Welcome back! We are so excited to share C Magazine’s first issue of Volume 13. As we transition into fall of this 20242025 school year, we are turning over a new leaf. This year, we are proud to introduce a new tear-out poster on page 22, as well continuing our perspective piece segment from last year. We cannot wait to see where our incredible staff takes us with these changes, and we hope you all sit back, grab a pumpkin spice latte and settle in as you read through this issue!
Our cover story on page nine features “Lights Out and Away We Go!” written by Alice Sheffer, Silvia Rodriguez and Amalia Tormala. The story explores the rise in popularity of Formula 1 racing and the expansion and increased inclusivity within the sport and fandom.
For our first featured artist of Volume 13, we are thrilled to highlight the passion and love that junior Aaron Shone pours into his baked goods. Talia Boneh and Dylan Berger’s “A Sweet Success” on page 30 spotlights the joy Shone spreads to friends and family through his baking.
Discussing originality, remakes and nostalgia, Estelle Dufour, Fallon Porter and Abbie Karel dive deeper into
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October 2024 • Volume 13 Issue
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Finally, Kaitlyn Gonzalez-Areco brings our first perspective piece to life. “Strength in Resilience” on page 28 details her journey navigating life by turning grief, loss and hardships into perseverance and love.
We hope that this issue gives readers a taste of the amazing work to come. If you are interested in reading more from C Magazine, stay tuned for our upcoming issues or visit our website, cmagazine.org, for online exclusives and past print stories.
Happy reading, Kayley Ko, Katelyn Pegg, Anika Raffle and Gin Williams
By Amalia Tormala
By Kaitlyn Gonzalez-Arceo
By Talia Boneh and Dylan Berger
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C Magazine, an arts and culture magazine published by the students in Palo Alto High School’s Magazine Journalism class, is a designated open forum for student expression and discussion of issues of concern to its readership. C Magazine is distributed to its readers and the student body at no cost.
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NYT games have gained popularity and a more significant role in peoples’ lives
As senior Vivian Lin opens the New York Times (NYT) app on her phone, she immediately scrolls to the games section. Clicking on Connections, she quickly guesses the first category, the topic being “criticize” with the words being “bash”, “slam”, “pan”, and “blast”. Satisfied, she moves on to another category, her eyes glazing over the words.
Like numerous individuals, Lin learned about NYT games her freshman year when Wordle, a word-guessing game, started gaining im mense popularity.
“I noticed many other people in my classes playing the games, especially Wordle, so I started playing that first,” Lin said. “And then that’s when I got into the other games like the Mini Crossword, Let ter Boxed, and then Connections … the games are really fun, and also I enjoy learn ing [new] words.”
Unlike Lin, fresh man Vi Du Tran found the games through social media.
Tran mentioned Connections as a favorite, citing its creativity as an attractive aspect of the game.
“I remember one time there was this one puzzle with ‘sponge’, ‘bob’, ‘square’ and ‘pants,’” Tran said. “They were all in separate categories, and everyone on social media was like ‘oh, I can’t believe they did this.’”
“The good thing about the New York Times games is [that] they’re quick.” Motoko Iwata, 11
Though he sometimes gets frustrated when he doesn’t solve the puzzle, Tran enjoys playing the games as a regular brain break from schoolwork.
In addition to NYT games being a good pastime, students find it beneficial in helping with different aspects of their lives. Freshman Naia Tormala finds that the games help her stay focused.
“It gets me to reset,” Tormala said.
“A lot of times, life can be random,” Iwata said. “School can be stressful sometimes, but having the one thing [Wordle] I do in the morning every day definitely helps me add some consistency and routine into my life.”
NYT lead columnist and senior editor for games Deb Amlen believes that the games provide many benefits.
“I think that puzzles are reassuring to people, no matter how much they fuss about the answers,” Amlen said. “Generally there is only one answer, and that gives the audience a sense of control that they may be missing in their everyday lives.”
While it can serve as a potential distraction in school, freshman Vedika Agarwal sees the games as a fun alternative to playing other attention and time-consuming games.
“I think they should be allowed in class because … they help wake my brain up,” Agarwal said. “They can also be fun to do … something that isn’t totally unproductive.”
Iwata also sees many benefits of having the games accessible to stu-
“As the games started getting more interesting, I decided to start playing them more regularly and making them part of my schedule,” Tran said.
Junior Motoko Iwata enjoys the games for a similar reason as Tormala. However, she enjoys learning new vocabulary from playing the games, motivating her to incorporate them into her daily routine.
dents in class.
“The good thing about the New York Times games is [that] they’re quick,” Iwata said. “Most of them are five minutes or less, so it’s a lot better than some of the other games that you can play on the computer.”
While Tran shares similar sentiments, he also found himself getting distracted, especially during middle school. He found himself succumbing to peer pressure as he would try to complete work.
“My friend would pull out Wordle or some New York Times game and say ‘Oh, I bet I can, finish this faster than you,’ and then I would derail my work,” Tran said.
monetary subscription barrier which NYT Games requires for the Crossword and the Spelling Bee.
Meanwhile, some NYT games players find fun in coding their own games. Senior Akiva Forrestor, an avid NYT Crossword player, is a passion ate coder who loves creating games in his free time.
“I take a lot of inspiration from other games, and I really enjoy mak ing things and art,” Forrester said. “I like the fact that you can use program ming and art to gether when you’re making games.”
“It is a bit sad and frustrating that you have to pay in order to find more [games],” Battumur said.
Despite having similar thoughts as Battumur, Iwata understands that the games are a way for publications to generate revenue.
“Having a game subscription isn’t unreasonable, but I do think that it can be somewhat meaningless considering there are so many other versions of the games online that you can get for free,” Iwata said. “I hope that The New York Times might consider changing that [subscription policy] and getting more people to play their games.”
“A good puzzle can make passing the time much more fun.”
Deb Amlen, NYT Lead Columnist and Senior Editor
Senior Sean Gustavson, also a coder, believes that the quality of the NYT games are decreasing as they’re running out of new ideas. As a result, he was inspired to make his own games including Thesaurus Crawl and Two-Word Phase Situation.
“I can code games, and I do [make] a lot of word games, puzzles or crosswords,” Gustavson said.
Similar to Forrestor, Gustavson finds a more spontaneous approach when envisioning which games he wants to create.
“I made it [the games] up pretty much on the fly,” Gustavson said. “I was sitting in class and writing an essay … [when] I found this thesaurus website … using that, I thought that … this could be a game, so I drew out a quick concept.”
Like Gustavson, junior Tristan Battumur has some grievances with the NYT; however, he’s most disappointed at the
Similar to Iwata, senior Aiden Chen understands the motivations for NYT needing money. However, he believes people should have a clear understanding of what they are paying for.
“I’ve seen people take upwards of two hours to do the big crossword,” Chen said. “You pay for entertainment … if you really wanted to, you could just find a crossword generator online, but it also feels better to do it officially through the New York Times.”
Though many are disap pointed by the monetary barrier, Chen finds it beneficial, not just for preventing distractions, but also giving him a sense of achievement when completing a game suc cessfully.
“[For] other games like Spelling Bee, having a limit on how many words you can write without a subscription … gives me a sense of completion once I get to that point for the set of letters I’ve been given,” Chen said.
English teacher, Karin Kolb is content with paying the subscription to play games since the money is going to support the journalism business.
“I think it’s important to have journal ism and other print and also any kind of publication for people to read and stay con
nected,” Kolb said.
Similar to Kolb, band teacher Katie Gilchrist also pays for a subscription. However, she sees other potential benefits beyond the increased variety. For her, she uses the games in her sixth grade flex class at Greene to give them a brain break.
“Instead of them playing Roblox for five minutes, I’ll put it [a game] up on the screen and the whole class works together to solve it,” Gilchrist says.
Gilchrist saw that the transition from print to online games didn’t make that much of a difference for her. Despite print games becoming less common nowadays, she still feels the ability to bond over them with others.
“My grandma is in her late 80s, and she still does newspaper and book crossword puzzles,” Gilchrist said. “It’s fun to talk with her about it, because she’ll talk to me about her Sudoku and crossword, and then I’ll tell her about my digital crossword and connections … I do see online replacing it [print] just as much as online newspapers have replaced [physical newspapers].”
Amlen sees other benefits of having an online version of the games.
“It’s much more convenient to carry your games and puzzles around in your pocket on your phone,” Amlen said. “When you’re standing in line or waiting at a doctor’s office, a good puzzle can make passing the time much more fun.”
