The video production program has been collaborating with the Service and Leadership classes to bring the school the morning announcements every single Monday. The fast-paced filming and editing process is overseen by Broadcast Communications teacher, Andrew Hoeflein and activities director Natalie Gardner to ensure new content each week.
A typical work week starts on Monday, with script writing by the third period Service and Leadership class. They compile all important information given by teachers, students and administrators. They also make sure to look over the education app, Trivory, for any upcoming community or sporting events. During seventh period leadership on Tuesday, the announcers of the day review the script and personalize it to their liking.
“The anchors are kind of the stars of the show in my mind. They’re the first faces you see, you know,” Gardener said.
Hoeflein’s experience working in television has helped him provide a unique perspective on what’s expected for a typical news show.
“You’re assembling your pieces where everything needs to go. When I worked for Channel 12 for 10 years, I got to see that everyday,” Hoeflein said.
Seventh period is also when all of the filming happens in Hoeflein’s class. The anchors and other leadership members make their way upstairs to the broadcast room, and they film in front of a green screen. Those who aren’t the anchors of the show, go around the school and interview students for the question of the day and distribute CREED prizes.
“We have a great bunch of reporters and videographers that come in, and I can count on them to bring me back cool shots,” Hoeflein commented.
This year, junior Natan Hadgu worked on a segment of the announcements highlighting LatinX culture. Hadgu hopes to continue this exploration with more communities in the school.
“I’m excited about interviewing more people and seeing their perspective with different cultural experiences,” Hadgu said.
Editors piece together all of the components ranging from club highlights to student council segments over a couple of days. They focus on making it both informational and entertaining.
“We have some really hilarious editors that can find some of the funny things that people say and find funny graphics and sound effects that go with it. I think that makes the announcements more fun and enjoyable to watch,” Hoeflien said. “I think, as an editor, humor is one of the best things you could bring to the table.”
The beginning of the school year takes some adjustments to get back into the flow of the announcements creation.
“One thing we struggle with is the time. There’s so much content that we’d like to include in the videos, but we always try to limit it to ten minutes,” Gardner mentioned. “There’s just a lot of ideas, trying to equitably cover what’s happening here without missing important aspects of the school is always difficult.”
Senior Joelliuz Andino has been the director of the announcements for three years and has seen the production staff change over time.
“I’ve been working on the announcements for so long that I’ve seen anchors come and go,” Andino said. “I’ve seen people graduate and work on many different segments that don’t even make it to air because of things like time constraints.”
According to Andino, not all recordings are archived. Despite this, Gardener recalls seeing clips of the announcements back before the school was reestablished.
“When I worked at Roseway, I remember seeing the Madison announcements on social media, and I would always watch,” Gardner said. “It was cool to see something clearly made by students that they’re proud of.”
As well as many other students, senior Jasper Harrison watches the announcements every Monday. He has observed the development brought by better equipment and more student involvement.
“When I was a freshman, the announcement video was just a one or two minute-long video, shot with a vertical phone camera and little to no editing,” Harrison said. “It’s very different to the amount of effort that gets put in now.”
There’s many aspects to look forward to in MHS news, such as sports cameras and even a live videography camera to hopefully prepare for future livestreams.
“We recently got teleprompters. Today I was messing around with that,” Andino said. “We constantly get new stuff in.”
All in all, the admirable joint effort between the two classes has been a staple in bringing timely news every Monday and keeping the student body informed.
“As we’ve partnered with video production, the quality has gotten much better, and we’ve gotten more opportunities to improve the content,” Gardner said. “I think it’s cool to see students see each other in the announcements.”
