Anyone who knows even a little bit about the college experience knows it’s not strictly about hitting the books. Even a hardened scholar would have to agree: It’s as much about the lifestyle as it is the library.
That simple philosophy inspired a rollicking promotional video for the University of Hawaii at Manoa that screens like a cross between "Glee" and a flash mob. Each time you watch it, you see something else.
The cameras of Oz Go and Jonathan Walk, co-founders of 1001 Stories, roll through a dorm with dancing residents, an underwater concert with a singer, a drummer and students on bicycles, and the most bizarre gathering of people ever assembled on the lawn of Hawaii Hall: a gymnast flying off a trampoline, Warrior football players performing a haka and two students on a Slip ‘n Slide.
There’s even a guy in a kiddie pool. Look closer and you’ll see it’s local clothing designer Andy South.
Definitely not your typical path to promoting a university’s academics.
"They wanted to do a student recruitment commercial, and we wanted to do something fun to catch a student’s eyes, not just a commercial with someone looking at a computer," Go said.
It’s been a hit with the public. When the 60-second magical mystery tour screens during Wahine volleyball matches at the Stan Sheriff Center, some fans get up and dance.
The university used 1001 Stories to create five previous videos. They were all business, with sobering music, class scenes and thoughtful-looking students.
The new video, called "Lifestyle," doesn’t ever enter a classroom.
Go and Walk, who hope to someday make their own feature films, were inspired by the lip dub videos popular on YouTube and didn’t mind if the timing was off. "That’s the YouTube feel, rough and honest," Go said. "We wanted it to feel almost as if they just put it together. Almost spontaneous."
But the underwater scene was anything but spontaneous. It took a grueling 30 takes.
"The people at the end of the shot had to hold their breath the longest," Go said. "We were coming from one end of the pool toward them, and they had to do this again and again."
Go called the project too ambitious, but he’s only half-serious.
"That was our independent filmmaking side of us coming out," he said. "The choreography alone: There were so many different elements going on at once that trying to keep track of everything was pretty wild."
HAWAII’S youngest TV journalists are back for a second season on PBS Hawaii.
"Hiki No" brings together middle school and high school students — and this season, a few elementary students — for weekly half-hour newscasts in prime time.
During its inaugural 13-episode season, which ran from February to May, the students conceived, reported and edited more than 100 stories.
Their topics included sea turtles, the ban on plastic bags on Maui, and features about classmates rebounding from devastating setbacks.
And they weren’t shy, either, asking hard questions of politicians, community leaders and business executives.
The second season, which starts Thursday in its regular 7:30 p.m. time slot, will run through Jan. 5. The episodes will be repeated through April.
The public television station held the students to professional standards, something that initially surprised their teachers. Stories typically went through five drafts.
"What our team told them was, ‘When you turn in a version, don’t expect it to be the last,’" said Leslie Wilcox, president and chief executive officer of PBS Hawaii. "You can always strive harder."
AND that’s a wrap …
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Mike Gordon is the Star-Advertiser’s film and television writer. Read his Outtakes Online blog at honolulupulse.com. Reach him at 529-4803 or email mgordon@staradvertiser.com.
