Students Make a Music Video In Under 24 Hours

Shawyan Rooein and Dylan Vanek|January 29, 2018

Ian Aros poses for a scene while filming for the 24 hour music video competition.

Advanced video production took part in the annual 24 Hour Music Video Competition during the weekend of Dec. 2-3. The competition started with the Orange County Film Festival (OCFF) releasing a song at 3 p.m. on Saturday.

Teams were then given 24 hours to create a music video for the chosen song. Fourteen high schools from around Orange County participated in the competition, with a combined total of 20-30 entries.

“It was very difficult to manage our time properly,” sophomore and Portola News Network producer Stephanie Tang said. “First you have to come up with a good story, which may take hours, and then your production process.”

Tang’s group was chosen to represent Portola to be judged at the official OCFF alongside the rest of the submissions from competing schools.

“As sophomores, compared to the other, more established schools, I’m really proud of the product that we had come up with,” sophomore and advanced video production student Gavin Nguyen said.

As soon as the song is released, the students get to work. They must come up with a story or idea for their music video very quickly so they have enough time to shoot and edit it. The stress of making a music video in 24 hours creates an effective environment for students to bond and learn to work effectively as a team.

“We were shooting into the night and even within the last 30 minutes of the competition,” Tang said.

Without much time to sleep during the competition, students try to take little naps when they are not shooting so they have enough energy to complete the project.

“We have a very young school of freshmen and sophomores so that is a great, incredible accomplishment for them,” advanced video production teacher Tina Murphy said.

For students, the experience to create a project from start to finish with time constraints prepares them for a future career in the film industry. This competition enables students to learn more than they ever could in a classroom environment, express their creativity and form meaningful relationships with their fellow classmates.