Photos courtesy of Li Ruiqi (19A01A) and Rachel Tan (19S03T) from Raffles Photographic Society
As the crowd moved away from the Performing Arts Centre (PAC) towards the dinner reception, smiles were all around and laughter could be heard echoing across the hall. One person in particular, Jiang Jin Liang (19S06N), the head of the planning committee for RBS, could be seen walking around with a look of relief, a stark contrast to his previously tense countenance. Raffles Business Symposium (RBS), an annual event held by Raffles Entrepreneur’s Network (REN) had just ended, boasting an attendance of roughly 100 youths from various schools, all with a common passion for business and entrepreneurship.
The event revolved around a business competition, where teams had to adhere to the theme of Environmental Sustainability and pitch business ideas that were both feasible and innovative. Notable judges for the competition included the Founder of Refash Pte Ltd, Mr Aloysius Ng, Co-founder of Etrican, Mr Dragos Necula, Head Of DBS foundation, Ms Claire Wong-Low, Sustainability Manager for H&M, Ms Wong Xin Yi and the Sustainability Lead for Interface Asia, Ms Karen Lee. As entrepreneurs with already successful startups or whom have had experiences dealing with environmentally sustainable businesses, the judges provided valuable feedback to participants by providing insights into the real world, bringing (grandiose) business plans of imaginative bright-eyed students back to earth and instilling realitism into their solutions. During the Q and A segment of the competition where the judges got the chance to ask the teams questions to implore further about their ideas, they posed prompts regarding the feasibility of their ideas and the challenges of bringing them to life.
Judges sharing their valuable insights with the audience
With the finalists consisting of 1 team from Raffles Institution and 3 teams from St. Joseph’s Institution, the business proposals presented were innovative and eye-opening, capturing the audience’s attention and shedding light on environmental issues that most of us are either unaware of or simply choose to ignore. Team SPARC from Raffles Institution served to solve food wastage caused by cosmetic filtering of fruits and vegetables, where ‘ugly’ produce are thrown away as they are undesirable to the masses. They came up with a unique solution named ‘Sparklecube’, a detergent cube made from these ‘ugly’ produce which would otherwise be wasted. By utilizing enzymes called proteases which are naturally-occurring in certain fruits like pineapples and papayas, ‘Sparklecube’ can break down and loosen stains on clothing, making it an effective cleansing agent. The detergent cubes will also be packaged plastic free to help combat the problem of our landfills being increasingly filled with plastic, which can take up to 500 years to decompose. Especially with our limited land space, plastic waste is definitely a serious issue in Singapore.
Another initiative was proposed by Team Strati from St. Joseph’s Institution, which invented a mobile application called ‘Recycle and Go!’ to instil the spirit of recycling in Singaporean households by making recycling more convenient. Hinging on the root cause of the issue–that Singaporeans are often confused about and find it a hassle to separate their recyclables–the mobile application will be linked to a vending machine that allows the user to deposit recyclables into. After which, the vending machine will automatically separate the recyclables into metals and plastics respectively. The application can even be used to scan the QR code on the vending machine to attain discounts, e-cash and other rewards to incentivise Singaporeans to recycle more often. This initiative aimed to tackle the lack of recycling culture in Singapore and hopefully inspire a change in the recycling habits of Singaporean households.
Throughout the event, the audience listened rapturously, some typing furiously on their laptops to take down valuable information from the talks and presentations. Others decided against copying frantically and chose to instead pay closer attention to what was being shared. Alas, as the last team finished up their presentation, the judges were met with the challenging decision of which team to give the championship title (and the prize of $300 worth of vouchers) to. The atmosphere was tense, as the finalists craned their necks to steal a peek at the judges while they were deciding on their final verdict.
In the end, Team SPARC emerged champions for their well thought-out idea and creativity. The event ended on a high note with a dinner catered by REN, where audience members could engage in conversation and make friends over dinner.
Team SPARC from Raffles Institution victorious after winning first place
According to the Vice-president of REN, Jin Liang, the aim of this symposium was “to gather like-minded young entrepreneurs from various schools to come together and meet new people.” Jin Liang also commented on his experience throughout the meticulous planning process: “There were many things to settle and many details to check [on]. There was no format or ‘model answer’ [to follow] so I had to think on my feet when unexpected incidences cropped up instead of asking others what to do.”
Liew Li Ren (19S03A), the president of REN, also shared that the planning of this event took about a year’s time, as the previous batch of REN members had already started contacting judges and laying out the groundwork since last year.
Indeed, the sheer amount of time and effort put into preparing for this event is a clear indication that planning for this competition was much more complex than one would expect. Despite this, the event was a success with its smooth programme flow and a sizeable turn out.
As lighthearted chatter and laughter ensued on the way to the dinner venue, it was heartwarming to see that at the end of the day, the competition was not about winning, but about meeting like-minded people with the shared passion for entrepreneurship and whom want to spark a change in our world. With environmental issues becoming a growing concern worldwide, it was truly inspiring to hear from these teams their innovative methods to solve these critical issues, while still keeping their ideas practical.
All finalist teams and judges posing for a picture after the competition.
Results:
Second runners-up: Team Strati from Saint Joseph’s Institution
First runners-up: Team Red Blood Cell from Saint Joseph’s Institution
The Word of Mouth search bar. Always handy, always helpful, (nearly) always reliable. But behind the scenes, what our readers key into it is a different story. Here are some of last term’s very best queries, taken from your collective search history. (Vol. 1 | Vol. 2)
Note: Queries posted here are completely unedited.
1. We Faced the Challenge of the Day: to Give Our School a Name
We think it’s safe to say that when Stamford Raffles held the torch, he probably didn’t cast the Promethean flame very far.
TL;DR: LiHo’s cheese tea is surprisingly good, Gong Cha is back. And for some reason, people seem to love asking us about both of these things.
“0% sugar milk tea” – Mar 2018
“liho best drink” – Apr 2018
“koi liho or gong cha” – Apr 2018
“best liho drinks” – May 2018
“most refreshing liho drink” – May 2018
6. Love, Actually
Valentine’s Day has come and gone, but as always, love is in the air. With cuffing season soon upon us, it’s time to revisit some of this term’s—ahem—curious queries.
“is it good to keep underground relationship” – Mar 2018
“why u shouldnt date in jc” – Mar 2018 (If you’re looking to be convinced, here’s a good place to start.)
“having relationship in jc” – Apr 2018
“dating in junior college” – Apr 2018
“junior college bgr” – Apr 2018
“boy girl relationships in jc” – Apr 2018
“is jc the best tkme to date” – Apr 2018 (Depends. But don’t take it from me; take it from the couples we interviewed.)
“dating in jc” – Apr 2018
“any platformnto have guy friend” – May 2018 (Just… go to school?)
“should there be opposite sex relationship among the secondary school students?” – May 2018 (Kids these days!)
“are rgs girls pretty” – May 2018 (KIDS THESE DAYS!!)
7. Does an Apple a Day Keep the Doctor(s) Away?
The quota for medical students in Singapore, despite remaining eye-poppingly low, apparently hasn’t managed to deter everyone. While we sympathise with your plight, medical hopefuls, this probably isn’t the place for the secrets you so frantically seek.
“getting into nus medicine” – Mar 2018
“how to get into nus medicine” – Mar 2018
“who was yong loo lin” – Apr 2018 (Might be wise to find out before you apply!)
“nus medicine interview results 2018” – Apr 2018
“nus dentistry admission results” – May 2018
8. When in Tekong…
“compulsory conscription of women exmaples” – Mar 2018 (Israel, for one.)
“why should women also serve ns” – Mar 2018
“views on females serving national service” – Apr 2018
“debate on singaporean women in army” – Apr 2018
“hate people who chao geng” – Apr 2018
“white horses in ns” – May 2018
“should females be conscripted” – May 2018 (Some think so.)
All I have to say is, we severely underestimated the extent to which Marvel fever would grip the populace. Still, with Black Panther raking in US$7.4 million here, I guess we should have seen it coming. “For Wakanda? Without question.”
“raffles press black panther” – Apr 2018
“wakanda nigeria” – Apr 2018
“wakanda” – May 2018 (Not once, not twice, not even thrice. This was searched twelve times in one month.)
“war rhino black panther” – May 2018 (Unless you’re Okoye, don’t even think about it!)
