Joel M. Pena

LIFESTYLE EDITOR

Biography:

A San Antonio native, JP Marcus attended Madison High School before continuing his education at The University of the Incarnate Word. Majoring in Communication Arts, he also acquired a concentration in New Media. Although the arts interested him from a young age, JP didn’t pick up his first camera until college. As an eager learner, it didn’t take him long to learn the ins and outs of camera work before moving into videography. Most notably, with his work in shooting live sports, JP landed an internship with NBC Universal. He spent the summer in Los Angeles where he continued to develop his skills.

After graduating from college, JP began directing commercials for a company based in Los Angeles. This enabled him to connect with several large companies such as Walmart, AARP, NBA, and SXSW, along with San Antonio locals such as Redemption Auto, Nicks Total Car Care, and the City of San Antonio. As an animal advocate, JP also enjoys working with the local community. Since 2014 he has worked with San Antonio rescue Spay Neuter Inject Protect San Antonio (SNIPSA). By photographing adoptable pets and documenting SNIPSA’s outreach events in the community, JP has helped shed a little more light on the necessity of spay/neuter programs and pet overpopulation. To learn more about SNIPSA, please visit www.snipsa.org.

Joel now works as head of the Lifestyle section at the Sentinel and covers local events and prominent happenings around San Antonio ranging from Fiesta events to concerts to art exhibits.