In the end, Gilchrist expressed gratitude for NYT’s innovativeness and acknowl-
1. The theme is journalism. Begin by finding a word related to journalism that starts with the letter at the beginning of the line.
2. Continue exploring words related to this theme, aiming to connect your starting word to the final word: “CMAG.”
Sudoku
How to play:
1. The goal is to fill each three-by-three minibox, rows and columns with numbers one through nine exactly once.
2. Use temporary notes. Write small numbers to mark the possibilities for each cell and eliminate them as more information is deducted.
Sfrom humble beginnings and evolving into the glitz and glamor seen today, the Formula One industry has undergone many changes over the years. With over 200,000 attendees and an average ticket price of more than 1,000 euros, the 2024 Monaco Grand Prix was a testament to the steady growth of Formula One’s popularity.
However, the most drastic shift can be seen today in terms of its audience; the diversity of Formula One viewers has increased signifi cantly throughout the years.
Since its first Formula One Grand Prix in 1946, the Formula One industry has captivated a predominantly European audience. Adéle Vincent, a senior at the American School of the Hague in Wassenaar, Netherlands, has been a fan of Formula One since she was a kid and reflects on its importance for European families.
“It’s very common in Europe for families to watch Formula One,”
High School in Aurora, Colorado, and a Formula One fan, reaffirms Formula One’s heavy European presence.
“[Racing] has been a European sport, built by Europeans and built for Europeans,” Wood said. “It’s been the Italians, the French and the Germans; it’s been all of them.”
Despite its European origins, Formula One has managed to expand its audience onto a more global stage. “Drive to Survive,” a Netflix series currently in its sixth season, has been one significant driving force for expanding Formula One to an American audience.
Sophia Upton, an English influencer, runs a TikTok and Instagram page, @f1.soph, dedicated to Formula One content.
“It is really good that feminism is spreading to the sport.”
Maya Stepanova, Gunn High School, 10
a family lineage thing, especially if you’re from a country like Italy, France or England that has a large history of races — not only Formula One but other forms of [car] racing as well.”
Charlie Wood, a junior at Regis Jesuit
Upton represents a new wave of involvement with Formula One: social media content run by women. As fans see more media in general surrounding Formula One, there is an increasing interest in the sport.
“Most of the recent Formula One fans got into it because of ‘Drive to Survive,’” Upton said. “It’s nice that there are so many new fans who got into it.”
Following “Drive to Survive,” other motorsport classes have tried replicating the series’ dynamic success. Despite their efforts, they have not been able to retain and engage new fans as “Drive to Survive”
A primary example of this is “A Hundred Days to Indy,” a television series based on IndyCar, an Indianapolis-based racing organization that used to have an international grasp on motorsport fans. However, due to a lack of funding and support, Indycar was not able to sustain its international pursuits.
Nolan Siegel, a Palo Alto native and IndyCar driver for Arrow McLaren, noted that Formula One’s marketing has set it apart from IndyCar.
“What Formula One did with ‘Drive to Survive’ has helped a ton,” Siegel said. “IndyCar has not been quite as successful on that front; they’ve got their show on Netflix as well, but it hasn’t been quite as popular.”
Some individuals feel that the popularity of “Drive to Survive” can be attributed to the way the show puts its effort into appealing to the American audience.
“In ‘Drive to Survive,’ they’ve steered away from the sport itself to create the drama that American markets want to see,” Wood said.
Some people worry that the interest in Formula One is not centered on the drivers; rather, the drama of reality TV is what has
“Editing is a powerful tool,” Vincent said. “That’s why a lot of older fans aren’t happy with ‘Drive to Survive;’ they feel like new fans are too sensitive. New fans might say, ‘Oh, this driver is so rude!’ when it’s the reality of racing. Older fans are more
aware of that than newer fans, who see it through a drama lens rather than as a sport.”
There is a distinct discrepancy between the exaggerated plot line of “Drive to Survive” and the competitive but athletic nature of Formula One. Tarika Pillay, a junior at Palo Alto High School, highlights this difference.
“If someone starts watching Formula One from the series, they’ll think that the drivers are constantly fighting or contracts are getting terminated,” Pillay said. “They’ll think it’s a reality series instead of just a sport.”
An ex-Red Bull Racing team employee, who wished to remain anonymous for privacy reasons, expressed that “Drive to Survive” is not a complete representation of the sport.
“There is the novelty aspect of it,” the employee said. “At some point it will wear out. Hopefully, by then, you will get excited about watching races, not only the Netflix series.”
However, fans like Elsa Lagerblad, a junior at Palo Alto High School, believe that, in contrast to the dramatized nature of the series, “Drive to Survive” can be a positive force that helps fans connect with drivers.
“I know some people really don’t like [‘Drive to Survive’], but I think that it’s silly, it’s fun and it’s a good way to see more of the drivers beyond seeing them in a car,” Lagerblad said.
This tension between different types of Formula One fans is not only exemplified by differing reactions to the newer fanbase, but, more specifically, the differing reactions to the increase in women who participate in the motorsport industry in general.
Content creation is also increasing the viewer base of Formula One. Ella Coppola, the Canadian content creator behind the Instagram account @TheMotorsportsGirlies, started content creation with a lifestyle-focused account but later began a new page dedicated to creating an inclusive community surrounding motorsports.
“Since I was already posting about my life online, it felt natural to start posting about Formula One, but in a way that is true to me — by combining racing, fashion and femininity,” Coppola said. “In January of this year, my Formula One content went viral almost overnight, with 20,000 women finding me in a few days. That’s why I felt the need to create a new space online, one entirely dedicated to making Formula One friends who also love fashion and beauty.”
Additionally, content creation about Formula One directed at women can help make women feel represented in the com munity and want to participate more in the fan base. Melody Xu, a sophomore at Palo Alto High School, believes that con tent creation is a good way to target new audiences.
“They [content creators] are trying to expose it [Formula One] to a larger audience because a large percent of the pop ulation is female,” Xu said. “It would be nice to have a sport where we can all just come together, regardless of our gender, race or differences, and celebrate engineering and how far we’ve come as a human race.”
While women have existed in motorsports for a long time, the roles they serve in the community have changed dramatically over the years. The ob jectification of women in motorsports has been
• Red Bull Racing • Scuderia Ferrari • McLaren
Aston Martin
Mercedes
Palo Alto High School’s top five favorite Formula One drivers:
Carlos Sainz
Max Verstappen
Lewis Hamilton
Lando Norris
Charles Leclerc
prevalent for decades.
“You would have the race girls at the start with the checkered flags who were in bikinis,” Vincent said. “Women were very much objectified in the racing world, and it was just something that was normal. If you looked at any promotion for racing, Formula One or Indycar, there were always women in bikinis.”
The push to change women’s representation in the sport has emerged in recent years: Grid Girls, who held flags along the track dressed in revealing outfits, were retired from Formula One in 2018.
In recent years, there has been an uptick in female viewership of Formula One races, but as with many fanbases, female fans have gotten a bad reputation due to prejudices surrounding their involvement.
“Female fans are often associated with the ‘fangirl’ stereotype, where they are shown as obsessive, shallow and not bringing anything new to a community,” Coppola said. “In my opinion, this rise of female involvement in motorsports helps to set the record straight, and hopefully, we will reach a future where your gender doesn’t dictate your ability to enjoy sports.”
Maya Stepanova, a sophomore at Henry M. Gunn High School, sees a similar harm produced by this “fangirl” stereotype.
women’s perceptions of one another.
“The women that first came to Formula One were pres sured to fit in with this male view of the sport, which led to a lot of internalized misogyny,” Lagerblad said. “They [female fans] say things like, ‘I watch Formula One, but I’m not like other girls; I watch it for the right reasons.’ I understand why [women say that], but I don’t think that’s productive or helpful to any woman trying to watch For mula One.”
In addition to more female fans of motorsports, there have also been more women involved in the sport, from behind the wheel to behind the scenes.
f1“Watching the races now, every so often, I’ll look at the engineers who are changing the tires in the pit stops, and I’ll notice, ‘Oh, there’s a girl there! That’s so cool,’” Vincent said.
“It would be nice to have a sport where we can all come together and celebrate how far we’ve come as a human race.”