“black panther rhino” – May 2018
“wakanda from black panther” – May 2018
“rhino from black panther” – May 2018
“black panther image wakanda” – May 2018
“wakanda black panther” – May 2018
“black panther wakanda” – May 2018
“imagens de wakanda” – May 2018
“imagenes de black panther de wakanda” – Jun 2018 (For the record, I love the fact that some Portuguese speaker came to our website, saw the URL, and immediately concluded that this was the best place to find pictures of Wakanda.)
“can knights of pendragon get into the mcu” – May 2018
10. Singin’ the Blues
People, apparently, really love our take on blue-ticking. Although the following readers would probably be much better off taking the advice of one commenter: “Just turn off blue ticks, save yourself and your friends from the agony.”
“blue word with a tick” – Apr 2018
“blue ticking someone” – May 2018
“he blue ticked me” – May 2018 (The brevity of this one makes it all the more depressing.)
“lyrics about being blue ticked on whtsapp” – May 2018
“when they blue tick you and go offline without a word” – May 2018 (This sounds like a lyric from a sad country song.)
“blue ticked me” – Jun 2018
“should i blue tick her” – Jun 2018 (No! Or she’s going to end up searching #3 again.)
“how can i blue tick someone on texts” – Jun 2018
“how to handle blue ticks” – Jun 2018
“what does it mean when you are blueticked” – Jun 2018
11. r/AskRaffles
The last time we collected your questions, you memorably asked if Mr Rollason was still alive. (Which, by the way, he is.) In keeping with tradition, this round of queries did not disappoint, and we’ll endeavour to do the same.
“what is a jc lecture” – Apr 2018 (Basically: we gather in a big hall and try not to fall asleep for an hour at a time.)
“how to sit for sat in singapore” – Apr 2018
“how to get euphoria bts on spotify” – Apr 2018 (As I have been reliably informed, you can’t. You can watch it on YouTube, though.)
“can i do psychology with physics a level” – Apr 2018 (Yep. All you need is math.)
“where to study in causeway point on public holiday” – May 2018
“why dont the people in pasir ris dog farm allow people to touch the dogs?” – Jun 2018
“what are the stages of dance in cca” – Jun 2018
12. Assorted Amusements
I must confess: none of these queries have anything to do with one another. (Y’all search a lot of weird stuff that’s almost impossible to categorise!) But they’re funny, and that’s what really matters at the heart of this arguably farcical column.
“where to hobo at singapore” – Mar 2018
“are ruggers tough” – Mar 2018
“raffles press ugly truth behind” – Apr 2018 (Why didn’t they finish their search, you ask? Because we killed this person before they could expose us.)
“example of conversation between a principal and the assistant principal” – Apr 2018 (I know we’re a school paper, but this is like, oddly specific.)
“what is the meaning of the phrase hustle hit never quit” – May 2018
“how to survive life in singapore proson” – May 2018 (Are you planning to be thrown in jail? We have so many questions!)
“changi airport group scholarship scholarship rate” – May 2018 (Please free us from the Changi Airport queries. Please.)
“other unexpected food courts eg. costco, supermarket, ikea” – May 2018 (Do you, like, walk into food courts not knowing they’re food courts? I’m intrigued.)
“calorie in homaido slamon burger macdonald” – May 2018
“cap wored with suspenders and bowtie” – May 2018 (Steal his look!)
“without faith it is impossible to please god images” – Jun 2018
“mac won’t print to printer” – Jun 2018 (Trust me, we’ve all been there.)
13. ????
“indian group smile png” – Mar 2018
“barefoot everyday” – Mar 2018
“show tourism icons on mind the gap” – Mar 2018
“poker scene cinematography” – Mar 2018
“flying thrown judo” – Apr 2018
“ancient mummy แร็คthor” – Apr 2018
“origami head” – Apr 2018
“paper human head” – May 2018 (Honestly, I didn’t want to say it, but y’all have an obsession with heads that is bordering on unhealthy.)
“poverty shoes” – May 2018
“xxx bload new 2018video” – Jun 2018
Honourable Mentions
Let’s Not Get Irrational
“is h2 math important” – Mar 2018 (Honestly? Not really.)
“is h1 math” – Apr 2018 (You know that feeling when doing math leaves you so numb you forget how to finish a sentence?)
“need to pass m2 to take h2 math” – May 2018
“ri failed math 2 can still take h2 math” – May 2018 (To this poor reader, who queried both of these in quick succession: yes, you can. Just make sure you pass both M1 and M2 overall.)
“h2 math syllabus change vectors” – May 2018
The Perennial Woes of Project Work
“2018 a level project work explained” – Mar 2018
“when will a level result project work” – Apr 2018
“a for pw” – Apr 2018
“is getting a for project work hard” – Apr 2018 (It’s as hard as you make it out to be, basically.)
Friendship is Magic
“sec achool friends and jc friends” – Mar 2018
“no friends in jc” – Apr 2018
“friendship in jc” – Jun 2018
Whoever Just Gave Up, Keysmashed and Hit Search, Because Honestly Same
“syfchvkccz” – Apr 2018
“b3comganguscka_po4bl6s613z_5golpnk8xwv0rs7bngatol6_iwnu5i8rgsxlswakcrftk74avcyqkvh0yrvtyalz8xulss6ssgo3vm4phs9_fgknk-tdxgcq1lguh2ynyw2keayrnwzpz89rahorkfawy77jop5a_wisths2qkgdojzaofls_wdunqnnx1wfsw_3ss4tf4ygj15mlkt3v639uqd4xgdt7hlni-i2f3tboejjlxocfho1ub5dummfhcdrf3w18lk_grhfjoqauxcmzhp8eygfuechgvdcwd7-wty5xwgfi3otlmoms7upyuahk7l2myb21dipvqq” – Jun 2018
“fhf9sdpkwdxqrc34b3a0oibdno6ia2dkmcpyaykuw2w5l1r4fsoaabvh74qrcywkdxrmtadvvqiovx-vokk2snhfa3dvxzjje8ajcag9a_dxjxinfwumnup3ja5cswgtnhmnvdydqn9djcrdhmjg8r-8l68tsm3qsqkx2yetucm5nspv6tgahty5bghdf7l_igh_bnfbp30vjg3hkfbwx0qkizfmla3xs6nlhnuod3v8epmrhz9ve7ql9uasxkggas92g8voepvak6varb6gfadezwatyef9lunvmgxtx7vbnht6o61n16_j7ompnd5ltmuaq6let9cowh9uty0u2a” – Jun 2018 (Yes, this was a real search.)
This article was written in collaboration with Film Society.
Released in 2004, The Incredibles is considered the second hit superhero movie of the 21st century. It came out only 2 years after Spider-Man — the first in the Tobey Maguire trilogy — and right at the birth of the superhero genre. Its themes are common to the genre, but are framed in a unique way, one that remains singular even amidst the past 10 years of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (and the past 7 years of the DCEU….haha).
So, let’s dive straight into The Incredibles, shall we?
In the clip above, we see Helen and Bob Parr arguing about a multitude of things all at once, as most family arguments go. There’s Bob’s late night illegal vigilantism, whether to let Dash compete for real in a race, concerns about having to uproot their lives and move again — all linking back to a divergence in their points of view on superheroes being banned. Bob desires a return to the glory days of superheroes, whereas Helen accepts and is determined to follow the new law. Through this, we see the dichotomy between the past and the present in the world of The Incredibles; between fame and blame, between public approval and rejection; between the desire to prove oneself as exceptional, and the desire to protect one’s family life.
This idea, of the survival of superheroes being contingent on public opinion, is clear in current superhero genre movies. For example, Captain America: Civil War (2016) shows the public turning their backs on the Avengers after the events in Sokovia, while Watchmen (2009) illustrates the rise and fall of superheroes as public opinion changed. But the one thing that sets The Incredibles apart is how it portrays this conflict on a personal level. It’s not about superheroes fighting against politicians and public backlash; it’s about supers trying to carry on with life after retiring, about them finding normal jobs, starting families, going to school.
In the clip above, we see Bob Parr — Mr Incredible — cramming his huge body into a tiny little office cubicle, working an insurance company and getting more and more rankled by the meaninglessness of his job with every day that passes. In his fight with Helen, he projects his own bitterness onto Dash’s races, railing against the mediocrity that he has been forced into, unable to use his powers to their full extent.
The contrast between his current life and his previous one can even be seen in the visual design of each scene. In the above clip, the office is all whites and greys, the blandness of the colouring reinforcing the monotony of Bob’s insurance job. Bob, in particular, is practically bursting out of the confines of his cubicle, constantly hunched miserably over the tiny furniture. This stands in stark contrast to the screenshot below, from the time before superheroes were banned.
