Film club hosts Super Bowl ad competition

By Josh Newhook Digital Editor

The Film and Production Club hosted a Super Bowl advertisement contest for dorms and clubs to display their merits last week.

Junior and Club President Truman Kjos said the club, which had put on a film contest some years ago, wanted to get dorms and clubs involved in a new contest.

“We said ‘Super Bowl ad’ to give a feel to it so that people didn’t think they had to make an actual advertisement,” Kjos said. “We wanted it to be a fun contest.”

Each advertisement could be about any theme promoting the club or dorm but had to fill 60 seconds: long enough to develop a story, but short enough not to be intimidating, Kjos said. The prize at stake was a $75 Handmade gift card for first place, $50 for second, and $25 for third. There were six submissions in total: two from clubs and four from dorms and housing groups.

Junior and Resident Assistant Andrew Feiger helped with Simpson Residence’s ad after hearing about it from a dorm mate.

“Little did I know what that meant,” Feiger said. “He texted me asking how fast

I could throw on the white suit, which is a dorm relic passed down to me from Andy Walker. I threw it on, and we started filming!”

Feiger said the best part was the fun of throwing it together.

“Benching in a suit was also certainly a highlight,” he said.

Senior Rachel Warren, head RA of New Dorm, said her dorm takes Homecoming competitions pretty seriously, and that it was no different with this project.

“When Truman said, ‘You have proven yourselves more than capable during spirit week,’ and Colton Duncan said, ‘Niedfeldt is going to win,’ we had to at least participate!” Warren said.

Sophomore and New Dorm RA Marina Weber said she volunteered for New Dorm’s ad because she had some experience from making the New Dorm video for Homecoming.

“The RA team decided to make our ad sentimental and cute, replicating styles of ads we had seen from Apple,” Weber said. “We ended up asking our residents to describe New Dorm in one word, which for some was difficult. The ad ended with the catchphrase, ‘New Dorm. One word just won’t do,’ which we thought perfectly encapsulated how dynamic the dorm is.”

Junior Kenton Baer said really wanting to cash out on the Handmade gift card caused him to enter an ad promoting his home, the Triplex.

“It is a realist depiction of the consumerist degeneration we see in our society today,” Baer said. “I got the inspiration for this ad because it depicts exactly how my house is. If you entered on any given Saturday, the commercial is what you would see.”

Baer said the hardest part of making the ad was convincing his friends that they did not have to act.

“They literally just had to be how they always are: lifeless,” he said.

Kjos said he is working on getting a group of professors to judge the films and decide on the winners. He said he hopes to do an award show in the TV lounge to reveal the winners.

Warren said she hopes this becomes a bigger competition in the future.

“I'm excited to see the other videos that were submitted,” she said. “Homecoming week offers great competition among dorms in the fall, but having something like this as a spring competition was very fun.”

Members agreed the old website had become outdated and obsolete, according to senior and Investment Club President Justin Nater.

“People who are interested in HCIC — whether they be employers, prospective members, or parents — can now easily learn about our club, our philosophy, and our people,” sophomore and treasurer George Accola said.

Senior Isaac Waffle, the investments club’s junior analyst, said the original investment club website did not meet the club’s professional standards.

“Much of the information was out of date, and there were many necessary features missing,” Waffle said. “We especially wanted to have something that potential employers could look at and appreciate the level of professionalism that we hope to carry.”

According to Nater, the investment club needed a professional, organized website for employers, interested students, and current members to easily access data and work with other investment firms in the future.

Sophomore Christian Mancuso, founder of Merica Sites, designed the new website. According to its website, Merica Sites primarily specializes in designing sites for conservative organizations and campaigns.

Member biographies include a professional photo of each club member, along with access to their LinkedIn profile and resume, Waffle said.

The member portal allows members to access the investment club’s portfolio, including various holdings, according to Nater.

Nater said the investment club hopes to extend more opportunities for Hillsdale students to join, and the accessibility of the site will allow students to apply on a rolling basis.

The club hopes to add a networking feature for members and former alumni members to the site soon. This feature will help connect current investment club students with Hillsdale graduates working in the financial field, according to Nater.

The investment club plans to promote various club events, which would provide outreach for members and non-members alike. The club also will promote an upcoming speech and networking event on the website, Nater said.

According to Nater, the Investment Club hopes to introduce a few other changes in addition to the new website, including rewriting its investment policy statement. He also hopes students will be able to become members of the club biannually, as opposed to the current annual basis.

“I think the website is a great opportunity to signal that our club is different than most,” Accola said. “Due to our role in managing a part of the college’s endowment fund, HCIC is a responsibility. We want our prospective members to understand this.”