Written By : Corey Nguyen
(00:00:00:07:26:29)
No, No, No! It wasn’t supposed to happen like this. Not again. Not like last time. My head lay in my hands. Defeated. The glow of the iMac strains my eyes. “UGHHHHH”, a guttural groan escapes my throat. The digital, green clock on Sara Wallace’s oven said 3 A.M, but time had lost all meaning to me. Looking over, I saw Johnny Bernardin wrapped up in a purple sleeping bag; safe in his dreams from the horrors of our reality. Lucky. Chris Van Lieshout lay a few feet away. He had tried to sleep, but the ominous nature of our task forced him into an involuntary insomnia. An insomnia he was trying to cure by watching cat videos on his Macbook. It wasn’t working. How did it end up like this?
To answer that, I have to go to the beginning.
Roll back the tape.
Reset the clock.
(02:00:00:00:00:00)
There we go.
This is BBN’s story of making Winter Assembly 2016.
Hit play.
2 Months Out (01:03:06:24:59:59)
I remember having a meeting. It was with Cody Do. We sat down in the BBN room and talked for a good 45 minutes. We planned out the whole assembly: the prep, the plan, and the preparation. I knew what both ASB and BBN had to do. I remember calling Chris Van Lieshout. We were confident in the plan. It wouldn’t end like Homecoming Assembly where we had to stay up for 3 days and nights in a row to finish editing the videos and songs and performances. I think Chris even said, “Everything will be done by the final week. We will NOT be doing it the night of.” Looking back, that’s really funny we thought that. Well, not really.
1 Month Out (0:03:06:23:59:59)
There’s a saying that goes, “Life is like trying to going up a down escalator. Stand still and you will only go back. Walk and you will stay in place. The only way up is to run.” If this assembly was that escalator, we didn’t just stand still. We fell backwards. So many things just didn’t get done. And it wasn’t anyone’s fault. If something could go wrong…it did. Pretty sure that’s Murphy’s Law. Thanks Murphy.
The script wasn’t done. The VFX intros weren’t started. We would only have three hours to set up the night of, where as last assembly we barely finished with 6 hours. Follow a series of breaks in communication with a bevy of misunderstandings and that’s how you get no work down for the year’s biggest assembly. But its ok, I said. We got time. I mean, I wasn’t lying. We had time. Key word : had.
3 Weeks Out (00:02:06:23:59:59)
Due to our non-work, we finally get ourselves to do something. Chris Van Lieshout and I are recording voiceovers with the Assembly Commissioners from ASB. Well, he’s recording it. I’m sitting there trying not to laugh. Afterwards we have another meeting. Meetings seem to be a recurring symbol so far. We discuss all that’s left to do with Krystal, one of the commissioners. We’re all ok. We still believe its manageable. We are naive.
2 Weeks Out (00:01:06:23:59:59)
An editing day in the home of Chris Van Lieshout. I have other obligations during the day so I edit with Chris, leave for a couple hours, and then return. The work is slow. Tedious. Painful. We have to listen to each voiceover and categorize it. Folder upon folder upon folder. My fingers hurt by the end of the day, but it gets done. Except there was a problem: the script was changing. While we’re working on organizing the voiceovers, we notice that the commissioners were making revisions and additions. Chris contacts them, and we can’t work any longer since we no longer knew if what we’re doing was going to change or not. We put the voiceovers on the backburner. Which wouldn’t be that bad except everything else about the assembly is on the backburner too. Chris goes on a rant about how we’re not ready, and even if we were, there’s no way we can set up the night of in only 3 hours. Doubt begins to creep in.
1 Week Out (00:00:06:23:59:59)
Chris’s doubt turns to frustration. One week left and the list of things to do appears to be insurmountable. Pack all the gear. Prepare the voiceovers. Find Sound Effects. Do the visual effects like the story book. I could go on. Actually, I will. Contact performances. Pre-check the gym’s electrical. Finishing the script. And more. The challenges were compounded by just a small mixup: our last prep week before the assembly was….Finals Week. The pressure mounted and tempers flared. Even I got testy with people. So much to do with so little time in a situation where everyone was focused on their education and future. No more doubt, just despair now.