The visual design in the above screenshot is composed of high contrast, dark backgrounds, and Bob is dynamic and assertive. Given the personal consequences that the banning of superheroes had on Bob’s life, it is easy to see why he longs for his “glory days”, and would risk his secret identity to continue doing vigilante work illegally.
The Incredibles thus goes a step further than showing us the collateral damage and public rejection of ‘supers’, and shows us how a ‘super’ that once took pride in his abilities and good deeds feels reduced and belittled by the mediocre life he has had to cram himself into. One of the only other superhero movies that comes close to this kind of personal portrayal is Watchmen (favourite movie opening ever), which contains entirely too much macho posturing and mysterious auras to truly bring the message across on a personal, emotional level.
At the same time, Helen and Bob’s differing views also contribute to the narrative of the meaning and nature of superheroes on a more meta level. This is because The Incredibles is about superheroes, but isn’t a superhero movie. Instead, it takes most of the usual themes of a superhero movie and sets it spinning around the idea of family.
How does it do that? The Incredibles presents individualistic superheroism as mutually exclusive to the maintenance of family and personal relationships. Bob Parr’s desire to return to his glory days is also a desire to return to solo vigilantism, and implicit in the actions he takes in the first half of the movie is his rejection of family life in favour of returning to that old life in any way he can. His desire for individualistic superheroism drives him further and further away from his family in the early stages of the plot. In the fight with Helen previously mentioned, we see the two of them standing with the darkened hallway between them (see below).
Visually, it is as if there is a deep rift between the two. Furthermore, at the climax of their argument, there is a break away from the back-and-forth close-ups on their faces during dialogue, with a sudden cut to a full body shot showing the entire living room. The physical context of their argument suddenly enters the picture: this is their home, they are husband and wife, they have children, and they are disagreeing because Bob is unable to let go of his past superhero life to focus on the present, to focus on their family. This outdated, individualistic take on superheroism is therefore presented as mutually exclusive to the maintenance of a healthy family relationships.
Further along in the plot, Bob continues to distance himself from his family, as he chases his old life. He accepts a job offer from an unknown employer to fight giant robots, too elated at regaining some semblance of heroism in his life to even question his circumstances. He lies to his family about his job, money starts appearing out of nowhere, and he grows more confident but less present in his family’s life. The Incredibles even goes so far as to drop hints that liken his behaviour to cheating — Helen finds a strand of another woman’s hair on her husband’s suit, and he has dinner with that woman, making edgy conversation that borders on flirting — framing his dishonesty as an even greater betrayal of his family.
But even if all the above makes sense, why is this idea of family so important in The Incredibles? Again, it could be about consequences and whether they are general or personal. Below is a clip from Captain America: Civil War, where the Avengers argue about whether to sign the Sokovia Accords.
We see no real impact of what they are saying and the conflict is forced, the characters’ mere descriptions of the number of deaths or negative consequences used to make the fluff about principles and justice sound real. But The Incredibles doesn’t do that. It makes the consequences personal, it shows the personal cost of vigilantism in the form of shouting matches and fights at the dinner table.
But even more important than that, Bob’s increasing distance from his family as he pursues his glory days points to the mutual exclusivity of our conventional superheroes’ lives and actual personal relationships. The lifestyle that he chases after is one of the lone wolf, not tied down by family, and incredibly good at his job. (Sounds like James Bond, or Ethan Hunt in Mission Impossible, right?)
Similarly, in popular culture, being a superhero has always been something very individualistic, necessitating a lonely lifestyle. Superheroes are often without family, close friends or romantic interests (that are not dead and/or not used as fodder for characterisation of the hero). Their personal relationships often seem more like mere plot devices than any real attempts to show their connections to something other than their righteous sense of justice.
As a result, superheroes gain our approval through their substantial personal charisma instead — think Tony Stark, Batman, Thor, Captain America. Discounting ensemble stories like the Avengers (which are entirely different), these arcs often end with the individual triumphing over the villain. In contrast, The Incredibles presents us with this reconciliation:
Bob’s family chases after him, even as he distances himself from them, and their story ends with a family becoming closer, instead of an individual triumphing over a villain. This is a superhero story embedded into the story of a family, and not the other way round — as has been the case with most other superhero families, particularly those found in the comics.
The Incredibles shows us that superheroes can be so much more than what we’ve been seeing at the movies till now. The Incredibles came out long before the rise of the MCU, before superhero movies became the lucrative genre. Brad Bird only had superheroes from the comics to go off, but as of now no one has matched the sheer relatability of his portrayal.
Of course, Pixar and Marvel Studios make very different movies — Pixar has a penchant for personal, emotional connection, and Marvel’s heroes are less relatable, more like action figures come to life. But there is potential. Thor: Ragnarok showed that it is possible to create relatable characters and relationships, with its easy-going comedy and realistic friendship between Banner and Thor, as well as the brotherly angst between Thor and Loki. The industry right now should start relying less on that safe template of a popular superhero film, made up of witty one-liners, a dash of funny dialogue, sweeping statements about values and justice, but nothing more than that. Creating something real means taking risks. And if this industry can bear to take those risks, superheroes can start taking on more meaning, and really reflect how much humans can achieve while still being human, and while still having realistic relationships with others.
The Incredibles is thus distinct in the superhero genre, because it takes familiar tropes such as public resentment and pretending to be normal, and puts them in the context of a family, something that is almost antithetical to the portrayals of superheroes we usually see. It shows us that superhero stories can be heartwarming and personal, and that there is still much to be explored in this genre.
By Zacchaeus Chok (18S03O), Elizabeth Leong (18S06G) and Ling Young Loon (18S07A)
Game theory is hard to pin down. It originates from a fascinating line of economic thought, but feels more like a branch with its own roots. The H3 game theory module stands under the shadow of economics, but truthfully, the concepts of the subject stretch way further. The umbrella of game theory ponders over all of academia, spanning political science to evolutionary biology.
Nevertheless, the H3 programme at Singapore Management University (SMU) is taught with an economics slant and a bold mathematical undertone, seasoned with actual ‘games’ which we play in class. It is an esoteric mix: a class that involves differentiation, oligopolistic pricing, and dice rolling fun — all in a series of three-hour sessions. Think you’re game for that? Read on.
What class is like with the Professor
Dr Massimiliano Landi
Professor Landi is genuine, earnest, and humorous, often poking fun at others. Or at his own Italian accent. He is an outsider to the A Level syllabus, but he makes every effort to make sure you catch up with what is being taught. The Professor’s classes are moderately paced but intensely thought provoking, and are sure to be enjoyable.
What is taught?
The course outline is structured according to the textbook Games of Strategy. Content may be divided into two parts: techniques and applications. “Techniques” refers to basic concepts and computation methods that you must know to explore the world of game theory. For this course, we focus more on the general techniques. These include computing Nash Equilibria from a given game (i.e., given a set of game rules, actions and their consequences, how will all players act to maximise their own utility?) and analysing games of information asymmetry.
Later on, we move on on to applications of these techniques, such as in auctions (yes, auctions are just another type of game!) Of course, this will probably vary in the coming semester, but the bulk of the content will likely be as we described.
How advanced is this compared to H2 Economics?
Perhaps the only overlap in syllabi is that of a firm’s pricing strategy. From there, Game Theory picks up and delves into the precise quantitative aspects of such games in the business world, among many other random applications (such as sports and card games). Other than that, Game Theory does not really seem to be hardcore economics, but rather a mathematical framework designed to analyse strategic thinking. Most of the coursework involves calculations, with technical explanations requiring the use of jargon as opposed to the qualitative explanations in essay-writing at the H2 level.
For instance, in H2 Economics you would learn about price competition versus collusion amongst oligopolistic firms. In Game Theory, from a set of hypothetical equations that relate a firm’s supply and demand, you will mathematically calculate how these oligopolistic firms decide prices under conditions of collusion versus competition. Later on, you will learn the conditions required for firms to continue colluding indefinitely.
An example of a question you’ll probably do during your time in Game Theory.
In an intellectual sense, Game Theory is a step up from H2 Economics, as much of the content requires deeper thought processing than the relatively intuitive content of H2. If you appreciate the mathematical modelling of real-life situations and the careful analysis of such models, then Game Theory is for you.
How does this compare to H3 MOE Economics?
The million dollar question for all economics students. MOE’s H3 closes only in early December, where students sit for their final paper. Game theory is more succinct; students complete their final paper by May. Also, you get to mingle around with people from other schools, and attract confuzzled stares from twenty-oners when you tap into their SMU library.