Melody Xu, 10
“I’m a girl, and it is really good that feminism is spreading to the sport, but at the same time, there are people who are sexualizing the drivers,” Stepanova said. “There are some fans that only watch for the drivers that are ‘hot,’ and when they do that, it puts a stereotype on all
Racing organizations are also de liberately attempting to decrease the gender gap in the sport by hiring more women to their teams.
“Arrow McLaren, and McLaren in general, have been at the fore front of that push,” Siegel said. “We have a bunch of women working on the team as engineers and mechan ics, and they’re doing a great job. It’s good to see more interest from wom en in the sport, both from a fan perspective and an en gineer, driver or mechanic per spective.”
This increase in women has made the Formula One fan base significantly more accessible. Since more and more people are watching the sport, they will be further inclined to partic
“‘Drive to Survive’ has been quite a good thing in the sense that there’s a lot more inclusion,” Vincent said. “With the release of ‘Drive to Survive,’ it’s now a lot easier for women to be fans of Formula One. ‘Drive to Survive’ brought the opportunity for women to work traditionally male jobs like Engineer or Head Strategist.”
Since the inception of motorsports and Formula One, the driving itself has been more geared towards men. Suc cess at the highest caliber of racing requires training to begin at a young age. Often, drivers start out on gokarts and progress their skills as they grow, leav ing women behind from the start.
“It [go-karting] seems like it’s not like a girly thing to do at a young age,” Siegel said. “The rea
son there aren’t many [women] at the top level is because there are so few that start at the bottom level — you can’t expect them to succeed without having the experience that everyone else has.”
Amber Slagle, a mechanic for NASCAR and a professional racecar driver, is a rare exception to this trend.
“My mom tried to get me involved in cheerleading and dance and those [traditionally] girly things, but they were just never for me,” Slagle said.
“To have successful women in motorsports, there has to be a push to put young girls in go-karts.”
Nolan Siegel, IndyCar driver
drivers since its founding.
“Right now, there’s one female driver on the [IndyCar] grid, Katherine Legge, who I was teammates with at the Indy 500 this year,” Siegel said. “The most famous [female IndyCar driver] doesn’t race anymore, but Danica Patrick drove in IndyCar for quite a while.”
While female involvement in the Formula One industry has increased and female drivers in other sectors of motorsports have become more prevalent than ever, the only way for permanent change to be made is to ensure that women have support from the very beginning of their driving pursuits.
“To have successful women drivers in motorsports, they have to start at the same age as all the boys,” Siegel said. “There has to be a push to put young girls in go-karts.”
As Formula One reaches its centennial, it’s important to note how far the sport has come since the days of dangerous tracks and misogynistic attitudes. Formula One has become a community for people from all walks of life to celebrate the pinnacle of human speed and innovation.
“It’s a great sport; it’s a great community,” Xu said. “If people want to do something on Sundays, it’s very nice to watch, and you’ll just find it fascinating, as I did.”
design
Text and
by SILVIA RODRIGUEZ, ALICE SHEFFER and AMALIA TORMALA •
Photos courtesy of NOLAN SIEGEL • Art by SILVIA RODRIGUEZ, ALICE SHEFFER, AMALIA TORMALA and LILY WILLIAMS
Drama Inside Inside Drama
Despite past successes, Disney has struggled to replicate their signature magic and wonder
Disney is a platform filled with wonder and creativity, where new shows and animated films open a magical world of limitless possibilities every year. From Hannah Montana living a double life to iconic princesses redefining the meaning of true love and happily ever afters, magic seems infinite. However, that boundless magic is fragile, and much like a cherished childhood memory, it can slowly fade away.
From princesses to pirates, generations of kids have grown up alongside Disney’s magical characters. Since their first film, “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” in 1937, Disney has produced over 130 movies and over 80 television shows. Along with iconic characters, Disney has always promoted the value of fighting for your hopes and dreams, showing characters overcoming seemingly impossible odds.
others feel that Disney is sacrificing magic for money, making duplicates of projects that have made a profit in the past. According to Hollywood writer and producer Gabrielle Makower, monetary incentives have a significant effect on the creativity of studios like Disney.
“It’s the lack of creativity and new voices that I think makes it harder to get a movie made now than any time in history.”
Kyle Newell, Fox Media Entertainment Strategist
“The problem is that Disney is a studio, and these big studios have the … investors’ need to prove a profit, and because these projects from the past have proven to be successful and beloved, they say, ‘Well why don’t we make a third and fourth and fifth and sixth?’” Makower said. “That’s why you’re not seeing anything original.”
With seven eras of Disney, each having its rise and fall, many Disney fanatics like Wendie Geller, a mother of a Palo Alto High School student, have fond memories of the movies that defined their childhoods.
However, while some viewers are still lulled and mesmerized by Disney’s magic,
“As a kid growing up in the 1970s and 80s, I think my perception of Disney was still mostly shaped by all the classic animated movies and the Wonderful World of Dis-
ney TV shows which aired every Sunday evening,” Geller said. “Movies such as ‘Robinhood’ and ‘The Aristocrats’ are titles that have still stuck with me since I was a kid.”
Disney’s classic movies have proven to be nostalgic as the eras change and new animation styles advance. Paly Composition & Literature of Visual Media teacher Alanna Williamson cherishes her memories of watching Disney movies from past eras.
“The old ones are so beautiful,” Williamson said. “There’s something nostalgic when, for example, Peter Pan starts. I feel like I miss more than the art style. I miss the choral [songs] that they did at the beginning of many movies.”
Paly senior Lily Mccue, like many viewers, has been a Disney fan since she first watched the magic unfold on the screen.
“I loved Disney growing up,” Mccue said. “Because they made very kid-friendly movies, me and my sister would watch ‘The Lion King,’ ‘Aladdin’ and many others all the time on car rides.”
However, since Disney entered its ‘New Era,’ including films made in 2018 and later, fans have noticed a harsh change in the creativity and passion they felt before. Kyle Newell, an entertainment strategist and
business developer for Fox Entertainment, believes this discrepancy has been caused by the evolution of how media companies like Disney are currently run.
“It’s the lack of creativity and new voices that I think makes it harder to get a movie made now than any time in history,” Newell said. “A lot of these movie studios are run by big corporations now, instead of individuals like in previous years, so you lose that sense of creativity.”
In contrast, the animated Mulan movie, released in 1998, grossed over $304 million. In today’s dollar, taking into account inflation, it grossed over $587 million.
“It’s not that the animation is bad … the storylines don’t feel authentic anymore.”
Tarika Pillay, 11
In recent years, Disney has also released live-action remakes of several of their older animated feature films, including “Mulan,” “Beauty and the Beast,” “The Little Mermaid” and soon “Moana.” Because of this, many fans, like sophomore Tarika Pillay, feel as if Disney is running out of new ideas.
“[Disney has] just gone really downhill, and it looks recycled,” Pillay said. “It’s not that the animation is bad… the storylines don’t feel authentic anymore. They don’t have a point to them, and they’re not as intriguing or captivating as old Disney movies used to be.”
The assertion that reboots and remakes are released because it makes more money is not necessarily true.
According to Box Office Mojo, the 2020 live-action Mulan grossed $69.9 million, despite a budget of $200 million.
In opposition to this point, the live-action remake of Beauty and the Beast was increasingly more successful than its original version in 1991. The new version grossed over $1.2 billion globally, while the original grossed $425 million ($982 million adjusted for inflation).
strategy.
“Big studios like Disney and others have decided to make less original content that is more risky and go with films that are tried and true,” Loken said. “They know they have made money in the past, and they know they will make money in the future, and that’s why when you look at the movies that are playing in theaters, they’re generally just part-twos or even a re-release.”
disney
As producers sacrifice original plots and continue to remake movies, many actors struggle to make ends meet. Actors don’t get substantially paid compared to other roles in the industry. According to a study of around two million performers conducted by students at Queen Mary University of London, only 2 percent of actors actually make a living through acting
Part of the issue is that the money market of the movies is taking priority over the production choices being made.
“They’re putting quantity over quality, and they’re producing a lot of movies, which is great, but then the quality is just bad,” Pillay said.
Some viewers argue that the reboots leave out important themes and messages that were present in the original films.
“They took out Mushu from the live-action Mulan and gave her the ‘Power of Chi,’ which in my opinion, conveyed the message that she could only be as good as the men if she had this ability, which defeats the whole feminist side of the original movie,” Mccue said
Aside from the fact that rebooting films requires less creativity, it is also a strategic career move on the production company’s side. Actress Kristanna Loken, who has acted in “Terminator 3,” “Boy Meets World” and “Girl Meets World,” believes the change in Disney’s production has to do with business
“One of the biggest problems in Hollywood, and why [actors] went on strike last year, was that there is so much content that’s being produced with all the new streaming platforms that it is essentially watering down the market … so people [actors] aren’t getting paid as much,” Loken said.