2 Days Out (00:00:01:16:39:59)
The day was Wednesday. And the mood was dire. Activities originally wanted us to hold Winter Assembly in the bowl instead of the gym. I believe our reasoning for why that was not a good idea was , “no that’s freaking lame.” So they agreed to give us the gym, but at a cost. We could not rehearse until the night of due to basketball games. To battle that, the ASB commissioners set up a rehearsal day on Wednesday night in…the bowl. Irony. The rehearsal went well. Except for one of the MC’s left before we could grab their picture for the storybook, some of the captains didn’t show up, and Chris and I set up the speakers the wrong way. Initially, we didn’t have all the voiceovers or songs ready to practice with, some of ASB didn’t know their dance at first, it was really, really cold, and some of the performance teams had to leave early. But besides those things, good rehearsal.
1 Day Out (00:00:00:21:30:59)
The day was Thursday. It was the end of 5th period. I’ve brought all my gear and clothes for the assembly because I know I’m not going home till after it. ASB finished the script and we finally have all the voiceovers, songs, sound effects, and visual effects we need. So now, the final edit is in my hands. Like furious fire raining from the heavens, my fingers pound the keyboard of BBN’s Assembly iMac. Cut here. Paste there. Check that. Insert this. I’ve never worked so fast in my whole life. If you were there (and I’m glad you weren’t) all you’d hear was the clack, clack, clack of the keyboard, the click, click, click of the mouse, and the mechanical clunks of Chris Van Lieshout and Johnny Bernardin packing up all the gear we’d need. I sit at that computer for the next 5 hours. And I still wasn’t done. Not anywhere close.
(00:00:00:11:20:45)
We were in the gym. Chris was moving around trying to help Level Up, the production company we work with on assemblies, Johnny was setting up the BBN station in the corner, and I’m trying to help ASB run rehearsals on a side court. Wires are strewn about. The dirty, blue tarp held down by gaffe tape makes a raspy, crumpling sound when walked on. But there was not much walking, but plenty of running. Chris running to set up electrical. BBN running around trying to get BTS shots. ASB running around coordinating performances and MCs. Even me, trying to juggle backing up Chris, helping ASB, and trying to continue the edit. We were all trying to do the impossible. Setting up the assembly in only 3 hours; half the time than all the other assemblies. Now we were running up the escalator. At the end of the night, the assembly set up was 90% done, and Chris could finish it the next morning. But the set-up was pointless unless I finished the edit. It was my time to run.
(00:00:00:07:26:29)
Before every assembly, ASB holds a sleep over for all essential personnel like the MCs or the Commissioners. They want to discuss important things for the assembly the next day, and make sure everyone who needs to be there will get there. After all these meetings, they all go to sleep on the big sofas in Sara Wallace’s house. All comfy and cozy. But sleep wasn’t a luxury that me or Chris could afford. After arriving straight from the gym at 12 in the morning, we set up our iMac on Sara Wallace’s dining room table; gear, wires, and pizza boxes lay across the top like a battlefield. The edit needed final master touches and I ran it through the script 3 times to make sure I wasn’t missing anything. My head drooped to sleep many times and I would jump awake every 5 minutes. But after another 4 hours running, I finally made it up the escalator. The edit was done. I woke up Chris for him to export the final videos. Slipping off the kitchen chair, my body crawled itself into the iMac box. I closed the lid over me.
(00:00:00:05:20:45)
The lid was forced open. “Corey get up.”, Chris Van Lieshout utters out. Johnny is packing up the iMac. The oven lights a cruel 4:35 A.M in its green hue. The assembly rages closer and closer. Sigh. First heading outside, I pull my car in front of Sara Wallace’s house. Johnny and Chris haul the gear into my trunk, making sure to bring along the most important equipment: the pizza. We get back into the gym around 5:10 A.M. Rehearsals are the most important thing right now; we haven’t had full set up rehearsals yet. The only time we’ll get to practice with all of the assets in place are right before the assembly itself. Fantastic.
(00:00:00:02:34:45)
Closer and closer now. The time ticks on. Chris is pointing at a coiled cable to a Level Up employee. Johnny is talking with Zeyra about who’s going to run the A camera. I sit and run rehearsals. My hands are cold.
(00:00:00:00:20:54)
We finish the last run through. Everyone sits back in position. Chris takes my spot at the BBN station. Johnny sits next to him. I get up and look around at the gym. Its a waiting game now.