There might be a small overlap between the two subjects as well; the MOE H3 touches on Game Theory as a model to analyse firm-level interaction. Still, as its name suggests, Game Theory tackles the full range of games with great depth.
H3 MOE Economics, similar to the H2 variant, emphasises qualitative analysis in essay-writing and case-study questions. The mode of assessment in Game Theory, however, is akin to a mathematics paper.
Is the course more suited to Arts or Science students?
Game Theory comprises a good deal of mathematics (see the next section for more exact information). A Science student would have more exposure to using mathematics in contexts outside of pure math, because of all the calculations required in Physics or Chemistry, and thus may have a slight advantage. But it truly is up to the individual, and Arts students can do just fine here, especially with a solid mastery of Mathematics.
Am I good enough to take Game Theory?
A good grasp of mathematics will be incredibly helpful, since more time is devoted to what all the math means in an economics context, rather than to the actual mathematical concept itself. No calculators are allowed in this class, but the arithmetic will not be complex. The required differentiation is simple, too – easy-to-understand examples will be given in class. You will only need to know enough integration to calculate the area underneath a graph.
Some probability concepts will be required, but you will be learning these in H2 Math around the same time it is taught in Game Theory anyway; these include concepts like distribution functions and Bayes’ rule. You should also be able to interpret graphs without an excessive amount of effort, and be comfortable with drawing linear graphs from equations. If axes or handling multiple variables confuse you, you will have a slightly harder time.
In short, as long as you have the hunger for some intellectual rigour, coupled with the palate for highly quantitative (and rational) thinking, go ahead.
Is the workload manageable?
Game Theory demands a lot of independent thinking. With the limited time available, the professor covers the general concepts and leaves us to figure out other components (which are unfortunately testable too). However, with the aid of the textbook, and the poise of a strategist, you will become more comfortable with the thinking soon enough. Professor Landi often encourages us to use Game Theory concepts outside the classroom – doing so will probably help you adjust to this mode of thinking more quickly, too.
This course is highly manageable, homework-wise: we had a grand total of four short assignments in the same number of months.
Practical advice
Do borrow the textbook. It is the 2014 edition of Games of Strategy by Avinash K. Dixit, Susan Skeath, and David H. Reiley Jr. Be sure to read the chapters in the middle (say, chapter 5, 6, 7, or 8) to find out what you’re truly in for, as the earlier chapters are comparatively and deceptively easier.
If you do get into the H3, read the relevant textbook chapters either before or after class. The Professor follows the textbook very closely, down to the examples given in them. Also, get a larger (A4) notebook. You will likely want to take notes, and they will sometimes involve drawing rather large diagrams.
In conclusion
Provided you have the interest in this subject and the correct attitude, Game Theory has the potential to be a very enriching experience for you. We wish you all the best in your efforts to get into the programme if you desire to do so.
By Mabel Yet (19S03Q) and Varun Karthik (19S06A)
Photos courtesy of Kathryn Oei (19A01A) from Raffles Photographic Society
In a perfectly ordered universe, we would hop out of our beds each morning at the keen ringing of our alarms. We’d buzz with energy as we attend all of our lectures and produce top-notch grades almost effortlessly. And we’d never break or buckle even under mounting pressure.
On the surface, it seems like everyone has got their act together, as we are expected to have. Having been blessed with so many privileges–from having a proper education to not having to worry about your next meal–it’s only expected that our lives ought to be impeccable and Oh So Wonderful. Yet, it is these expectations that have shrouded the difficult topic of mental health in shadow.
Interactive booths set up along the canteen walkway to prompt students to initiate conversations on mental health.
In a bid to shed light on mental health disorders and encourage the school population to take care of their mental health, Raffles PHP (Peer Helpers Programme) organised Mental Health Awareness Week from 23-27 July. Through sharing sessions, goodie bags, and interactive booths that lined the canteen walkway, students got a glimpse into the lives of sufferers of rarer mental health disorders and were reminded of the importance of being kind not only to others, but to ourselves as well.
Interpersonal connection
Since entering JC, many have lamented that it’s become increasingly difficult to know someone on a deeper level. Friendships, left to the test of time and unforgiving busyness, seem to have been reduced to ‘hi’s and ‘bye’s (exchanged ritualistically in a span of five seconds, no more no less) as we hurry off to our next commitments.
“Though everyone’s all caught up with their own lives, it’s important to have people you have a deeper connection with,” Rama Venkatesh (19S03Q) commented, “Otherwise you’ll end up keeping everything to yourself.”
Through conversation cards and a photobooth, Interpersonal Connection urges us to strive to forge authentic connections with their friends. These cards remind us to spend ‘real’ quality time with others, to actively engage with and listen to them to show that we care. And in a school where everyone seems to be caught up in their own lives, it’s especially important for us to keep reaching out. We promise it’s worth the effort.
A Touch Journey
An explanation of various stress-relieving methods.
It’s convenient to associate others’ stellar grades with just intelligence, hard work and discipline, to assume the route to such flourishing success is smooth-sailing and free from adversities. Yet, it’s important to realise that no one’s lives are as simple as we think. Whether we are battling with relationships, academics, hardships or with ourselves (or all of the above), we all experience stress at some point or another, and have to find avenues to let them out.
“As our theme is ‘feel’, the first thing I thought of was [our sense of] touch,” Peer Helper Teo Jun Hua (19A01A) quipped. “We wanted to do something more experiential that can promote mental health, while being more physical at the same time.”
Indeed, with boxes of bubble wrap and recycled magazine pages free for us to wreck, A Touch Journey brings us through (hopefully) surefire ways to release our pent-up frustration.
“The Paper ‘Tear’-apy was especially well-received,” Jun Hua conveyed. Inspired by Singapore’s first ever rage room (where participants can smash things to their heart’s desire for a much-needed anger therapy), the idea of ruthlessly tearing up magazines definitely drew crowds, evident from the box brimming with scraps of discarded paper.
Besides the above methods, the booth also suggests doing yoga and breathing exercises to relieve the tension in our bodies. While they might not automatically take your problems away, taking out time for yourself clears your mind. Especially in our daily hustles, knowing when to take a breather is especially crucial — don’t beat yourself up over it.
ASMR (Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response)
Most people have some idea what ASMR is about, or at least they think they do. They might have seen a playlist on Spotify or heard one of their friends casually drop the abbreviation during a conversation. However, as much as the term ASMR has became a buzzword, the unfortunate reality is that most people do not know what ASMR actually is.
This gap in knowledge is what the posters attempted to fill by educatingvisitors about what ASMR really is, the sources of ASMR and its purported benefits. It also aimed to inform visitors about the tangible ways one could use ASMR as a form of stress-relief. This was accompanied by an interactive booth consisting of slime, synthetic clay and cloths (amongst others), where they attempted to stimulate and give visitors some of these alleged ASMR “tingles”.
Stick your hand in to get some ASMR “tingles”, if you’re lucky.
“Our objectives were to introduce the school population to ASMR audios as an outlet for stress relief and also conduct a small experiment on whether students did actually get the physical ASMR sensation!” Rayna Mak (19S03O) explained, “What many people don’t realise is that ASMR can actually act as a healthy form of stress relief, so we wanted to make the benefits of ASMR more well-known in school.”
As for the effectiveness of the project, the writers were listening to a newly discovered ASMR playlist on Spotify as they finished up this article. Give it a try and let us know if you get any of these purported tingles.
Project Love Yourself
The ‘bad’ mirror, which reflected the disparaging thoughts of someone with negative body image.
‘Why do I not have clear skin? I hate how I look. Why are my thighs so big?’ These were some of the things scribbled on the ‘bad mirror’, which reflected the self-deprecating thoughts of someone with negative body image.
How often have such thoughts crossed your mind and lodged themselves there? How many times a day do you mirror-check only to feel even more dissatisfied with how you look? Whether consciously or unconsciously, rarely do most of us get through a day without criticising ourselves. In our pursuit to reach a warped ‘ideal’, we neglect to embrace ourselves for who we are, instead choosing to pick apart our flaws and compare ourselves with everyone else.
“Everyone has experienced bad days when they think they don’t look good enough,” Peer Helper Pavithra (19S03A) shared on the motivations behind choosing to do this topic. “But it isn’t talked about enough.”