There are many actors in the industry looking for jobs and are open to playing and creating amazing roles, but very few get substantially paid.
“The three top directors and two actors together made around $90 million,” Newell said. “That [money] is just going directly into [those] people’s pockets; there’s a sickness within the food chain where the people at the bottom are getting screwed and squeezed out.”
“I think live-action is super cool because it allows real people to be put into Disney movies and characters.”
Aashi Agarwal, 11
Not only are the profits in the film market primarily going to a slim section of the workers, but Disney also must compete against other film production companies for viewers’ attention.
To this day, movies such as “Ratatouille,” “Frozen” and “Tangled” have had mainstream attention since their release. In contrast, newer movies such as “Raya and the Last Dragon” and “Wish” have followed the trend of being “one-month-wonders,” which have
been discussed little since their release.
In a CBR article by author Timothy Blake Donohoo, they specified that “Wish,” the 2023 movie released in honor of Disney’s 100 year anniversary, wasn’t successful among viewers, “with many finding the movie to be a menial version of older, better movies.”
Accompanying the viewers’ opinions, the viewing history and rate of these more recent movies may be impacted by competing streaming services, leaving little room for new movies to grow in popularity before another movie is released from a different platform.
“Not a lot of people are going to see movies and there’s just a lot of competition in the entertainment space,” Newell said. “It’s not just other movies that you’re competing against, you’re competing against TV shows, and you’re competing against TikTok and HBO and all these other forms of entertainment. So studios are less willing to back original ideas because they’re afraid that people won’t go see them, and that’s why they’re rehashing all these old movies.”
Even with this competition, Disney continues to make $88.9 billion every year through their revenue streams. But fans are still not satisfied with recent films.
According to New York Times journalist Brooks Barnes, the company’s stock price dropped after they announced they were planning on spending $60 billion in the next decade on their theme park and cruise businesses.
“They’ve [Disney] made it clear that they really want to invest more in their theme parks and in cruise ships,” Makower said. “They’ve seen the film market decrease and they’re deciding to pump up other areas of their business.”
This decrease in the film market profit due to Disney’s turn of focus to other forms of revenue may be due to new management within Disney over the past few years.
In 2020, after 15 years as CEO, Bob Iger stepped down from the position. He chose his coworker, Bob Chapek, to replace him while Iger himself still remained a part of Disney as a creative director. James B.
Stewart, who wrote on Disney’s management issues in a September 8 story in the New York Times, reported that Mr. Iger and Mr. Chapek worked together on management issues.
“Disney’s board and executive ranks were consumed by conflict and drama just as the company was facing historic upheaval in the entertainment industry,” Stewart said. “Inside Disney, much of the focus was on trying to manage the tensions between Mr. Iger and Mr. Chapek.” Conversely, in recent years, movies such as “Cruella,” “Encanto” and the live-action “Beauty and the Beast” have been a hit or beloved by younger critics and fans.
Not everyone thinks that Disney is going in the wrong direction. Aashi Agarwal, a junior at Paly, thinks the new spins on movies are successful.
“I think live action is super cool because it allows real people to be put into Disney movies and characters and for younger kids who are watching it to be able to see it in a completely different light,” Agarwal said.
Along with new renditions and older classics, Disney has over 100 years of experience with movies, media and magic. They have created and produced some of the most iconic and long-lasting films to this day. Like any business or brand, Disney has had its ups and downs.
“It’s really hard in 2024 to be perfect, and we’re all constantly learning and trying to grow,” Williamson said.
“I think it’s important to be critical of the things that you enjoy and also push for them to grow and be better.”
Text and design by ESTELLE DUFOUR, ABIGAIL KAREL and FALLON PORTER • Castle artwork by SABELA CHELBA and tower artwork by FALLON PORTER
CAMOCRAZE
Paly traditions have evolved over decades but community values remain unchanged
Dozens of kids swarm around the senior deck, posing for photos and excitedly talking to classmates in a frenzy on the first day of school. All of them wear pants with the same pattern, a tradition passed down from years preced ing: camouflage.
Some believe that the tradition of wear ing camouflage pants is to show the status of senior high school stu dents. Palo Alto High School history teach er and 2014 graduate Corbin Dobb believes it’s a tactic to purposely display the seniors’ power as the oldest of the school.
bers feeling this way as a new freshman who was not aware of the tradition.
“I remember the first day of fresh man year I saw all these people in camo and they just felt so much older, and they looked so cool,” Mitz said.
“I remember the first day of freshman year I saw all these people in camo and they just felt so much older.”
Sarah Mitz, 2019 Alum
“You come to school as a freshman and you see all these people who are way older than you dressed like they’re in the army,” Dobb said. “I think that’s an intimidation tactic, or at least, can have the effect of feeling like an intimidation.”
2019 Paly graduate Sarah Mitz remem-
dition was because of the style of popular clothing brands at the time.
“I did have camo pants, and it was because Banana Republic was a brand new store when I was in high school,” Freier muth said. “All of the clothing was very safari-based in its style, which is much different than what it is today.”
“I remember the older students cele brating these monumental moments in their lives — last first day of school, last few finals of high school, last day of school,” McBride said. “It made me so incredibly excited to look forward to growing up, maturing and recognizing that time goes by fast and special moments should be cherished.”
“It made me so incredibly excited to look forward to growing up, maturing and recognizing that time goes by fast and special moments should be cherished.”
As the decades have gone by, the camouflage tradition has grown to be a staple for Paly students to look forward to in their senior year. With that, the style has also tremendously evolved following the modern day styles.
Sam McBride, 2018 Alum
With the years of
Students now wear the camouflage pants with Nike pros and other camouflage accessories, straying away from the 80’s trends. But in years as recent as 2014, there have still been bits of the 80’s trends incorporated into the camouflage tradition.
“One year some students came in [to
participate in wearing camouflage can feel like a reward for completing the first three years of high school.
“I think it’s [wearing camo] nice as something that you earn,” Dobb said. “I came to this school and saw this marker of status.”
While the tradition of wearing camou flage has brought joy and excitement to high school students, some see it as a sign of disrespect to the military members who
the same way that I don’t really feel comfortable with camouflage as a fashion trend in general.”
With opting out of the camouflage tradition, Soberg felt out of place in some situations, but she believes there are other ways to participate for students who share her same view on the tradi
finds the tradition special as a way to cele brate matching with her fellow peers.
“I don’t think the camo is what makes it special but [that it is] something that only the seniors wear,” Mitz said.
“The camo tradition has reminded me of all those special moments with my childhood friends, neighbors and families that were all part of the Paly community.”
Sam McBride, 2018 Alum
Soberg believes there could be anoth er way seniors dress up and still stand out and celebrate throughout their senior year. Howev er, she believes it would take communication and meetings for there to be any action, and that this is sue should be handled by the senior class themselves.
“I would prefer for the leadership to come from within the senior class and not the administration,” Soberg said. “Maybe there could be some sort of vote on alternative traditions.”
Before the tradition of seniors wearing camouflage began, many traditions came and went. 1994 Paly graduate Dona Tversky remembers other senior traditions before the camouflage emerged.
“One thing that we did that you guys won’t have anymore is this thing called ‘the wall,’” Tversky said. “You could only hang out there if you were senior, and it was a really big deal on the first day of senior year, everyone takes it over.”
of all those special moments with my childhood friends, neighbors and families that were all part of the Paly community,” McBride said. “It’s a nice way to look back on my high school years.”
Text, design and art by ELLA HWANG and DISHA MANAYILAKATH · Photos courtesy of CLAIRE CHO, DIVYA GANDHI and ROAN HANEY
CAMOFLAUGE THROUGH THE YEARS
Photos courtesy of IZZY BIENAIME, HAILEY HWANG, SAM MCBRIDE and MADRONO YEARBOOK
ARYA MIN
In her second year of teaching English at Paly, Arya Min has already gained a reputation for fostering a welcoming environment among her colleagues and students alike. Her passion for art extends beyond the language arts, being expressed in the unique form of candle-making.
“During COVID, when I was in Korea, I started to take classes on candle making and these little things called solid air fresheners,” Min said. “They are like scent diffusers, but solid instead of liquid. Ever since taking the classes, it has become a regular hobby for me.”
