When YOU Are Career Day!

Kid Reporter encourages students to follow their passion

Career Day at a school in Los Angeles recently included some exciting speakers, including an FBI agent. But there was also….

“Let’s welcome the Scholastic Kid Reporter, Cassandra Hsiao!” said the announcer at Palos Verdes Intermediate School in Los Angeles, California, introducing me to 300+ 6th graders. Applause still resounded in my ears even after the clapping died down.

With shaking hands, I felt a flutter of nerves in my stomach. I was tongue-tied at first, with my teeth set on edge. I took a deep breath, standing behind the podium facing the audience. My three-minute speech was to encourage students to follow their path of passion and how my own passion in writing led me to be a Scholastic Kid Reporter.

I told them writing gives me confidence and makes me feel like a complete version of myself. Using a lesson from the movie Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, I explained that Flint Lockwood knew from a very young age that he wanted to be a great inventor and how he continued to follow his passion.

I expressed that the students could follow their passions too. I ended with the quote, “Dream until your dream comes true.” I was warmly embraced by the enthusiastic applause of the students.

Right after that, George Olivo, who has been working in the FBI Los Angeles division for the last 13 years, stepped up to the podium. His talk was about core values, strong character, and peer pressure. He demonstrated that peer pressure can be powerful, and if you make a wrong turn at the crossroads, it could mess up your whole life.

“’Kids are the future,’” Olivo told me in an interview after the presentations. “I have confidence in the young people today, but they still need guidance. I want to show them what is possible, and that the sky’s the limit.”

I think he did just that in his speech. I only hope the students got the same inspiration from me.

—Cassandra Hsiao

PHOTO: Scholastic News Kid Reporter Cassandra Hsiao at a school in California. (Photo Courtesy Cassandra Hsiao)

At the premiere of On Stranger Tides

Johnny Depp is back in action once again as Jack Sparrow (sorry, Captain Jack Sparrow) in this new addition to the franchise – Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides 3D. Unlike the past Pirates world premieres, the carpet was black instead of red.

There were plenty of pirates on May 7 at the Happiest Place on Earth. Crowds of fans camped out on Friday night until 7 a.m. when Disneyland opened its gates, finding themselves rushing in, filling up the best spots on the bleachers. Nearly 22,000 fans had waited, and some of them for up to 18 hours, to see their favorite stars when the premiere began at 5:30 p.m. Oh, and don’t forget the 187 press outlets from all over the world that filled up Mainstreet. Did I mention that the black carpet ran 2,700 feet (spanning more than 26,000 square feet) down Disneyland’s Mainstreet to Rivers of America?

Pirates on stilts and jugglers roamed the carpet, starting “Yo-ho” chants among the fans and directing the off-tune choruses of “It’s a Pirate’s Life for Me.” (What do you expect? Pirates don’t sing in key!) The scallywags managed to pass the time until the stars started arriving at 6 p.m. 

I had a great time talking to some of the guest stars, such as Jake T. Austin (Wizards of Waverly Place), Adam Irigoyan and Caroline Sunshine (Shake It Up!), Boo Boo Stewart (Eclipse), and Fivel Stewart. Some of the stars were already in pirate mode. Zachary Gordon from Diary of a Wimpy Kid had a pirate tattoo and a swashbuckling belt. Mickey was also dressed like a pirate, posing with the stars at the front of the carpet. Fans started chanting “Mickey! Mickey! Mickey!” and Mickey turned around, blowing kisses to the crowd.

The stars were really rocking the black carpet! Penelope Cruz, who plays the first female pirate (Angelica) in the franchise, arrived wearing a black low-cut feathered Marchesa gown. Geoffrey Rush as Hector Barbossa did not arrive with Chiquida (the adorable little monkey who appeared in all four movies) on his shoulder. But Chiquida did make an appearance, carried by her trainer who constantly fed her seedless black grapes. I had a great time talking to Robbie Kay (Cabin-boy), Kevin R. McNally (Joshamee Gibbs), Astrid Berges-Frisbey (Syrena, the mermaid), Sam Claflin (Phillip Swift, a young missionary), and Ian McShane (Blackbeard). 

There were lots of Jack Sparrow look-alikes imitating the swagger and the gestures. But only one managed to convince the press. He was dressed up like Johnny, not Jack Sparrow – old-fashioned suit, shades, hat, and hair. But the press caught on quick. This Johnny arrived way too early!

Finally, at about 8:15 p.m., the man of the hour arrived, signing autographs for his fans. The real Johnny Depp talked to a few major outlets, and devoted the rest of his time on the black carpet to his fans.  

Soon, Depp took a shortcut to the Rivers of America where Disney hoisted up a screen (six stories high and nine stories wide) on Tom Sawyer’s Island to show the 3D adventure of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. Each ticket cost $1,000, and all of the money went to support the Boys and Girls Clubs of America. 

As fans began to leave the bleachers, we left the black carpet with our Disney escort and exited Disneyland. What a (black) night to remember!

Check out my video report from the black carpet and my review of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides!

—Kid Reporter Cassandra Hsiao

Photo: A general view of Micky Mouse at the world premiere of Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides at Disneyland on May 7, 2011 in Anaheim, United States. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/WireImage, courtesy Disney)

Prom (the movie) at Home in My School

Teen flick filmed in L.A. school treats students to screening

There's a reason the sets for the movie Prom looked so realistic. That’s because it was filmed at a real life school and not on a set. It was filmed at my school, John Burroughs Middle School, in Los Angeles, California.

Director Joe Nussbuam told me there are two reasons for filming at an actual school rather than building a set. The first was to intentionally give the film a realistic feel. Also, it’s cheaper!

Prom was filmed in Los Angeles, but is set on the East Coast. John Burroughs Middle School, unlike most other L.A. schools, has an old-fashioned brick layout and earthy color scheme that fits with East Coast style.

“John Burroughs is a beautiful school,” Nussbaum said. “It just makes the movie feel more real.”

John Burroughs students reaped some benefit from having the movie film there over the summer months. The school was paid and the money was used to directly help students at the school.

That wasn’t the only perk, either. John Burroughs students who take drama class and/or have exceptional grades were able to attend a special early screening of the movie. Disney even gave out Rolos and candy necklaces as seen in the film.

I also attended the screening. As the producer predicted in his introduction, there were claps and cheers at every familiar hallway, staircase, and exterior shot.

There was also a funny moment of revelation for some students: a particular locker (clue word: Kranton) design was left in the school. Our lockers aren’t used, so it was a mystery what this one strange locker was doing in our hallways.

Someone finally figured out how to open it. Every single photo and fake binder from the movie was left in there. When the scene came along, people who remembered the mystery locker were caught between laughing and thinking aloud “OH! That’s what that was!”

Prom was shot over summer break, so no class schedules were interrupted. However, the film has definitely made a lasting mark on our student body. We’re all still talking about it!

—Miranda Rector

PHOTO: Nolan Sotilo and Cameron Monaghan on the set of Prom in the hallway of John Burroughs Middle School, in Los Angeles, California. (PHOTO: Richard Forman Jr., SMPSP © Disney Enterprises Inc. All Rights Reserved)