Though females are more commonly associated with having negative body image, men face increasing pressure to ‘look perfect’ as well (and to have hyper-muscular psychiques, despite how everyone’s body is built differently). “[Through our project,] we want to show that guys face such issues too,” added Peer Helper Samyuktha (19S03A).
But all hope isn’t lost. Opposite the ‘bad’ mirror is the ‘good’ mirror, where students were to write something nice about themselves. This activity reminds us to be kind to the body we inhabit, to shift our focus from our perceived flaws to the things we are capable of doing instead. After all, you are your own kind of beautiful.
Project U and I
Undertaking an issue that Rafflesians are probably extremely familiar with poses its own set of risks and challenges. Yet, this group boldly broached the topic of Failure, one that is close to the hearts of many. After all, it is a problem that almost everyone has had brushes with. Each one of us has had varying experiences and thus opinions.
The message of their booth was simple: Given both the prevalence of failure and the fact that failure is something very personal to an individual, we should constantly remind ourselves and our friends that our failures do not determine our worth or how good we are.
Besides the booth, the team also organised a sharing session on 25 July. In a small and intimate group, all attendees were engaged by the speakers in a free-wheeling conversation about failure. Experiences were shared and bottled-up emotions were vented. But most importantly, the event got the attendees to look at failure in a different, more nuanced light.
Mr Chin Sun Yih, an old-boy from the batch of 1982, kickstarted the session with the lessons he had learnt about failure throughout his life. From retaining a year in JC to having to shutter his business after 10 years, and having to tirelessly work his way up and eventually thrive in his new field, his story was captivating and inspired us. His advice and take on failure also resonated with many.
He was followed shortly after by Mr Wahid, a GP relief tutor and also an old boy, who shared his own JC experiences from the not-too distant past. Lastly, Jing Rong (18A03A) wrapped up the first half by sharing about her unconventional schooling life and her unique perspectives towards failure in the education system, or really, various education systems spanning multiple countries and multiple schools.
The second half took the form of a discussion where all the participants shared their own experiences dealing with failure and the lessons they had learnt from them. Participants were given the opportunity to hear a multitude of opinions and thoughts, encouraging them to reflect anew upon their own setbacks.
When asked about how the sharing session went, Charis Ng (19S03B), who is part of Project U and I, wittly remarked, “We don’t know if it was a failure or not. But if it was, it doesn’t matter — it just proves our point.”
Synesthesia: Uniting the senses
Have you ever wondered how it would be like to be able to taste sound, see scents or smell colours?
Booth explaining the abstract concept of Synesthesia.
Synesthesia is a neurological condition where people experience “crossed” responses to stimuli. For example, associating words with taste or sounds with colours. For most people unaware of this condition, it sounds rather abstract and mind-boggling, leading to a lack of empathy towards synesthetes because it sounds like they’re just ‘making it up’.
In an attempt to shed light on this rather obscure neurological disorder, this booth explains how living with synesthesia can be emotionally trying, especially when his/her peers are less than understanding. However, many regard their condition as a gift instead — a stark example being that of Melissa McCracken, who translates the sounds she hears everyday into spectacular artworks.
As an artist with synesthesia, Melissa McCracken uses her gift to ‘paint music’. Source
Through an exploration of this unique neurological condition, students managed to get a glimpse into the stimulating world a synesthete navigates daily, evoking both empathy and admiration for the synesthetes scattered among our population.
ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder)
Most of us have heard the term thrown around so casually that we might have become desensitized to it. Yet, we fail to realise that ADHD is a real mental disorder affecting many in our midst.
Given that statistics show that 1 in 10 school-aged children are affected by ADHD, what are the odds that one of the children you have interacted with while volunteering or one of your friend’s younger siblings have this condition? In spite of this, we persist in painting all individuals with ADHD with broad stereotypes and hasty assumptions. This very trend is precisely what the group in charge of said booth is trying to reverse.
When approached about his group’s project, Andrew Lau from class 19A01B shared that his group “wanted to raise awareness about ADHD, especially since [they] felt it was a term thrown around without much understanding of what it exactly constitutes.”
While their booth might not immediately shatter all stigma attached to ADHD, it does educate students and get them to reflect upon their own words and actions. Hopefully, it also acts as a starting point for difficult conversations and discussions about a condition that afflicts many around us.
Heart on My Sleeve
Heart on My Sleeve aims to get students to be honest and open about their feelings.
Borderline Personality Disorder: we all know the meaning of these three words individually, but our knowledge ends when you put them together. In order to create awareness for this rarer disorder, this team characterized the symptoms and signs of BPD, as well as shared about the various ways to manage BPD.
Students were also encouraged to write down their feelings and stick it on their sleeves. “[We aim] to get people to be honest with how they feel and express it,” Peer Helper Ying Ting (19S06F) explained.
Learning about BPD is very different from learning to identify signs of BPD in those around us, or even in ourselves. Being well-informed about the condition might not adequately prepare us for a situation where someone we know personally suffers from BPD (which is more likely to occur than we allow ourselves to believe). Nonetheless, this is a necessary starting point in creating awareness for a prevalent yet often ignored condition.
Remember that your feelings are validated—be honest with yourself about them!
While such awareness campaigns can fill in the gaps in our knowledge of mental health and encourage us to think more deeply about ourselves, our surroundings and our actions, there is only so much that can be brought across in one week.
Having difficult conversations about mental health requires every one of us to be open-minded and engage one another in a mature and rational manner. Though we can never completely shatter the taboo around mental health disorders, we can be more conscious of our actions and understand the weight our casual comments hold.
In the end, it boils down to every one of us. In the midst of our relentless pursuits, let us not forget to reach out to the individuals around us—we’d never know much it’ll mean to them.
PW Oral Presentations were at full throttle on November 6th. The first few victims had already gone through the ordeal while the rest braced themselves for their impending doom. Throw in Deepavali and the nail-biting Arsenal vs Liverpool match that had just ended, and you might be excused for forgetting that the ‘leader of the free world’ returned to the polls on November 6th.
The midterm elections that happened in the United States of America were quite a big deal, to say the least. Americans returned to the polls to choose their senators and their congressmen and women, as well as state senators, state representatives, governors, and a whole range of other ballot measures, as the world closely watched the first real test of President’s Trump popularity.
But elections are a lot more than the action of voting to choose who leads the country and who represents you in government. Elections are a period for citizens to think about their vision for the country. The election rallies, the vote canvassing, the dinner-table discussions, and more recently the interactions that people have with their fellow citizens across the country on social media (and at times with KGB agents in the Kremlin), are all arguably as important, as elections are about informing voters about various issues, engaging them to decide which issues they prioritise and which policies they deem necessary. Discourse, debate and discussion play a fundamental role in the electoral process and are vital in harnessing the full powers of democracy. Thus, the midterm elections were a display of the state of discourse in America.
The road to November 6th began early, with potential candidates launching their bids starting mid-2017. Many Goliaths were slain in the first round of battles as incumbents fell and insurgents pulled up ahead in the primaries. Even Godfathers like Andrew Cuomo were forced to work for their lunch, the opportunity to decimate real flesh at the polls in November. However, the actual election night did not have as many surprises in-store. A divided country delivered a divided verdict that gave no easy answers and instead the results were a stalemate that disappointed both sides. The only consolation was that the nightmare of 2016 did not repeat itself for Democrats and that the blue wave never came for the Republicans.
As the nation reels from the euphoria, optimism, cynicism and discontent characteristic of the campaign trail, and the sobering reality of having to legislate in the grid-locked Washington sets in, here are some broad lessons about discourse that we can take away that are very much applicable to us here in Singapore.
“When they go low, we go high,” Michelle Obama said at the Democratic National Convention in 2016, a simple yet elegant line that was the embodiment of what her husband and his presidency stood for. It was an inspiring and rousing speech that salvaged a convention headed south, threw jabs at the then-presidential-candidate Trump and had the world on its feet applauding.
Eric Holder, the former attorney general under the Obama administration, however, was less restrained. “When they go low, we kick them,” he said to thunderous applause, before going on to say that “that’s what this new Democratic party is about”. The best part? Suggesting some sort of physical altercation with President Trump, and at times his family, happens to be a recurrent theme of speeches made by various individuals from former Vice-President Joe Biden to president-wannabe attorney Michael Avenatti.
Clearly, Mrs Obama and Mr Holder have different ways of countering a man that they see as the antithesis of Barack Obama. One was able to inspire people of all colours and creeds, appealing to their higher sensibilities. The other further energized those who already live and breathe the democratic party’s blue in the same way that joker in class would, much to the teacher’s dismay.
