all social media accounts for this collegiate summer baseball team
Gaithersburg Giants News: 2015
Writer | Isportsweb.com – June 2014 – August 2014
- Pitched and wrote articles on Clemson Football
Kaila Burns-Heffner’s stories on iSportsweb
Activities and Affiliations
- ProCamps Worldwide volunteer – June 2015 – June 2016
- Sports Journalism Institute (SJI) – May – June 2017
- Was one of 12 students selected from across the country to participate in an immersive nine-day course aimed to prepare journalists for future careers in sports
KAILA BURNS-HEFFNER 