BBN revamps the direction of this year’s rendition of “The Haunt”

Camera operator William Tran films a scene of “The Haunt”. Photo courtesy of Nathan Tran.

By Jasmine Pham, Staff Writer & Vivian Yenson, Staff Writer 

This past Halloween, Baron Broadcast News (BBN) presented the annual 2017 edition of “The Haunt”, starring juniors Derrick Bui and Athena Schlusemeyer and senior Matthew Mallory. However, the producers decided to take an unexpected turn with the direction of the short film by opting for a more comedic route instead of the routine suspenseful thriller as seen in prior years.

“When we were discussing about what ‘The Haunt’ should be this year, we wanted to take a different approach and make it comedic for the student body to enjoy. Compared to last year’s Haunt and the years before, this year’s had a more mysterious and less dark, horror vibe,” said scriptwriter and co-producer of BBN, senior Chloe Dinh.

Directed by BBN co-producer, senior Yasir Khaleq, “The Haunt” followed student Bryan Phan, played by Derrick Bui, as he created the Mystery Club. Along with his friends Thom and Chloe, played respectively by Mallory and Schlusemeyer, Bryan follows the mysterious occurrences at FVHS in which school spirit makes a collision within social outcasts. The cast this year included more memorable faces  as well as a more broad array of dynamic roles.

“I do believe I have a connection with my character in ‘The Haunt’ because 70% of the time it was just me being me,” said Bui, who portrayed the main character of this production.

Sound producer, junior Kenneth Sato, holds up the microphone to control the sound of the scene. Photo courtesy of Nathan Tran.

“The Haunt” was not an easy process. The cast and crew experienced multiple scheduling conflicts, for they had to work around school hours and personal schedules. This led to countless re-shoots and missing shots. Filming would ultimately end up lasting two to three hours.

The director of photography, senior Robert Kelley, and camera operator/editor, junior William Tran, along with the remainder of the crew had curated a piece that radiated the nostalgic innocence of our childhoods. The scriptwriters made sure to keep the plot simple and self-awareness was an aspect of production that was definitely kept in mind. Including elements from lively cartoons and inserting feel-good tunes, this year’s edition may have marked an epoch in the future productions of “The Haunt”.

“For this year’s production, my main inspiration was definitely the old Scooby-Doo mysteries of my childhood. I wanted to do something in that vein: a comedic and casual take on ‘The Haunt’ concept,” said Tran.

Students and teachers raved about the improvement in this year’s edition, especially in the upgraded video quality and thought-provoking storyline.

Director Yasir Khaleq guides the actors through the upcoming scene. Photo courtesy of Nathan Tran.

Despite numerous barriers, especially schedule-wise, the cast and crew managed to break the norm for “The Haunt” with its new comedic spin. After years of tricks, this year’s rendition seems to leave its audience with more of a treat.

“It seems to be pretty well received by everyone I have talked to, but there are definitely some problems with it too,” said Kelley. “Overall, a successful ‘The Haunt’ this year.”