But this is not merely the competing vision of two individuals. This is a manifestation of the much broader fight to capture the soul of the Democratic party in the Trump era, where civility has no place in the Republican party. The question is if the Democrats should be the adults in the room and hold themselves to higher standards, or fight fire with fire.
The old guards of the party insist that their duty is to not stoop to the new lows of the Republican party and to not hijack discourse with ‘sick burns’. They feel that they are obliged to tell people what they need to know and what is important for them, not want they want to hear. To them, the evolution of the Republican party or Mitch Mcconnell or the president’s tweets are no excuse to throw out the discussion of policy and issues that voters care about, laced with messages of hope, change and a brighter future ahead. In fact, true leadership, they contend, is when you stick to doing what is right even when times get rough. And so, when Mr Obama returned to the political scene and fired up crowds at election rallies for various candidates, it was with his trademark themes of bipartisanship, hope and idealism with calls for decency and civility.
For the more radical democrats, times have changed and the party has to change with it. Evidence and logic is no longer the weapon of choice of the Republican party and the deck is stacked against them if they choose to fight a party unmoved by lies, truth, evidence or science. Because logical discussion of policy and statistics will never capture as much attention as flashy one-liners and personal insults. There is simply no way one can extinguish the flames of xenophobia or hatred with cool-headed discourse. There is no way to disprove a personal insult and win the hearts and minds of people with civil discussions, luxuries only academics can afford.
Thus, the only way forward is to get into the dirt-pit and brawl with your opponents – reflected in their uncompromising tone, forceful rhetoric and headline grabbing insults. They believe that democrats should show no restraint and should not be vary of calling out specific individuals in the strongest language possible even, if it risks drawing the ire of some people. Because in this political era, that is the only way you can effectively counter the fear-mongering, xenophobia and the racism that has become a mainstay of even moderate Republicans, not with carefully worded PR approved rebuttals. Appealing to people’s higher ideals is no longer viable or practical in today’s climate. Or so they claim.
Beyond the fight for the soul of the Democratic party is a question for all of us closer to home. How do we engage in discourse with people unwilling to engage in rational discourse on the basis on logic, evidence and reason?
Just find any Straits Times article on any substantive issue of any kind and read the comments section on Facebook. For illustration, not too long ago on 24th October 2018 came an article covering a speech by minister Ong Ye Kung, centered around him reaffirming his belief in meritocracy despite a few tweaks that needed to be made. An article about class divide, social stratification and economic inequality – a hot topic as of late. The comments on the post included “Many wayang shows despite the end of the hungry ghost festival” , “Where to buy parachute?” and even a couple of mentions about communism.
So, what do you do when you see fellow Singaporeans make baseless attacks on people and are more interested in dishing out insults rather that discussing the issues at hand? Do we continue to do what we believe is right and engage in substantive arguments about the issue at hand, pointing out certain inherent biases and logical loopholes that might be present in the comments of others and the article itself? Or do we weaponize the same personal attacks, cheap jokes and offensive remarks, give them a taste of their own medicine and take them down?
There are no easy answers to this question, but it is something we need to discuss now, so that society is able to have important conversations on a plethora of social issues and policies without discourse being hijacked by people disinterested in having them.
Neither faction of the Democratic party outperformed the other at the polls, and hence we will have to wait to find out who the new leaders of the party are and wait even longer to see the impacts of the decisions they make. Either way, the new leaders of the Democratic party and the newly minted representatives will quickly learn that both sides have a legitimate claim and that there are no easy answers to this tough question. But the lack of easy answers is the very reason why this debate exists.
One of the most hotly contested races was the one between Senator Ted Cruz and Beto O’Rourke for the opportunity to represent Texas in the senate. The race garnered national attention for the serious effort O’Rourke put up for a seat considered to be a Republican stronghold. From the fundraising records by the congressman solely on grassroots donations without money from PACs and lobbying groups, to the fawning profiles by every major publication in the country, Beto O’Rourke quickly gathered much momentum early in the race. With the seat no longer within safe reach, the incumbent Mr Cruz’s come-back line was: “Beto O’Rourke is too liberal for conservative Texas”.
Not an attack on his political positions. Not an attack on anything he said, did or was going to do. But simply, the mistake that Beto O’Rourke committed was being liberal. That was the insult. The word “liberal” was the insult.
It is a fact that most politicians vote a certain way on most policies and hence labels simplify this, informing the average voter the general stance of a candidate. Democratic candidates tend to support certain issues and Republican candidates have a different stance on other issues based on certain ideological differences. Labels like Socialist, Liberal, moderate, right-wing, nationalist and conservative make the general stance, ideology and policy positions of a candidate known to the public.
However, the keyword is general. General stance and general ideology. But these labels do no justice in accurately reflecting the true positions of many of the politicians. These broad labels do no justice in differentiating Bernie Sanders from Hillary Clinton, both democrats and yet people who definitely do not see eye to eye on various issues. These broad labels do no justice to the pro-gun Democrat Conor o’Lamb, the pro-life Democrat Joe Manchin, pro-choice Republican Susan Collins or any of the various politicians who differ from their party’s leadership on a multitude of various issues.
But more importantly, these labels also cement a distorted bipolar worldview. The most controversial issues being discussed, from immigration to abortion, are not issues with only two stances but rather, are complex multifaceted issues which require nuanced views of the world. However, the widespread use of the labels of individuals to replace these discussions results in the perpetuation of false dilemmas and gross oversimplification of the issues that demand us to confront them as they exist in the real world and not as we wish to see them.
The result of this distorted worldview is that we no longer try to understand the other side. We just subsume the stance of democrats on an issue as the ‘’liberal’’ stance and if we disagree with liberals on most other issues, we choose to disagree with them on this as well. We also refuse to understand where they come from and the reasons behind their varying stance, simply brushing them aside as wrong. This problem is further exacerbated when our pre-existing biases are further cemented by the echo chambers we find ourselves in both on the internet and in real life.
At this point most of you will think that you are above all that. Really? Take the group of people we deem to be ‘anti-establishment’ here in Singapore. We ridicule them and shun them as scaremongers and conspiracy theorists. Any Facebook post or any opinion of anyone we deem to be ‘anti-establishment’ or that fits our notion of someone likely to be ‘anti-establishment’ is immediately dismissed, and we simply claim that their opinions as invalid. We refuse to listen or understand where they come from, simply because of the historic baggage the label ‘anti-establishment’ carries.
It is true that we as humans have a tendency to make judgements of others very quickly. But only when we start acknowledging that we do have our personal biases, that while others might disagree with us, and that we should not end discussions with people simply because of the label that pops up in our heads, that is when discourse in Singapore can progress. We then need to try and hear from those we don’t necessarily agree with, to understand where they come from.
The labels are meant to be an easier place from which to start longer, more difficult discussions about issues as they give us a sensing of the beliefs of other groups of people in the issue. These labels, however, are no substitute to discourse. Throwing the word ‘anti-establishment’ is no substitute for discourse, but rather a starting point for discourse and policy discussions. We might very well not agree with everything someone who is ‘anti-establishment’ might say, but relegating them as invalids is not the way society progresses. These groups that we refuse to engage with probably look at us the same way and society becomes more and more polarized the more we refuse to talk to each other.
We often hear that discourse has degenerated into a shouting match between various groups in society. One wonders why…
There was widespread talk of a progressive wave. A blue wave where progressive, culturally diverse young Democrats would capture seats in all branches of power in great numbers as the public stood up to the Republican party which had sold its soul to lobbying groups and a president who acted more like a clown. The primaries were thought to be a precursor.
Democrats like Andrew Gillum, Beto O’Rourke, Stacey Abrahams and Amy Mcgrath, as ‘outsiders’ from the political establishment running against incumbent Republicans in area that were historically Republican, were the poster boys and girls of this progressive wave that never came.
To be fair, these individuals were at the forefront of terrific campaigns that invigorated voters to turn up at the polling booths in record numbers with their inspiring personal stories, fundraising prowess, charisma, as well as their inclusive vision of a better country. They played their hand the best they could and came as close as anyone else could have at unseating incumbent Republicans in historically red states. But after all, there is only so much you can do with the deck stacked against you.
The young progressives across America learnt the lesson that often optimism does not win elections or bring about change overnight and that the historic reasons why Republicans had been dominating in particular area do not simply disappear in 2018. Issues like immigration, widespread gerrymandering and racial politics don’t just dissipate. Their campaigns are a reminder to all of us that real, lasting change doesn’t happen overnight. Rather, change is small, painful steps in the correct direction that accumulate and incrementally nudge society along the right path.