(00:00:00:00:05:34)
We’ve opened the doors to the 3A assembly. There’s so much noise. ASB members yell out for where to students to go. The students’ talking fills the gym with cacophony. Final positions are set and the Assembly Commissioners run around making everyone is in place. I’m on back up duty for Chris. I check with all of our stage people to make sure they’re good. All thumbs up.
(00:00:00:00:00:10)
Everyone is seated. Seconds to go. I hold my breath in.
(00:00:00:00:00:03)
Curtains rise up.
(00:00:00:00:00:02)
Silence throughout.
(00:00:00:00:00:01)
(00:00:00:00:00:00)
In Reflection
When you read what I’ve written, you might think it seemed negative. My tone and my attitude seem to give the impression that I didn’t want to be there. And that’s because I didn’t. After Homecoming Assembly, I realized I didn’t want to stay up 3 nights in a row.I didn’t want to have to deal with people getting angry and fighting out of frustration and stress. I didn’t want to have all this pressure. I didn’t want to do this assembly. But I felt an obligation to since I have the second most assembly experience besides Chris Van Lieshout.
But when I watched the assembly, it all changed. Seeing the pieces come together: the music, the sound effects, the visual effects, the actors, the performances;all of it. It was magical. (No Disney Pun Intended) I sat down at one point just watching it in awe. How did this happen? Did we really do it? Did we really pull this off?
And the school’s reaction to it was even more magical. Mr. Trocchio called it the best assembly he’d seen in 20 years. Twitter blew up with praise and adoration for the theme. All of my friends told me it was amazing. After everyone cleared out, ASB was hugging each other crying. It was an amazing thing to witness. The emotional culmination of teamwork and hard work. I’m so glad we ended on “All in this Together” because we really were.
But the feedback wasn’t all great. And I’m not talking about constructive criticism because we know that assembly wasn’t perfect. There’s nothing wrong with critique or pointing out mistakes. That’s how creators get better. But that’s not what I’m talking about.
What I’m talking about is receiving pure hate for no good reason. I heard some people say it was terrible. Awful. Someone even called it, “@ss.” Especially because we used High School Musical. But I want a throw a little lesson in here that I learned after hearing all that hate. Those people, those cynical, negative people; guess what? They don’t matter. If you’ve ever poured your heart into something creative, I guarantee you someone has hated on it or you. But that’s the thing. Its so easy to be a hater. It takes no effort to write a negative comment or be cynical towards something.
But to create? To actually make something? That takes effort. It takes heart. Heart that people who hate don’t have the courage to exhibit. Actually creating is what counts. Because you did the work. You put in the time. You risked failure. These haters; they’d rather sit behind an anonymous keyboard and spew negativity than put their name on the line like you because in their souls they’re hurt that they can’t do what you’re doing.
I used to be angry at these people. They don’t know the struggle. They didn’t work for this. They couldn’t do anything near this. And that’s when I began to pity them. Because they know that. They know they’ll never be able to do what we did. They know they don’t have the courage to risk failure on such a large scale. They know they won’t work for it. And that’s sad. At first, I wanted to call out all the haters in this post, but I won’t. Because for those negative, judgmental haters, their punishment is their life. They’ll write disgusting things during the day, but when they go to sleep at night; they hate who they are. And I think that’s enough for them.
So if you didn’t like this assembly; that’s fine. Nothing is for everyone. We’ll try to be better next time. Message me with what you thought could have been better.
But if you just hated on this assembly? I’m sorry to hear that.
Too bad I don’t care.
Now that my Casey Neistat inspired rant is over, I want to give credit to everyone who worked on, helped, or assisted in making this Assembly. First and foremost to my two BBN partners Chris Van Lieshout, who has taught me everything I know, and Johnny Bernardin who was a ray of sunshine in the impending darkness. I want to give credit to the three ASB Assembly Commissioners for writing a great script and organizing this whole mess: Cody Do, Krystal Le, and Sara Wallace. I want to give credit to all the sports captains, MCs, and performance teams for their outstanding effort and for giving us their valuable time. I want to credit Senate for helping pass out balloons and offering their manual labor. I want to give credit to Level Up for working in such a tight time constraint. And finally, I want to give credit to Mr. Lamar and Activities for allowing this all to happen.
This was my second and last Assembly, and I couldn’t be happier with how it all ended. Thank you so much for reading Behind the BBN.
