An inside look at how WHS’s student announcements are made
Addison Miller
Feature Editor
November 3, 2023
Every Wednesday, WHS’s student announcements, RockTV, releases the week’s news, updates, skits, and promotions. Although the cuts are always seamless, the production is a bit more tedious than one would think.
There are many steps that go into the production of RockTV. The head producer of RockTV, Senior Cameron Noe, said the whole process can be a bit confusing.
“It always starts with the content creators, and making sure they get their videos in [on] Tuesday ten minutes into their period,” Noe said.
For the content creators, their process starts with choosing a topic. Topics can range from anything of personal interest and are very open to the imagination. Noe said she sometimes gets her segment ideas from events happening around WHS, or even videos she sees on TikTok. Junior Layla Ryan, a content creator, describes the process as very collaborative and interesting.
“You get a camera and a mic, and you go out and you film your video whether that be with other students or in the green screen room,” Ryan said. “You come up with your idea and you execute it.”
Ryan explains editing is where the magic happens. The show premieres every Wednesday morning during second period, so to get it out on time, editors have to take the video home and finalize the edits to then upload it to YouTube. If a student wants their segment out on that week’s RockTV, they have to make, edit, and submit the video days prior. However, the deadlines are not the most challenging part of the whole process.
“The biggest challenge in RockTV is definitely communication with other staff and those around the school,” Noe said. “I have to make sure everything is getting done on time and manage special projects, so there’s a lot of people to communicate with.”
After the show is uploaded and premiered, the class begins working on their next week’s segments. The class is taught by Mr. John Oestreich. Although he teaches the class, it is very student-driven, and he wants the students to rely on interpersonal communication and organization.
“I overload on purpose to basically see what [they do] and how [they] handle it because this job gets that way organically,” Oestreich said. “You’re going to be standing in this room and you’re going to look up and go ‘Holy! I’m going to lose it! There’s too much stuff!’ and it’s the ability to drop the heart rate [and] work on one problem at a time.”
RockTV is always looking for new ideas on creative touches on their weekly segments. The classes change every trimester, which means new people will be able to contribute their own ideas. Senior Lilly Stanton is not currently taking the class but will next trimester, and she is ready to add her own personal touch.
“I’m excited to record the footage, and then get it back and edit it my own way and bring out my creativity,” Stanton said.
Not only is the class a creative outlet, it’s a great place to bond with classmates. Both Ryan and Noe emphasized that they have made lifelong friends and family through this class, and recommend that people join this class no matter their field of interest.
“Not only is it a lot of fun, it’s also just a safe space to be in,” Noe said. “RockTV has given me a family and memories that will last me a lifetime, and I hope more people can experience that!”
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