So, if we in Singapore are serious about change in society, we need to be committed to change over the long run and we need to be willing to make small steps as a society. Repealing 377A is not going to happen overnight and if we are serious about a more inclusive society for the LGBTQ community, we need to be willing to propagate the messages of inclusion all year round and not just turn up in pink shirts at Hong Lim park once a year expecting change to happen. Inequality is not going to disappear until we are willing to have difficult conversations without being influenced by personal biases or by the greater political climate in Singapore or elsewhere. Chinese privilege is not going to be an exception either.
Come January third, nearly 100 women of all colours, races and ethnicities will head to Capitol Hill to represent the interests of their constituents; a record number by any measure. This historic record, however, has been in the making for years. Discussions about the under-representation of women in politics and the glass ceiling have been happening for years and the discussions only gathered further momentum with the Hillary Clinton’s failed campaign and the misogynistic views of some office holders, manifesting in the Women’s marches that further empowered them and made them realise that it was time for them to step up.
And step up they did. After years of groundwork laid for change, change finally came and women put themselves up on the ballots in record numbers.
Do not like something around you? Stop complaining and step up. Fight for what you believe in and be committed to your cause. Even if change does not happen immediately, change is within reach. The first Native American women elected to congress, the first African immigrant elected to congress, the first Korean-American women elected to congress, the first openly lesbian mother in congress, the first openly gay man elected to congress and the 19-year-old elected to Wisconsin’s state assembly would all humbly agree.
Like a tuna in a tin can, the man rattles in his metallic prison. We see nothing but his tortured face, stifled by shadow, all at once a blur and a clatter, the force of nearly four Gs pressing skin into bone—we hear nothing but the oppressive jangle of loose parts, the monstrous roar of the rocket engine, the altimeter’s tick-tick-tick, counting up thirty, a hundred, two hundred thousand feet. Up, up he soars, past the clouds (his breath is laboured), piercing the stratosphere (the rattling persists) to the edge of light and darkness, clawing at the gates of the final frontier.
And then, tranquility descends. Reflected in his helmet and dazzled eyes – Earth. The celestial marble, shimmering, reveals itself in the horizon of his visor. The cockpit: his jail, and his liberation.
It does not last. The X-15 aircraft, gripped by surface’s surly bonds, slips back. Down he plunges, rattle, rattle, rattle through the stratosphere. The altimeter counts down. Two hundred thousand, a hundred and forty thousand, a hundred and forty thousand… a hundred and forty thousand … and back up it goes. “We show you ballooning, not turning,” crackles a raspy voice from Flight Control. “Hard left turn, Neil! Hard left turn!”
It’s no good. He’s skipping across the atmosphere like a stone across water. He tussles with the controls as gravity takes over and he approaches the ground once more, albeit 50 miles off-course. Engaging the skids, he makes an emergency landing and falls back into the blistering arms of the Mojave Desert.
His mission complete, he steps out. This is Neil Armstrong.
In its opening minutes, one thing becomes abundantly clear: First Man isn’t just your ordinary, triumphant recount of the now-fabled Moon Landing. It is cold, it is claustrophobic. Harrowing, terrifying. And yet, there is beauty, tenderness, romance, almost troubling in its ambiguity. In First Man, Director Damien Chazelle dares to ask – what is the price of a dream? What is the price of an impossible mission, built on the back of vomit and death and fear; with loss and hubris and Cold War blocs?
There is a claustrophobia that pervades First Man. “I wanted the audience to feel like they’re inside that capsule, screaming to get out,” said director Damien Chazelle in an interview for the Guardian. During the moon landing sequence, Chazelle deliberately omits the perspective of ground control in favour of keeping the camera in space, in order to make the audience feel like “they were there”.
And yet, the film’s protagonist, Neil Armstrong, remains frustratingly obtuse, walled-up. As the film progresses, Armstrong retreats further and further into himself, cramming himself deeper and deeper into the stone walls of his psyche as he does into a space capsule. Ryan Gosling’s taciturn, unflinching performance captures Armstrong at his most personal— impenetrable and yet (and because he is) vulnerable—a man who has lost too much. Early in the film he held his wife Janet in his arms as they swayed, under the soft nightlights, to the drowsy, dreamlike Lunar Rhapsody; he had laughed as he played with his children.
Unironically one of my favourite scenes in the movie
As time passes and his project surges forward, he stops laughing. He stops talking to them entirely. He comes home, only to grab a drink and to leave, slamming the door, immediately after. The night before Apollo 11, he sits across his children at the dinner table, emotionless, telling them how he might never see them again, his cadence icy, detached, as if he were giving a press conference (amongst the film’s many shocking images, this may be the most harrowing).
In the midst of all this, there are moments of brilliance and beauty. Director Damien Chazelle has an eye for spectacle and romance (it is a shame that the subject material hindered him from operating it at fullest potential). Evoking Kubrick’s Space Odyssey, the strings of composer Justin Hurwitz sing their sweet song as the Gemini 8 capsule makes its delicate connection with the Agena docking target. Contemplating the death of a fellow astronaut, Armstrong stares into the unflinching, orblike midnight moon.
And as Apollo 11 takes off at dawn, plumes of smoke and fire billowing against the sun-speckled sky as the rocket shoots, dartlike, toward its lunar target, the scene is transfigured. A romantic landscape—almost Baroque in its poignancy and drama—emerges, until we, at escape velocity, break through those pearly gates into the cold, dark embrace of space—gliding into the void as the theremin croons and Lunar Rhapsody graces us once more, beckoning us as we fly toward its home in the moondust.
It is this seamless combination of personal biography and technological drama that sets First Man apart. While the biography, at times, can feel tedious (you can tell when Chazelle wasn’t having as much fun), Chazelle nonetheless artfully weaves these narratives together to tell a story of the man behind the helmet.
“I related to it as a movie about trying to turn dreams into reality, somewhat similar to La La Land and Whiplash,” he said. In another interview, he mentioned “…in general, I’m interested in people at work—the process of people making something or working toward a goal, and what the prices of that goal might be. People who are really driven—I like those kind of characters. There’s a lot of inherent drama in watching unreasonable people butt up against the real world.”
You can tell. In La La Land, lyrical lovebirds Mia and Sebastian develop (and end) a whirlwind romance as they confront their Technicolour world. In Whiplash, aspiring jazz drummer Andrew Neiman sacrifices everything – his relationships, his health, his sanity – spurred on by his abusive instructor Terence Fletcher (“There are no two words in the English language more harmful than ‘good job’”) in an effort to become one of the ‘greats’. In First Man, the US sacrifices lives to get to the Moon before the Russians do, and Armstrong, devastated by loss, grappling with his trauma, is determined to make them succeed, at all costs. Including that of his family. (Neil and Janet got a divorce in 1994.)
In the film, Armstrong speaks poetically of how by going to the moon, Man may see “things we should have maybe seen a long time ago.” And by the end of the film, we may find ourselves asking – what exactly is it that we saw? Did we see the Soviets gnashing their teeth? See (past) the protests, the demonstrations, my sister Nell? Did we see how, after it was revealed that the planting of the US flag was not to be depicted in the movie (though the flag itself was clearly shown), a wave of outrage swept America, a wave which involved its very own President? (“I think it’s a terrible thing,” Trump opined in an interview with the Daily Caller). How Armstrong saw, separated from him by a glass wall in the final moments of the film, sitting wordless—his wife.
Or did we see the men and women of all nations and creeds, glued to their television screens in anxious anticipation? (“I knew they couldn’t fail,” a French woman says of the Americans in a snippet of archive footage) Did we, in the words of Russell Schweickart of Apollo 9, “become startlingly aware how are thousands of boundaries we’ve created to separate and define … feel in [our guts] the precious unity of the Earth and all the living things it supports”? Do we see the limitless potential that awaits us, beyond the Moon, beyond Mars, if we would only try? If we would, once more, dream of the stars?
By Benjamin Lim (19S03I), Vanessa Lur (19S06Q) and Chloe Wong (19S07C) Photos courtesy of Jiang Jin Liang (19S06N) and Amy Lin (19A01B)
Batch Night 2018 certainly was a night to remember. The performances. The food. The games. Everything seamlessly flowed from the start to the finish, with the audience enjoying every single performance by the many talented individuals in this institution. The halls of the Albert Hong Hall Auditorium opened timely at 6.30pm, with several groups of people milling around, queueing for the tasty food before the night started.
