Tired of all the lousy shows on TV these days? Well now you can do something about it. Roseville’s Community Television Station, adjacent to the Mahany Library, is there for the using, provided you complete the required training.

“Television is very easy to watch, not so easy to produce,” said Bret Van Blaricom, the studio’s manager and instructor of a six-week course, TV Production Basics, which teaches the ins and outs of putting a show together for the small screen – skills like pre-production, script writing and set design, which Van Blaricom says often get overlooked.

“We take something they’ve been exposed to their entire life and give a name to it,” he said.

Once a person has passed the course, they are free to schedule studio time on a first-come, first-serve basis. Three cameras sit at the ready beneath a grid of lights. On the other side of the glass is a full production board. From there it’s off to one of two editing bays where Final Cut Pro helps you put it all together. In addition, there are two cameras that can be taken into the field.

“I have been very impressed with what folks can do with the resources available, and the passion behind their work,” Van Blaricom said. “Public access has a long history in Roseville.”

He singled out “Friday Night Live” as an example. A staple of Friday night television for years, the music show was hosted by the late Art Brock and filmed in the station’s previous location in Old town Roseville.

“It filled an important role,” Van Blaricom said. “It is currently being revived, but only once a month at the start.”

During this month’s live shoot, current class member Laura Murphy showed up and was put to work.

“They said I could do whatever I wanted to do, so I worked the lighting,” Murphy said.

Networking is key in the class, as the station’s employees are there to act as consultants and advisors, not cameramen. Because of that, the person sitting next to you in class could be your key grip someday, and you their best boy.

The six- to eight-week class is offered four times a year through Roseville Parks and Recreation. It’s once a week for an hour and typically requires a little extra time to earn the credential.

Anyone who lives in Roseville is eligible to broadcast on the public access station. The station holds no judgment on the content, there just has to be space for it. And it must fit within the policy of non-commercial, non-slanderous or libelous content and meet the decency and technical standards.

“It helps to know what you are doing ahead of time,” Van Blaricom said. “The better you have things planned out, the easier the shoot will be. You can have some great video, but if you neglect the sound, you no longer have great video.”

Sound, editing, storyboarding … the least glamorous stuff is sometimes the most important, and the class gives a first-hand look at just how much goes on behind the scenes as well as in front of the lens.

“I have ideas, and I wanted to know how to put it all together, how to get from there to here” Murphy said. “After taking the class, it all starts falling into place.”

And what side of the camera will Murphy wind up on?

“I don’t want to be the moment,” she said, “I want to create the moment.”

Lights, camera … they’re all there, waiting for you to supply the action.