Scented candles can serve purposes beyond adding to the aesthetics of a room; they even have scientifically proven benefits towards human wellbeing.
“I am a big believer in the importance of scents, since the olfactory bulb is linked to the amygdala and hippocampus,” Min said. “Meaning, a pleasant scent can bring about pleasant memories and emotions.”
As she continues this hobby, she hopes to find a way to expand her interests.
“I love creating these things, but there’s not much [of a] bigger challenge once you are comfortable with working with the different types of waxes and colors/designs.” Min said.
Working with students at Paly, she appreciates the creative escape of candle-making even more.
It’s always nice to have your home smell nice when you grade papers,” Min said.
Paly seniors celebrate their last year by being creative with their cars
CARS AROUND PALY
CATE GRANEY
“My favorite part was being able to do it [car decorating] with my friends I’ve had since middle school. I don’t think that when we were 12 we were thinking about potentially decorating our senior cars together one day. It was a hearwarming experience.”
“When I see other decorated cars around Paly, it puts a smile on my face because I feel really connected to the senior class.”
IZZY BIENAIME
Cate Graney
Lillian Chen
Disha Manayilakath
Izzy Bienaime
Celina Lee
“I was inspired to do senior car decorating by my friends. We decided decorating is a fun way to be spirited and make my final year memorable.”
GRADY McCARTER
SADIE VOORHEES
“My favorite part about decorating my car was watching the sunset while doing it and just overall getting excited for the first day [of school].”
Text, design and art by LILY JEFFREY and DISHA MANAYILAKATH • Photos courtesy of IZZY BIENAIME, HELENA BONDOLOWSKI, CATE GRANEY, ABIGAIL KAREL, KAYLEY KO, GRADY McCARTER, KATELYN PEGG and SADIE VOORHEES
Grady McCarter
WRESILIENCE
Overcoming the challenges of having divorced parents, I share my family’s journey of turning loss into growth.
hen my father left, his struggle with alcohol had become too much to bear. His departure marked not only a turning point in my life and the end of a marriage but also the beginning of a challenge that would shape me, my family and how I view the world. His absence left a void that could never fully be filled despite my mother’s incredible efforts. Father’s Day and parent-involved events were particularly difficult. I remember sitting alone, watching other little girls bring their dads to Career Day and celebrating Father’s Day with handmade cards while I stared at a blank sheet of paper, unsure of what to write. I remember in third grade, we made family trees and I was left with only half a tree to present. Outside of school, family outings to restaurants where I would see complete families always felt like a painful reminder that mine was incomplete. At school, hearing kids in my grade one-up each other by showing the gifts from their dads was gut-wrenching. They let me be the judge so I would still contribute something to the conversation, but I felt more pathetic than if I had just stood there quietly.
perspective TRENGTH IN
Yet, despite the challenges and the pain, there was a silver lining. Growing up without a father also taught me strength and perseverance. I learned to rely on myself to confront challenges without expecting someone else to come and play the hero. My mother’s strength became my own. Watching her navigate the difficult journey of single parenthood taught me the importance of persistence, no matter the difficulty. Her determination and unwavering love held our family together, and I draw from her example every day. She showed me that happiness does not require a traditional family structure and that she possessed a strength far greater than my father ever did.
While I struggled silently with these feelings, my older brother faced his own set of challenges.
“We learned to live without his [my dad’s] guidance, support and presence.”
My brother never showed it, but I could see how deeply it affected him to grow up without a father. He passed milestones without any guidance, learning crucial life skills on his own. I remember watching him sit at the computer, searching for YouTube tutorials on how to shave. He learned how to throw a football from watching videos online and figured out how to tie his tie for Prom alone in his room. My mother did her best to teach him the lessons a father would traditionally pass on to his son and realized she’d also have to see me miss out on more than just Father’s Day celebrations. I would miss moments that a dad was supposed to be there for — like being walked down the aisle, helping me move into college or being my second biggest supporter at graduation.
My father’s absence is a wound that never fully healed, and I still face small everyday reminders. Filling out forms that used to say “parents” but now read “parent(s)” became a frequent occurrence. Perhaps the teachers felt sorry for me, or maybe they just wanted to save me some ink. Regardless, it was a stark reminder that my family was different. Growing up without a father taught me loss before I could even walk, and that loss made me more guarded and hesitant to show vulnerability. This became a problem in my relationships; trust was difficult to come by, and I often questioned the stability of the relationships I did have. I always feared that they too would disappear just like my father had.
As I grew older, I began to view my mother’s role in my life with a deep sense of pride. She was more than just a mom; she was my role model, my biggest supporter and the person who taught me the value of resilience. Her ability to continue being there for every small milestone — from the soccer matches I won as a little girl to pursuing a career in journalism — with nothing but support and encouragement, inspired me to face my struggles with the same resolve. It was through her that I learned to value and cultivate the relationships I had.
Now, as a senior in high school, the term “parent (s)” — instead of “parents” — no longer evokes feelings of resentment. Instead, it inspires feelings of gratitude for the love and strength my family and I have fostered despite the challenges we have faced. My older brother is now in college, and we have both learned to find resilience and appreciation in every relationship we are fortunate enough to have. We have learned to rely on each other when times are tough and when they are great. The loss of our father, though painful, was replaced by the strength we had gained as a family. Piece by piece, we slowly fixed what he broke, and in doing so, we became stronger.
Wherever my father may be, I want him to know that we learned to live without his guidance, support and presence. And while the past shaped us, it does not define our future.
The truth is, growing up as a little girl and watching my dad let his addiction consume him was heartbreaking. I wanted him to get better for us, to fight for our family. But he did not. He let the alcohol win. I will never forget that feeling of wanting him to choose us but knowing deep down that he would not. It hurts in ways that are hard to put into words, and that pain will always be a part of me. But it’s also what drives me to be strong, to push forward and be the best version of myself — because I refuse to let his choices define who I become.
Featured Artist: Exploring Paly junior Aaron Shone’s journey baking for friends, family and fun
The smell of warm, freshly baked cookies floods the kitchen as Palo Alto High School junior Aaron Shone pulls his baking sheet from the oven. With ingredients scattered along the counter and pans sitting in the sink, it’s clear that Shone is well accustomed to working in the kitchen. Out from the oven
parents were away or as a bare necessity, his attitude towards cooking changed when he started making food during the pandemic. Instead of viewing it as a chore, something else seemed to flip a mental switch.
“What was different that [first]
“Sometimes I need to use my brain because there’s math involved, like if I’m scaling up or down a recipe,” Shone said. “If I’m making a recipe that I’ve made 50 times before, like matcha cookies, then I can turn my brain off and
“Baking is an art, and I wanted to do something that was different from what I did at school, [which mainly] focused on math and science.”
develop a new skill; he picked up his bowl and spatula and started baking, and from
“I chose baking because even before I really had a passion for it, I felt that I was pretty good at baking. … it is something tangible and something that I can share with more people,” Shone said. “With baking, it’s something that you can eat, you can share with people and you can make in
Along with this, Shone saw baking as a way to use his creativity and express himself in a new way. After spending his school days immersed in STEM subjects and studying for tests, baking offers a
“Baking is an art, and I wanted to do something that was different from what I did at school, [which mainly] focused on
As an experienced baker, Shone finds baking as a great way to de-stress from
Shone discovered baking can be therapeutic and relaxing. In times of uncertainty, whipping together ingredients and making a few sweet treats gives Shone a helping hand to navigate through his life.
“It’s a stress reliever because school is really tough ... and it’s something to do that keeps me from breaking down,” Shone said. “Baking is
However, Shone started out fairly uncertain about his skills.
“When I started baking, I really wanted to replicate the recipes exactly,” Shone said. “I wanted my things to look exactly the way they did in videos I saw.”
As Shone learns to be more freehanded and intuitive with his recipes, he has grown a lot.
“Recently, I’ve taken
Aaron Shone, 11
more creative liberties when it comes to things I bake,” Shone said. “It’s really important to evolve because you can’t always do one thing a certain way and expect to grow.”
After tossing himself into this new hobby, Shone’s fridge quickly filled with a lot more pastries than his family could handle. With such an overflow of food, Shone and his parents had to find solutions to clear out their kitchen.
eating my food,” Shone said. By 2021, Shone would often drop off baked goods for his friends or bring them to school as people transitioned back into in-person learning to spread some joy amidst uncertain times. His growing expertise with baking has also opened up a world of opportunity to start baking customized recipes for his friends’ parties, events and more.
