Alexis and Brianna Schmidt have always done everything together.
Every class, every sport, every hobby — the twin sisters have stuck with one another. Now juniors studying journalism at Michigan State University, they have built an identity in visual storytelling that centers on their connection to each other and to their cameras.
Jarrad Henderson, Professor of Practice in the College of Communication Arts and Sciences said the twins’ work stands out due to its sensitivity and empathy cultivated through their connection.
“People look up to the twins for good reason, because of their work ethic and their ability to make space for themselves, especially in a field that is still dominated by men,” Henderson said. “They have been very unapologetic in their ability to go out and find and share stories. I’m supremely proud of them and their effort to pursue this career path.”
This confidence in themselves and relationship with one another goes deeper than “twintuition.” Growing up, the sisters both suffered from selective mutism, an anxiety condition that kept them from talking to almost everyone, Brianna Schmidt said.
“We didn’t talk to anyone, not even our grandparents for a while, when we were little,” Brianna Schmidt said. “I think that made our bond stronger with each other because we just only communicated with each other for a long while.”
While they no longer speak to only each other, Alexis and Brianna Schmidt still do everything as a pair, including sharing nearly every class, living and working together. Alexis Schmidt said they have never even been apart for more than a few days.
“I can’t imagine growing up without her, or growing up alone without a twin,” Alexis Schmidt said. “It’s the only way we’ve ever known. I love it and I wouldn’t have it any other way. It’s so nice to have a partner to do everything with and someone that's always there.”
“We haven’t gotten sick of each other too much yet,” Brianna Schmidt said.
While Alexis Schmidt said they fight occasionally, staying mad is not only impossible, but makes work unproductive.
“We can’t stay mad at each other even if we really wanted to,” Alexis Schmidt said.
That’s because Alexis and Brianna Schmidt have spent their entire professional careers together — there’s no place for disputes when working together. When the twins got their first job at the pizza place across from their house, Brianna Schmidt said their mom sat them down before the interview. She told the twins that they couldn’t be together all the time anymore.
“But actually every job, including Hungry Howie’s, we’ve always had the same exact job and the same exact schedule,” Brianna Schmidt said. “It’s not like I couldn’t do my job without her, it just feels like it’s meant to be.”
While they are now set on careers as visual storytellers, camera work hasn’t always been the plan for the Schmidts. In high school, Brianna Schmidt said they focused on STEM classes — she planned to become an orthodontist. But while quarantining during the pandemic, the twins became interested in watching films and shows. Brianna Schmidt said this sparked an interest in pursuing more creative work.
Since then, their careers have largely centered around visual storytelling. In their junior year of high school, the Schmidts picked up cameras for the first time. They joined the broadcast journalism program and started to film news packages. Through a high school program, they started to work with PBS Student Reporting Labs.
Upon graduating high school, Brianna Schmidt said the twins chose MSU for its journalism program, choosing to pursue their still relatively-new passion. The twins worked at The State News starting in their freshman year at MSU, starting out focused on videography and eventually shifting into still photography.
“They came in as freshmen supremely talented,” Henderson said. “But that hasn’t stopped them from putting forth the effort creatively and academically to push themselves to that next level of achievement.”
“Alexis and Brianna's personalities really shine through their work,” said senior creative advertising major Sofia Pate, one of Alexis and Brianna Schmidt’s closest friends. “Everybody looks at their work and says, ‘wow, this is incredible…’ but it's actually just because they're also incredible people that really care about what they're doing.”
The portfolio the twins built freelancing and through The State News allowed them to get jobs with MSU Athletics, working as creative interns for the football and men’s tennis teams. Pate said Alexis and Brianna Schmidt have a “particular eye” that’s earned them impressive opportunities.
Alexis and Brianna Schmidt’s work has been recognized by organizations including the Michigan Student Emmys, the Broadcast Education Association and the Society for Professional Journalists.
“Their work is being recognized for its level of excellence and I’m really proud of the work that they’ve been doing,” Henderson said.
Alexis and Brianna Schmidt both said their ideal job would be working at “Saturday Night Live.” Aside from that “ultimate dream,” Brianna Schmidt said any job in sports or entertainment would be a goal, especially working in women's basketball.
“Above all else, I want to have a fun, fulfilling, enjoyable life,” Brianna Schmidt said. “As long as I’m somewhere cool doing what I want to do…that would be my dream job.”
“I want to keep doing the stuff that I’m doing,” Alexis Schmidt said. “I want to be able to enjoy wherever that is and whatever job that is.”
The twins have their working relationship figured out — but working in tandem provides a challenge: being grouped together. Brianna Schmidt said while they don’t want to be seen as the same person, their often merged identity comes with benefits, too.
“We’re individual people and I don’t want to be seen as a group, but if she had a really great photo from a sports game we shot and it’s obviously better than mine, I would be more happy for her than jealous for myself,” Brianna Schmidt said.
“If she does something good it reflects well on both of us,” Alexis Schmidt said.
Brianna Schmidt said that people often ask her when they are going to make their own accounts or go on their own paths.
“I feel like the point is that we’re together,” Brianna Schmidt said. “Obviously we can do stuff separately…but it just makes us stronger and that’s just our brand.”
By Genevieve Henry