Atomic Films CEO Headlines as Keynote Speaker

Dave Lang, CEO and director of Atomic Films, will serve as the keynote speaker of UWG’s 38th Media Day on March 6.   

Lang is an alumnus of UWG. He graduated in 1983 with a bachelors degree in Mass Communications, and now has his own production company, Atomic Films, based out of Chattanooga.  

Lang’s success did not happen overnight. He started at a radio station right after college in Warner Robins, GA. It was a friend from his college days that got him to Chattanooga.  

“Hold on to the relationships that you’ve established in college,” said Lang. “They take dividend so much. My second job was because of the fact that I stayed in touch with a fellow alumnus, and we’ve become lifelong friends since then.” 

Lang’s time in radio was short lived. Within nine months of working at the station in Chattanooga, all employees were fired and the station went in another direction. Though Lang’s heart was in radio, he transitioned smoothly into TV production. 

“I was able to move over into television production quickly because of the fact that I had done internships at WSB and CNN,” said Lang. “They looked at my transcripts and they looked at my grades, but the reason I got the job was because I had done those internships. You just can’t put a value on that.” 

Lang’s job at the TV station allowed him to make connections that would lead to a life of successful business relationships. 

“We were the ones doing the work back then,” said Lang. “You really can’t say enough about established relationships. We were very lucky we did not have to sell very much. Word of mouth got out and people found us. People found us, and we were very fortunate in those regards.” 

When Lang moved there in the ‘80s, Chattanooga was not known for its tourist attractions. Now, the city brings in more than one billion dollars worth of tourist revenue a year, and Lang and his company are producing for some of the top performers in the tourist industry. 

 “I just feel blessed and fortunate to be in Chattanooga and be a part of the renaissance there,” said Lang. “Now, we are doing a billion dollars in tourist business every year, and we feel like we were a part of that.  

“I’m very proud of my city, and I’m very proud of West Georgia,” continued Lang. “If it were not for West Georgia, I guarantee I would not be doing what I love.” 

 Lang says he feels events like Media Day are important, and he looks forward to attending every year. 

 “After I leave, I don’t know if anything that we said or that we shared helped,” said Lang. “But it means a lot to me, and I hope it means a lot to the students.”