“Not only did I enjoy baking, [but] I also enjoyed seeing my friends be happy eating my food.”
Aaron Shone, 11
“When I really got into baking a lot, we had too many things in the house … so she started giving them away to her friends,” Shone said. “Then it evolved into me giving [my baked goods] away … and my friends asking me to make stuff that they wanted.”
Although Shone hadn’t intended to start making custom orders, he realized he loved this new opportunity to have a positive impact on others.
“Not only did I enjoy baking, [but] I also enjoyed seeing my friends be happy
Paly junior Arabella Guinle has been a customer of Shone since the beginning of his career back in 2021, and has continued to order from him.
“The first time he baked for me was in middle school, when he made some banana pudding for my birthday,” Guinle said. “That was when he first started getting into baking.”
These initial connections have proved to be long lasting partnerships, as Guinle has continued to ask him to bake goods over the years. For her sweet sixteen in August 2024, she asked Shone to make her a pink raspberry-flavored cake.
“I really like getting him to do all my birthday cakes because he makes it very personalized,” Guinle said. “You can ask him to do specific things and it always turns out really good.”
Ranging from lemon cakes with raspberries to banana pudding, Shone is always open to baking treats for his loved ones. The finished product never fails to amaze his customers, and while their praise and this newfound job provided Shone with a sense of fulfillment, it has also kept him consistent and committed to baking throughout the years.
“I like seeing the cake at the end product, handing it off to my friends and family and just seeing the smiles on their faces,” Shone said.
Furthermore, he often takes inspiration from the Pinterest photos that friends will send him as a reference and improvises a recipe from that for custom
“Some things my friends want are things that I don’t have a recipe for, so I try
something [new] and see if it works,” Shone said.
Life has inevitably gotten more stressful as he’s grown from an amateur chef in seventh grade to an experienced chef as a high school junior, which stirs up periodic creative blocks or a general lack of motivation.
“It [baking] oscillates since sometimes I just don’t have the motivation because of the schoolwork and the stress of extracurriculars,” Shone said.
However, stress and time crunches have never had an effect on his genuine love and raw passion towards baking.
“Once I’m on break, I get motivated to bake again,” Shone said. “People get burnt out, but then they find their passion again. That’s the same case that I have [experienced].”
Looking towards the future, Shone knows there are many different possibilities regarding where he could take this passion. However, Shone is more motivated by the joy that comes with his baked goods over his profits when making custom orders.
“Sometimes I make money for it, but [ultimately] I like sharing my creations with friends, even if I don’t get paid,” Shone said.
Although Shone often finds himself juggling many different, demanding aspects of his life, he never feels like he has to sacrifice baking. At the end of the day, baking will always be the creative outlet he turns to as a way to decompress.
“I don’t have to be a professional baker or a chef in order to pursue this passion,” Shone said. “It [baking] might not be what my future job will be, but it still is something that I hope to do in my free time and also take into my future.”
Text, design and art by TALIA BONEH and DYLAN BERGER •
Photos by TALIA BONEH and courtesy of EMILY TANG
Ingredients:
100 g white chocolate
50 g butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking powder
120 g all purpose flour
6 g matcha a pinch of salt
1. Melt white chocolate and butter together
2. In a large bowl, add the sugar, egg, and vanilla and mix on medium high speed for 5 minutes
3. Add melted chocolate and butter mixture and mix for another 30 seconds
4. Sift the flour, matcha, and baking powder into the wet ingredients and mix for another 30 seconds
5. Bake at 160 C for 13-15 minutes
6. Sprinkle with flakey salt and wait until cool down
7. Enjoy!
on Terror TAPE
horror
films Can reveal and reflect much about modern society
hat’s your favorite scary movie?” The infamous question is a reference to the popular slasher franchise, “Scream” (1996) that exploded in popularity in modern times, blasting horror movie culture into extreme proportions. For decades, horror has captivated audiences by playing on their deepest fears, and it has evolved not just as a form of entertainment, but as a genre that taps into the human psyche and echoes societal concerns. What is it about fear that draws viewers in, and why do people continually return to stories where the lines between reality and nightmare blur?
Although horror films are not considered the most conventional storytelling method, according to Paly Composition Literature and Visual Media teacher Alanna Williamson, horror films can be traced back to the earliest days of film.
“French filmmakers were some of the earliest people to do something with film,” Williamson said. “In one of the really famous ones [French films], there’s this shot
of somebody’s eye getting cut, and that’s one of the first movies in the world. It was focusing on shock, trying to elicit emotions from the audience without sound.”
Classic horror films marked a prominent period of horror, instilling fear in people around the world and defining horror’s early years.
“The classic stage of horror was really during the 30s, 40s and 50s,” Williamson said. “They had the classics: ‘Dracula,’ ‘Frankenstein,’ ‘Creature from the Black Lagoon’ and ‘The Wolf Man’ were [released] during that time period.”
With every passing decade, the direction of horror films are modified. Various subcultures have emerged within the horror genre in recent years, each with something unique to offer. Amidst the constant additions to franchises, psychological films have been gaining traction. Xandra Button, a Masters student at the University of Glasgow studying creative writing, attributes the shift in horror towards the psychological genre to fresh ideas and outlets for imagination.
“There are so many horror movies at
this point that people have to start putting deeper messages in them for them to be interesting to us,” Button said. “We’ve seen slasher movies. We’ve seen movies that don’t have that much depth in them, and it’s been a bit played out. Now, we get movies like ‘Smile’ which have more of a meaning.”
With the shift into different types of horror comes refinement of traditional horror films and the introduction of deeper thematic messages. According to Paly Video Production teacher Rodney Satterthwaite, traditional horror has notable nuances.
“‘Friday the 13th,’ ‘Nightmare on Elm Street’ and those [similar] movies were classic horror movies,” Sattherthwaite said. “They had a clear villain, and there was this stereotype where the villain was unkillable.”
Traditional horror differs from modern horror films, which apply more societal issues into their stories.
“They’ve [horror films] been updated to even include elements such as wondering what it means to be a woman today, and what it means to be a person of color
today.”
Horror movies are meant to feel real, and the societal issues that they touch on or challenge contribute to that terrifying “realness.”
“There’s the mise-en-scène, which would be the way things are produced in the scene,” Williamson said. “For cinematography, it’s camera angles, like the distance of the camera from the subject, [or] what’s in the frame of the camera and what’s in focus versus [what is] not.”
Editing can be utilized to express the themes in horror films as well.
“For editing, you can have choices,” Williamson said. “Do you want things to seem continuous and flow, or do you want things to be more jumpy and feel more out of place? Are you going to use flashbacks and flash forwards?”
Horror films create an uneasy atmosphere through the physical presentation of each scene. There are many inventive choices that horror films can achieve with their music scores.
“I watched ‘Smile’ in the theater, and they [the theater] had a lot of little sounds in the background,” Button said. “Especially when other people in the movie thought that the main character was having a mental health crisis and didn’t believe her, they would put this overwhelming sound that represented anxiety, and it would build up until the main character had these meltdowns, and then it would go quiet again… It just felt like you were waiting for the mo-
ment that she snapped.”
The elements of film production draw people into scary movies and cause emotional — or even physical — reactions from the audience. But why do audiences stay to experience this terror and thrill, rather than run away?
Danger and fear can be exciting rather than repulsive. Satterthwaite claims that humans find the idea of risk without consequences appealing.
“There’s a question of, ‘Why do we go on roller coasters?’” Satterthwaite said. “Why do we do adrenaline rushing things? We want that excitement in our lives, and horror movies are a way to do it that’s not dangerous. If we go skydiving, there’s a small chance we could die. It’s low, but it’s there.
the body, eliciting fear of the unknown and the incomprehensible.
“I’m afraid of supernatural stuff because there’s a fear of the unknown,” Williamson said. “That’s what horror movies play with. There’s always this tension between not knowing and not seeing things, and your brain fills in what you can’t see and what you don’t know. A serial killer, I can fill in the gaps in a really literal way, but the supernatural stuff is scary because it feels so unknown, and my brain fills in like the scariest possibilities. … We’re afraid of what we can’t see. Horror constantly plays with that, and you’re always on the cusp of it.”
“It [FEAR] IS vItal to us... It pushes us out of our comfort zone.”
