With the approach of this year’s winter assembly tomorrow during homeroom, it can make you think of the previous ones: the upbeat MCs pumping up the crowd, the  performance of the national anthem, and the several videos. However, have you ever stopped to think how much preparation and work it takes to make the whole event come together?

According to senior Kennedy Anderson, secretary of ASB and video editor for this year’s winter assembly, just planning the videos starts nearly two months before the actual day of the assembly. The class comes together to brainstorm questions and topics for the videos as a whole, bouncing ideas off of one another, and discussing what subjects will resonate with and entertain the viewers. Then several members must volunteer to go out during lunch and homeroom for the next few days to a film sports practices, student responses, and on this occasion lessons on formal confessions.

Once all the content has been collected, one editor must work non-stop to ensure the videos are ready at least two weeks before the assembly, though Anderson has admitted that at times they’d completed the editing as early as the day before the assembly. Despite this, Anderson said if more editors were to work with her it would end up taking longer due to differing opinions on cuts, background music and the like.

Although the work load takes more than a week to complete on her own, Anderson believes it is well worth the effort. “I just want them to be entertained… The purpose of the assembly is to make people walk away from it thinking ‘this is what SDA is all about,’” said Anderson.

After tomorrow’s assembly, make sure to look for the follow up story on the behind the scenes of both the national anthem singer and the MC’s.