Michael Porter has spent much of his life making videos.

As a kid, he wanted to make his family laugh. In high school, he kept making movies for his classmates. Later came film school and nine years at Disneyland — including four as the voice and digital puppeteer behind Crush, the bodacious green sea turtle in Finding Nemo. He returned to his home city of Las Vegas to start a career in teaching and, eventually, worked his way to UNLV as a video production specialist in the Division of Integrated Marketing & Branding.

He is one of five artists featured in On Time, a multimedia art exhibition on display at Richard Tam Alumni Center through Oct. 29.

When Porter began thinking about what to create, he didn’t have to look far for his subject. He went back through the footage of his own life.

The result is a personal installation built from edited clips and mementos, centered around a 27-inch CRT television — the same model from his boyhood bedroom. It is, in a way, a record of Porter growing up, and a reflection on what happens when we take the time to preserve the moments that might otherwise disappear.

“The concept for the project came up just during the holidays watching some home videos with my family,” Porter said. “I was very grateful realizing how much of [the old footage] was there.”

Seeing how much of his life had been captured made him think about the value of keeping those ordinary moments around.

That impulse goes back to one of the first videos Porter ever made. Too Much Matt was a short sci-fi comedy he filmed with his cousin Matt and sister Lenore during a family holiday. The plot involved a drink that, when consumed, resulted in the unexpected appearance of Matt's doppelganger.

“When I look at some of the first things I did, I really just wanted to make my family laugh,” said Porter, whose favorite film is Step Brothers, a slapstick absurdist comedy directed by Adam McKay. “And I think that's really what translated into when I generally watch the movies I made in high school: I just wanted to make my classmates laugh.”

His work looks different now, but Porter is still interested in people. Much of his job at UNLV involves showcasing the experiences of students, faculty, and staff — often through the clubs, organizations, and communities that give campus life some of its character.

Their stories are part of what he likes about his job, he said. He gets to meet people, learn what matters to them, and figure out how to tell their stories in a way that feels true to who they are.

Porter says that starts with relationships.

“Working with students and working with adults is primarily about building relationships and fostering those relationships,” he explained, recalling how the tough customer service lessons he learned at Disneyland carried over into other professions. “Building those relationships over time becomes valuable. And you don't earn someone's trust overnight.”

The Art of Making Connections

After Disneyland, Porter returned to Las Vegas with his wife and spent seven years teaching in the Clark County School District. He taught students the basics of filmmaking: editing and lighting, creating short films, conducting interviews, and live broadcasting. 

But some of the most meaningful parts of the job had little to do with cameras.

After the pandemic, Porter found himself spending more time mentoring students who were dealing with hardships outside of the classroom. “I felt like having people to talk to and helping guide them through life was one of the most important parts of being a high school teacher, honestly. Just being there for them,” he said.

Today, he approaches his work as a videographer by first trying to understand the person in front of the camera. He likes that the university is full of smaller communities and people doing interesting things that might otherwise go unnoticed.

There is a personal story, he said, in the research being done by students making a difference in their community. In the birding club. In capturing the hype of the Rebel spirit. And in those who discovered a found family through music and dance.

Porter has also found his own niche at UNLV. In his colleagues, he's found a trusted group of fellow creatives who help to provide personal validation, whether it's space to brainstorm or receiving grounding critique for some of his wildest creative visions.

“I like being able to contribute to an idea, and then we actually do it,” he said. “It makes you feel valuable, like your ideas are important.”

It’s Not the Destination, It’s the Journey

Working in marketing for a university is a different kind of professional life than the one Porter imagined when he went to film school in Orange, California. He once had his sights set on becoming a Hollywood director, and for a long time, he saw that as the destination.

“I was so eyes-in-the-sky on being like a director in Hollywood that I almost had a tunnel vision as that being the only way I'd be happy or be successful,” he said.

Instead, his career took him to the Magic Kingdom, teaching, and eventually UNLV, where he found a version of creative work that he had not known to look for.

“The dream drove me to where I was,” Porter said. “Being unrealistic helped me continue on throughout the process. And just because the destination wasn't exactly what you visualized, it doesn't mean that you didn't find success.”

Maybe that is why On Time feels like more than an exercise in looking backward. 

“I hope everybody takes their own thing from the art, but they hopefully value time in some way,” Porter said of the exhibit. “By taking more pictures, smelling the roses, and trying to enjoy.”

For someone who has spent his life making videos, that may be the simplest reason to keep the camera rolling: You never quite know which ordinary moment will be worth preserving.

About On Time

On Time brings together five members of UNLV’s Division of Integrated Marketing & Branding: photographer Josh Hawkins, social media specialist Lola Lopez, video production specialist Michael Porter, multimedia manager Benjamin Richards, and multimedia specialist Becca Schwartz.

The exhibition grew from Richards’ desire to give his team an opportunity to create work outside the daily operations of university marketing.

“I figured building a public gallery exhibition of new works would be a great opportunity to share that creativity with the campus community with the goal of inspiring and fostering new conversations,” Richards said.

With so much art is experienced online, Richards said, the opportunity to show the work in a physical gallery elevates the act of creation.

“Gallery space is rare for contemporary artists, and it provides a higher quality of attention and reflection from the audience,” he said.

The exhibition was made possible with support from UNLV's Institutional Engagement & Experience Initiative.

“On Time is a great example of what can happen when colleagues create together and share that work with our campus,” said Kyle Ethelbah, associate vice president for Institutional Engagement & Experience. “We're proud to support projects that spark conversation and bring the UNLV community closer together.”

Additional support was provided by Jerry Schefcik, professor emeritus and former director of galleries, and by Alisha Kerlin and Chloe Bernardo of the Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art.