Aryan Kawatra Film Club Co-president
But if you go see a horror movie, the risk that you’re going to die is zero.”
Each genre of horror accesses human fears in a different way. Gore, also known as the splatter genre, implements horror through graphic violence. Senior Aryan Kawatra, co-president of the Paly Film Club, believes that a gore film’s chaotic yet controlled environment increases people’s interest in the genre.
“Gore brings you into an element that you can’t experience in real life,” Kawatra said. “The violence feels so much more impactful because you feel like there are real stakes in gore … you can remove yourself from it.”
In contrast, the supernatural horror genre, such as “The Shining” (1980) or “Annabelle” (2014), manipulates the mind rather than
The various contributions to the shock factor of the supernatural genre establish a clear difference between the film’s world and reality. Maxwell Allen, co-host of the podcast Horror Movie Talk, believes that the distinction brings about a form of escapism.
“When you’re a kid, there’s lots of things that scare you, like monsters in the dark,” Allen said. “Then, when you become an adult, it’s almost like the things that scare you aren’t very fun anymore. There’s some sort of return to childhood, when you get to sit down and be afraid of a monster for an hour and a half while you watch a [horror] movie. It feels like you get to forget about the things that really are in life, and you get to focus on something mystical or strange or other worldly.”
Monsters in horror films embody modern fears. Through symbolism, real world topics are explored.
“The movie ‘Evil Dead,’ the 2013 remake, talks a lot about addiction and addiction within families, and the symbol they use for that is being demonically possessed,” Allen said. “It symbolizes losing
control and hurting those around you.”
Button notes other ways horror films address viewer’s fears that are often difficult to conceptualize.
“When seeing the trauma represented as this monster that’s coming at you, depending on who you are, that might be easier for you to process, especially if you have mental health issues,” Button said.
With psychological horror on the rise, Williamson believes that the genre reveals the true, grounded fears of the human experience.
ly displayed in red clothing and are written to represent the red wave: the flood of Republican voters in the 2016 presidential election.
“We’re afraid of what we can’t see. Horror constantly plays wIth that.”
PALY TEACheR
“We in society like to villainize those people really quickly,” Williamson said. “But that’s not Peele’s message at all. The Tethered are literally being subjugated by the rest of society and don’t have the resources that everybody else does. And that’s what was happening culturally in the United States; huge groups of people felt
pression, it is crucial to remember the heavy implications their messages hold.
“We need to be more careful about how things are depicted and how the endings may affect peo ple, especially if you’re going as heavy handed as ‘Smile’ does,” Button said. “I can’t imagine if I was having a mental health crisis, and I went to watch this horror movie, and it ended with, ‘Yeah, there’s no hope for you.’”
“The more time that passes in the modern world, the more there is to be afraid of,” Williamson said. “Monster movies aren’t the thing that’s scariest. Now, it’s AI. There’s a lot of real life commentary that’s happening now. The world gets scarier as it modernizes.”
Psychological horror films tackle modern issues, often referencing real events that affected society. Films such as “Us” (2019) directed by Jordan Peele encapsulate this. In “Us,” the protagonist Adelaid Wilson and her family are hunted down by the Tethered: doppelgängers who were created by the government to control their surface counterparts. The Tethered are consistent-
like their voices weren’t being heard, and felt that Donald Trump would hear them, and so they voted for him.”
Satterthwaite believes that many horror movies include social commentary or parallels with current world events.
“If you look at ‘Psycho,’ which is a pretty popular movie, many people will say that even though there are no Black people in the movie, it’s a critique of the Civil Rights Movement and those who were opposed to it,” Satterthwaite said. “If you look at ‘Halloween,’ a lot of people say it’s a reflection of the anxiety of Reaganomics in the 1980s when interest rates were sky high.”
As more horror films begin to delve into serious topics through various forms of ex-
Horror is a double edged sword. When writers are not careful, it can present sensitive subjects in a harsh manner, but it also allows for the appreciation of feelings that typically are not sought out.
“Horror is a great way for us to think about fear, or the emotions of fear in general, as a society,” Kawatra said. “Even though it’s one of the worst emotions we have, it is vital to us. When you get an adrenaline rush, fear creates more room for joy. Fear pushes us out of our comfort zone.”
Alanna Williamson
Text and design by ELLIS SHYAMJI and SOPHIA ZHANG • Art by KAREN ARTOLA, SABELA CHELBA, ELLIS SHYAMJI and SOPHIA ZHANG
autumn
START HERE
You like a cozy night in, and as the weather gets colder, a spooky movie marathon is perfect for you. Try classics like “Corpse Bride,” “The Addams Family,” “Hocus Pocus” and “Beetlejuice” as well as
You are a homebody at heart and love to build things. Put on your oven mitts and incorporate seasonal fall produce into your baking with recipes like pumpkin or zucchini bread, apple pie and pear
Showcase your artistic skills (and relieve stress via stabbing) with pumpkin carving. Pick up a $4.99 pumpkin to carve from Trader Joe’s and don’t forget to put newspaper around your work space for
Take advantage of the autumn weather to tackle one of the beautiful hikes around the Bay Area. Visit one of C Mag’s top sunset spots found on our website, cmagazine.org, or venture further from home edwoods Open Space Preserve or Pulgas Ridge Open Space Preserve, both roughly a half an hour drive from Paly.
Race your friends or puzzle solo through the Bay’s best corn mazes. We recommend the Minotaur’s Labyrinth hay maze at Arata’s Pumpkin Farm in Half Moon Bay or the corn maze at Webb Ranch in Portola Valley for this fun and challenging activity.
You feel most alive when your adrenaline is pumping. Brave the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose, Fear Overload Scream Park in Newark or find one in your neighborhood. Several PAUSD elementary schools also host Harvest Carnivals, so check
You like getting out of your shell while staying comfy. Browse pumpkins to cook, decorate with or carve at the Pumpkin Patch at Webb Ranch in Portola Valley or Lemos Farm Pumpkin Patch in Half Moon Bay. Pro tip: small sugar pumpkins are the best for cooking, while
Key endorsements from influential musicians are reshaping politics in the upcoming election.
music and poli
An election year — for Generation Z, this usually means watching older politicians make promises in stale suits. The vibrant soundtrack of this election year, however, is anything but stale. Easily recognized for its iconic neon green cover, Charli XCX’s newest studio album “brat” quickly evolved into more than a cultural phenomenon.
The political priorities of first time voters were especially impacted by the album drop. Dzian Tran, a pre-law student at UC Berkeley and co-director of the California branch of Gen Z led organization, Voters of Tomorrow, explained the album’s sway on younger voters.
poli
“I think it really energized our generation to see [Harris’] campaign embrace the Charli XCX brat summer, embrace the unification of Kamala [and pop cul ture],” Tran said. “I think it really made us more excited be cause politics can seem to be super daunting and super scary.”
take on a tra ditional top ic opened doors for candidates to engage with firsttime voters. Following XCX’s tweet, which read “Ka mala is brat,” a spark of social media edits arose. Coupling Kamala Harris’ contagious laugh with XCX’s synth ar rangements proved to be a recipe for vi rality.
November primary election, musicians, especially those with large platforms, will play a significant role in influencing voter turnout. Some voters can be swayed by their favorite artists expressing support for a political ideal.
“It’s always a positive when musicians choose to use [their platforms] to educate their fan base and to motivate them to be more civically engaged,” Tran said. “Young people are so excited to turn out to the polls because candidates can be more resonant to their culture and to their identity and what they enjoy.”
Musicians are of
gage them in conscious activism.
“Generally speaking, political movements always have a soundtrack,” Tolles said. “Whether it's NWA's ‘F*** The Police’ addressing systematic racism and police brutality or Springsteen's ‘Born In The USA’ about the disillusionment of Vietnam vets returning home to be neglected by the government.”
“I worry that political divisiveness creeping into every aspect of popular media is dangerous.”
Sean Gustavson, 12
terviews, written press publications
“Generally speaking, political movements always have a soundtrack.”
Carrie Tolles, Founder of TCB Publicity
Carrie Tolles is the founder of TCB Public Relations, a Brooklyn-based publicity company that links the entertainment industry with social causes. She has worked with artists like Billie Eilish, Bon Iver and Grimes to en-
“To see candidates be more per sonable, be more charismat ic and kind of go in on the joke was really nice because it's really resonant to young people,” Tran said. “We also appreciate that with Vice President Harris, she can be both funny and herself, but she's also serious and a really competent leader.”
