Barrington High School’s 238 Studios film department and student director Catherine Goetze just debuted a powerful new music video that they’ve entered into Good Morning America’s “ROAR with Katy Perry” contest. The top prize in the contest is a live Katy Perry concert at the winning high school to be broadcast on Good Morning America on or around October 25th!
The video, directed AND edited by Barrington High School Senior and 365BarringotonTV Reporter, Catherine Goetze, tackles the serious subject of abusive relationships and shares an empowering message about standing up for yourself.
I talked with Catherine to ask her about the making of and inspiration behind the video. Here’s what she had to say:
What message do you hope the video communicates?
“It’s a song about independence, courage, breaking free and being who you are no matter what.
We ultimately decided on using the opportunity to raise awareness about unhealthy high school relationships and unhealthy relationships in general.
It was a bold move– very few of the other videos took such a “deep” approach– but we felt that it was what stayed truest to the lyrics and that’s what we really wanted to convey.
We hope the video raises awareness about the issue at hand. Who knows? Maybe it will influence one viewer directly. Even if it just changes the way people see this kind of situation, I’ll be satisfied in the end. It feels really really good to be able to make something so powerful. It makes me feel like I can really make a difference.”
What went into the making of this video?
“This is one of the fastest production times in which we have ever managed to turn around a video. We spent approximately one week in prep, one week filming, and one week in post. There was one day when we filmed before school, twice during school, and after school. It was a little crazy.”
How did you juggle filming AND your other school work?
“The night scene was a little rough– a chance of rain forced us to postpone the shoot to a school night. We had to work very efficiently to get everyone home at a decent hour before curfew.”
What is one thing you really enjoyed about the process of creating “ROAR”?
“The dance scene was probably the most fun to film for me. Lily Moradi and I spent the entire day before running around buying balloons and streamers and glitter and picking up huge stuffed animals and fake plants from our friends’ houses. Once we arrived at the school, the whole crew spent hours decorating the front area. We had dancers from Orchesis, Dancewerks, Bataille, and Poms. Filming was so fun– the dancers were so cooperative and patient. We couldn’t have asked for a better group!”
So without further delay, you’ll see the work of the entire BHS student cast and crew in this powerful two minute video.
((Special acknowledgement to 238 Studios’ Jeff Doles, the teacher behind his students’ impressive and award winning videos year after year! He makes an appearance about 1:25 into the video.))
Let’s help Katy Perry take note by sharing the BHS video with as many friends as possible online. And Catherine Goetze captures the spirit best with her intro to the video on the BHS-TV/238 Studios YouTube page… “WE ARE BARRINGTON HIGH SCHOOL, HEAR US ROAR!”
© 2013 238 Studios, Goetze Productions and Baldassano Productions
Directed and Edited by Catherine Goetze
Assistant Director: Ariana Baldassano
Starring: Kristen Pluta, JJ Good, BHS Orchesis, Natalie Laudick
