That’s a wrap! Munson’s movies mark an RIT era

RIT’s 10th president will be remembered for many things after he retires June 30—construction of the SHED, completion of the 2025 Strategic Plan, creation of the Performing Arts Scholarship program. But a key piece of David Munson’s legacy is the six playful and sometimes wacky videos that welcomed students each year to RIT.

“It was refreshing that a president of this big institute came in with a sense of humor,” said RIT student Karla Torres. She fondly remembers the video made for her incoming class that featured Munson as a flannel-clad college student trying to fit in.

In the videos, Munson and his wife, Nancy, rapped, went back to school, solved age-old mysteries, and skipped down the RIT brick road. They wore costumes and bedazzled orange-rhinestone sneakers.

Munson used the videos to make himself approachable and to distinguish RIT from other universities. He never anticipated the reaction.

“Students saw us in the videos and then they wanted to talk to us, and they wanted to have pictures, and they wanted to send pictures to their parents,” Munson said. “That happened in a very major way. I almost couldn’t go outdoors in August and September after we released one of these videos because I couldn’t get across campus. Every 3 feet there would be another student who wanted to talk.”

President Munson had a list of things to do to help make sure campus was in perfect condition in this 2018 silent film—his first video.

The videos drew upon the Munsons’ background in musical theater and their love for the performing arts and reinforced the president’s legacy of technology, the arts, and design at RIT.

“I think the videos helped create an environment where people are more open with each other and willing to have fun and not worry so much about what others think of them,” Munson said. “You can be your own person at RIT.”

Nancy Munson co-starred in the productions. She liked the inventive videos and supportive messages conveyed to students.

“Every video was unique, and each class has had their own,” she said. “They were a gift to the students, and I think that’s what made them special. It was also a fun way for us to do something together.”

The Munson video series began in 2018 with the silent film, President’s Pre-orientation Prep List, shot by RIT’s University Creative Services.

The next two welcome-back videos focused on staple RIT themes—learn ASL, explore hidden gems both on and off campus, and show Tiger spirit. The final set of videos parodied movie trailers and introduced overarching messages about being a student at RIT.

“In In the Brick of Time, Dr. Munson goes back to school to earn his degree,” said Daniel Swinton ’04 (film and animation), assistant director in University Creative Services. Swinton, who wrote and directed the last four videos, worked closely with videographer (and Munson stuntman) Boris Sapozhnikov ’23 MS (media arts and technology) and producer Tristan Walker.

“Dr. Munson wore the costume (a flannel shirt and jeans) underneath his gown at new student convocation, and then he took the gown off,” said Swinton. “It was his idea to tie it together and make the transition from video to the stage. The students went crazy.”

In the Brick of Time was a hit. The next year, Swinton created Raiders of the Golden Brick followed by The Wonderful Wizard of RIT.

Torres, a third-year student in the School of Individualized Study and one of Munson’s Performing Arts Scholars, played the Cowardly Lion in The Wonderful Wizard of RIT. Munson handpicked Torres for the part and selected students for the Scarecrow and Tin Man roles after seeing them act in campus productions.

The Wizard of Oz is Munson’s favorite film, and he once played the Tin Man in a theatrical production. It seemed to be a fitting finale, Swinton said.

The Wonderful Wizard of RIT proved to be the most ambitious movie Swinton and his crew made for Munson. It required a large cast in the quiet month of July, many props, complicated special effects, and a script that reassured students there is “no place like RIT.”

The layering of details extended to the musical score. Colin O’Brien, a fourth-year film and animation major, set Swinton’s lyrics to his original composition.

“I know when new students arrive on campus, as well as their parents, there is a lot of apprehension,” Munson said. “‘Can I cut it? Am I going to make friends? Do I belong here?’ And Nancy and I wanted to make the statement that, ‘Yes, there is no place like home, and home is going to be RIT.’”

The Munson videos replayed at open houses for prospective students and their parents and circulated on social media. They also reached the wider RIT community and leadership at other universities.

Munson met with alumni at a “fireside chat” in Boston hosted by Jim Salzano ’87 (accounting), CEO of Jones & Vining Inc. Salzano presented Munson with a pretend Oscar award for his accomplishments at RIT.

“Dr. Munson made himself accessible through his videos and that gave students permission to feel vulnerable at RIT. That’s a great leader,” said Salzano, the 2023 Distinguished Alumnus from Saunders College of Business.

Vulnerability is part of the learning process and leads to growth. It’s an important message for students, said Salzano, who sits on the RIT President’s Roundtable and chairs the Saunders College of Business National Council.

“If you’re not vulnerable, you’re not going to ask questions in class,” Salzano said. “You’re not going to say you need help with your studies. You’re not going to delve into something outside your comfort zone.”