In the upcoming
If musicians feel compelled to speak out, there are a variety of ways that they can reach their audience in an impactful
“There are so many wonderful organizations that work hand in hand with musicians and celebrities to guide them to speak intelligently about causes that they are passionate about,” Tolles said.
More than ever, fanbases — or fandoms — are influential to issues on and off the ballot. Headcount, for example, is an organization that hosts stations at concerts, festivals and other music-related events.
“Fandom organizing around this election is huge,” Tolles said. “And the amount of people who [register to vote] with organizations like Headcount that register at
her social media platforms simultaneous
es some concerns.
“People are talking about their social life, their dating life and speaking out all in the same place.” Jim Merlis, Co-founder of Big Hassle Media
always will voice their political opinions,” Gustavson said. “Asking everyone to always state their stances on political beliefs and using these beliefs to judge them is not something I believe should be as prevalent as it is right now in our country, and I worry that political divisiveness creeping into every aspect of popular media is dangerous.”
Sometimes, political opinions are driven by the wrong motivations. Jim Merlis, co-owner of music publicity company Big Hassle Media, served as Nirvana’s publicist and worked with musicians such as Snoop Dogg
honest and cited. Although Merlis does not support censorship, he is a firm believer in research.
“Lots of times, I’ll have artists who want to voice their opinion, not necessarily a political opinion, even to support a cause,” Merlis said. “My thing [policy] is that you better do your homework if you’re going to go out on a limb on this.”
Speaking out is never done without risk, especially if someone has a large platform. Artists experience backlash on the regular, even about “uncontroversial” topics.
“I see this as a good thing — particularly trying to get people to vote,” Gustavson said. “However, I worry that people are basing their voting decisions entirely off of somebody who they may have no relation to or do not know and should not trust based on popularity.”
With the increased reliance on social media and its ability to disseminate information, some are concerned that younger voters may be misled by false news.
“We believe people for many reasons,” Gustavson said. “We believe in academics because they’ve dedicated their entire lives to something. But should we necessarily believe Instagram influencers who say we should vote for a certain person? Not necessarily.”
As politics become intertwined with pop culture, figures in the media with large platforms have to become increasingly aware about their stances and how they influence the public.
“Historically, people always have and
“John Oliver on HBO, did a thing about [one of my] bands on tour,” Mer lis said. “He wanted to say that they were carbon neutral because they were planting a lot of trees. I was asked to approve that and I refused to send out a press release because I think it's disin genuous.”
A musi cian’s voice in politics can mean a lot if it is
music and
Currently, Merlis oversees Public Relations campaigns for genre-shifting artists like Kesha, The Lumineers and $uicideboy$. Despite his formidable resume, Merlis has had plenty of difficult situations in the world of celebrity ad vocacy.
“There are risks, and you [artists] have to be willing to take them,” Merlis said. “I’ve had artists raise money for Planned Parenthood and I’ve gotten emails from upset fans saying they’ll never listen to them again.”
Today, digital forms of political engagement can result in drastically different impacts than how musicians have expressed their political opinions historically.
“The interesting thing during the 60s was that advocacy was
However ostracizing social media may feel, posts and opinions can be seen by real people. Whether a post can incite social or political change is undetermined.
“People are talking about their social life, their dating life and speaking out all in the same place,” Merlis said. “Even if an artist’s intentions are good, sometimes their words are not really helping matters. They have to go deeper than [a press release].”
when you come into the spotlight, has a set of followers and a duty [to those followers].”
As a 20-year-old singer-songwriter with over 4,000 monthly listeners, first time voter Elizabeth Wong believes the choice to use a platform depends on the comfort levels of the artist.
and politics
Musicians are bound to lose support for anything they say. Most viewers make their own decisions about who to listen to and engage with online.
“I think it’d be naive to think that if you [an artist] did something that was even remotely controversial, that you’re not going to get some kind of blowback,” Merlis said.
Aashi Jhawer, the other co-director of the California chapter of Voters of Tomorrow and a sophomore at UCLA, believes even encouraging participation in democracy can be an important act.
“I do think that if you have a large platform, it would be amazing if you use that to educate and motivate this fan base,” Jhawer said. “Not necessar ily to endorse any particular candidate, but even just asking them [fan base] to come out and vote. Show them how you can vote and where you can access your ballots."
When musi cians gain popu larity, their art be comes linked with them as a person; their online presence and live shows have an impact on their audience.
“It’s important to use your platform for good,” Wong said. “But I also feel like social media can be extremely dangerous so I honestly try not to discuss much about politics. Voting is import ant and I’ll always encourage that, es pecially during election season.”
advocacy, music itself can still be a platform for expression and change. Within a song, lyrics, motifs, and other elements can convey underlying messages.
“Creating music that puts interesting and thought-provoking music out into the world: that's the most important influence I think music could have,” Rabbit said. “That's the influence I try to have when I write songs. That's the artist I want to listen to.”
Sometimes an artist will feel pressured to do something or be vocal about an issue. This may or may not yield positive results for the artist and their emotional boundaries.
“I think it’s totally up to the artist,” Wong said. “Having a huge platform can be scary and I’ve faced lots of issues even with a small platform, so I don't think anyone with a bigger platform should be forced to post and engage in politics.”
“We also appreciate that with Vice President Harris, she can be both funny and herself but she’s also serious and a really competent leader.”
Music has always been a critical part of American culture and life, and an artist’s impact reflects this integral
“I think one role that musicians play is to share their own perspectives through their songs and what they say publicly,” Rabbit said. “Music is very important in American life, so I think they [musicians] play an important role.”
Starting college, Paly alum and musician Max Rabbitt reflects on his experience being a politically engaged voter.
Dzian Tran, Co-director of Voters of Tomorrow
"I think if it's an artist, their platform was probably built on their music and their musical abilities,” Jhaw er said. “But I do believe that everyone,
“I'm planning to vote; I'm 18,” Rabbitt said. “I just want artists to express themselves and just hear their different opinions because [I think] that music is one of the ways that we hear stories from people with different perspectives than us and
Even with the development of online
Musicians, regardless of their popularity, hold cultural and political beliefs. Whether they choose to share these beliefs or not, their impact is undeniable. For voters who grew up in a world where social media and digital news are the norm, musicians are in the political spotlight more than ever.
Along with her work representing musicians, Tolles has curated philanthropy and public relations campaigns for politicians including Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren.
“Having worked with both politicians and musicians, I see that they are way more alike than they are different,” Tolles said. “Politicians are more punctual but they both have a message that they want to reach the masses with and a way to do so.”
Text by RIA MIRCHANDANI, MAIA LIN and KAITLYN GONZALES-ARCEO
• Design by RIA MIRCHANDANI and MAIA LIN • Art by RIA MIRCHANDANI • Photos courtesy of RIA MIRCHANDANI and MALLORY CORR
Discover tips for bringing charm from the quintessential autumn show into your own fall adventures
study
1. find a cozy spot
Whether your bedroom, a library or outdoors surrounded by fall foliage.
2. create a study schedule
Block out chunks of time to dedicate to different subjects.
3. eliminate distractions
Silencing notifications ehnahces productivity.
fall walk
map your route
Explore a pumpkin patch or your neighborhood.
dress for comfort
Wear layers that will keep you warm while you explore.
take in the sights
Lookout for wildlife, unique plants and beautiful autumn leaves.
watch party
1. select a fall-themed movie
Examples include Gilmore Girls, Little Women and Charlie Brown.
2. invite friends
To enjoy the viewing experience together and create community.
3. dress comfortably
Wear pajamas, sweats, a cozy sweater, comfy socks or other soft clothing.
5. prepare snacks 4. make cozy setting
Arrange pillows and blankets to snuggle up while watching.
Whip up your favorite fall treats to enjoy.
fall playlist
and design by SOPHIA DONG and ELLA HWANG • Art and photos by SOPHIA DONG, ELLA HWANG and IVY LEE
choose a theme use
Find inspiration:think cozy, warm or vintage.
explore varied genres
Indie, neoclassical, soft pop or R&B give chill vibes.
Playlists are perfect for studying, relaxing, walking or hosting listening parties with friends.
Choices include beige, yellow shades, orange shades, red shades, pinks and browns.
Don sweaters, jackets and blazers over your favorite shirts to keep warm.
Hats, gloves, scarves and fun socks add a stylish touch to outfits. Opt for comfy boots, sneakers or platform shoes such as Doc Martens or Uggs.
