At 55, Marc Pascarelli traded media work for a marina job

Pascarelli’s media career began in the 1990s, after he earned a master’s degree from New York University’s Interactive Telecommunications Program. He duplicated tapes for Miramax, cut AMC promos and worked on film productions before opening a postproduction shop in downtown Manhattan in the mid-2000s. The 2008 financial crisis made the rent difficult to sustain on freelance income.

After his father became ill around 2010, Pascarelli closed the shop and moved to South Florida. He worked in digital cinema, field production and editing for a Univision-Disney startup, then in cable news. Following a post-pandemic restructuring, he said, his work had narrowed to translating the Spanish network’s political stories into English. When the English division was eliminated, he left with a buyout.

Remote work later brought long days at a screen, while neck and back pain and shrinking freelance rates added to his concerns. South Florida’s media market also made fluent Spanish a significant advantage, he said. Rather than pursue another degree, Pascarelli enrolled in the Marine Service Technologies program at McFatter Technical College. About 90% of his classmates were 18 to 24, and he recorded lectures with an iPad and professional microphone, earning the nickname “Microphone Man.” He also worked at West Marine after class.

An instructor connected him with a graduate whose business at Miami Beach Marina sells, services and teaches lessons on yacht toys, including eFoils, electric hydrofoil boards. Pascarelli now services their motors and components and takes clients out on Biscayne Bay. He earns about $25 an hour, close to his freelance editing rate, but spent savings during the year of training; Florida vocational aid covered most of his tuition. He says the marina job brings more time outdoors and a clearer end to the workday. He still takes occasional editing assignments on days off.