Around 7pm when the auditorium was filled with many excited Year 5s, the performances started. Raffles Rock, Raffles Jazz as well as the group performers involved helped to rally the entire student body together with their powerful vocals and amazing performances. Everyone was bobbing along to the sweet tunes throughout the evening.
First up: Wild². This four member band consisting of Ryan Ng (19S06N), Evan Choo (19S03B), Theodore Kuah (19A01B) and Sherwin Lam (19S06O), performed classics such as “I Want It That Way” by the Backstreet Boys. The mellow tunes sung by the entire team helped to lift the entire mood in the auditorium, as well as set the high expectations for the following performers.
Wild² performing one of their many catchy tunes
The break then gave way to a surprising but memorable performance during the break. The performance – though unscheduled – was surely a delight to watch. After all, who can say no to watching six rugby players dance to Beyonce’s “Single Ladies”. Their rendition of the iconic dance drew lots of laughter from the crowd, further hyping everyone for the rest of the night. Everyone was already thoroughly enjoying themselves. Although the performance was unplanned, we think we can safely say that everyone would definitely not mind seeing it again.
It was then time for Street Dance, who put up a striking and energetic performance, dancing along to pop songs including Taylor Swift’s “Look What You Made Me Do” and 5 Seconds of Summer’s “Youngblood”. The catchy music, coupled with the incredible dance moves, had everyone’s eyes glued to the stage. Many even began singing and moving along to the music.
Street Dance dancing their hearts out
They were followed by Raffles Jazz, who provided great music such as “I Wish” by Stevie Wonders. The therapeutic music helped calm the crowd down, providing a relaxing respite from the otherwise exciting night. In addition, their own renditions of Paramore’s “Still into You” and “Treasure” by Bruno Mars showcased their excellent singing and composition abilities.
Raffles Jazz performing their own rendition of “Still into You, by Paramore
The lively atmosphere filled with laughter and smiles brightened up the mood of the hall. Throughout the night, students were getting snacks, taking photos at the photobooth and jumping around with friends, and laughter and chatter could be heard all around the hall. Furthermore, the food catered for Batch Night certainly did not disappoint, with the large array of jelly doughnuts, churros, chilled drinks and ice pops satiating the stomachs of many hungry students. The churros especially, seemed to be very popular amongst Rafflesians with its queue only growing in numbers every break (much to our annoyance, unfortunately).
All good things have to come to an end, but who said things couldn’t end off with a bang? Raffles Rock certainly did not disappoint. By inviting everyone to move towards the stage area, the rock band lead by the two vocalists Manish Vikram (19S03T) and Sneha Bobba (19S06K) created an amazing concert experience. At the end of “Everyone Talks” by Neon Trees, Raffles Rock already had everyone jumping up and down to the song. It was no surprise that the finale song “Shut Up and Dance” by Walk The Moon had lifted everyone’s spirits sky high.
The Final Performance for Batch Night, Raffles Rock
Everyone was singing and dancing along. At one point in the night Raffles Rock even got everyone jumping left and right based on the lyrics of a song. Some people were even witnessed jumping up and down with their friends despite being stranded in a food queue. It was certainly remarkable how Raffles Rock managed to end off Batch Night on such a high note.
It is probably safe to say that almost everyone had thoroughly enjoyed Batch Night (we sure did!). By the end of the night everyone had smiles on their faces and were chattering excitedly with their friends. Some people were even still bouncing about excitedly despite the music having ended. The fact that the council members had to eventually shoo a reluctant crowd from the hall was further evidence of the success of Batch Night.
So, what exactly made Batch Night so unforgettable? Was it the lucky draw? Was it the food? Or, was it the great music by Raffles Rock and Jazz?
A group photo at the end!
Personally, we had fun dancing and eating, while catching up with friends. A large portion of our time at Batch Night was spent queueing for churros, but in the end the wait was worth it due to the time spent and conversations we had with friends, which were much more enjoyable than the sugary goodness of the churros.
We think everyone who attended Batch Night 2018 would agree with us — our companions were the best part of the night. Everywhere we looked, people were either swaying along to the songs or standing around with their friends and talking, making memories that would last for a long, long time.
By Alyssa Loo (19A13A), Keziah Lam (19A01B) and Mabel Yet (19S03Q) Photos courtesy to Tian Rui Ying (19S05B)
It isn’t easy to showcase the most vulnerable parts of yourself, much less allow it to be under the close scrutiny of hundreds of strangers. Yet, the Year 5 photographers from Raffles Photographic Society took up the challenge and put up a spectacular exhibition, entitled Meraki. Through just 1 to 2 photos, the photographers told their own unique story by allowing visitors to uncover that sliver of themselves woven into their work.
Meraki: what happens when you leave a piece of yourself in your work.
“We wanted a theme that was broad enough for all of us to be able to capture (haha) and convey, and one that would allow us to showcase our own individual flair, so we chose Meraki, [which means] putting part of yourself into something you’re doing,” said Amy Lin (19A01B).
Despite only joining the CCA less than nine months ago and having to grapple with a tight timeline, the year-end exhibition the Year 5s had curated was nothing short of professional. On November 13, we saw the Stamford Training Room being transformed into a classy yet welcoming exhibition hall, with photographs mounted on panels spanning half of the room, and the other half designated as a performance area for the buskers from Rock and Jazz. As the Vice-Chairperson Rahul (19S06A) put it, it was a “feast for your eyes and ears”.
The room was bustling when we arrived, free popcorn in hand, with some visitors shoving flowers into their friends’ arms and beelining for the photobooth while others marvelled in awe at the works splayed on the panels. Many also chose to sit down to enjoy the performances after touring the exhibition, cheering whenever their friends finished a song.
The atmosphere was exciting as students, parents and photographers alike mingled and admired the photographs in turn, with the creators eager to discuss their works and inspirations. Accompanying each photograph series was an artist statement, which gave us a little insight into what each individual photographer holds dear, and allowed us to better understand the thought process in the creation of their images.
But they’re just photos, right? Anyone can take pictures.
While it is true that most images can technically be taken with a single snap of the camera, the decisions that run through the photographers’ minds both in shooting and editing a photograph is too often overlooked. As Yu Ke Dong (19A13A) observed, “With the edits and the choice of subject matter, each individual style is very distinct. It goes to show that photography extends beyond recording reality and is an art form.”
Some photographers exercised their artistic license right from the shutter. Pok Ruay Ing’s (19S06P) use of a slow shutter speed on a fast moving crowd singles out the still, solitary figure, as such illustrating the loneliness and dizziness of one lost within a faceless city blur. Meanwhile, Li Ruiqi’s (19A01A) and Juay Jin Liang’s (19S06A) fast shutter-speeds seem to stop time itself within a flurry of activity. Their vignettes of water droplets frozen in grainy grayscale, grant viewers silent sanctuary as they peer on a flushed, mid-tournament Ultimate player, and on the cacophony of a rain-veiled, ever-moving city.
Others flourished their craft on the editing stage. Jynelle Ong’s (19S03B) work experiments with overlayed photos of a scene in slightly different angles, evoking surrealism through its double-image effect. The hazy pair of anonymous portraits complement well with the captioned poem written in second-person address,, creating a dreamlike figure that serves as tabula rasa for anyone to project themselves upon.
And some others found photographs when special moments were found in viewfinders. Timothy Low (19S06L)’s photograph captures a gorgeous serendipity of a bicycle being reflected, by a glass roof, into the branches of a tree. Confusing and thus arresting at first glance, the photograph captures both a natural superimposition and figurative imposition of our urbanisation upon the environment.
With similar serendipity, Brendon Loo’s (19S03H) photograph is a frame-in-frame composition of a passing, miniature couple in the bounds of a seaside sculpture. With dynamic yet excellently structured composition and an earthen, pink-tinted colour pallette, Brendon captures a soft yet sobering moment of Man’s inconsequential existence when compared to a world that overflows all frames.
We were also intrigued by this particular portrait of the photographer, Rachel Tan’s (19S03T) brother, his face illuminated by the warm glow of the fairy lights. Her artist statement revealed how parents often swarm their children with enrichment classes with the persistent belief that they are “good for them”, neglecting their child’s passions and strengths as a result.
“This piece represents a wish I had when I was younger– to make the most of my childhood and to live as carefreely as possible,” she explained, not without a twinge of regret. “I didn’t appreciate my childhood until it was gone, and I hope that my brother, the youngest out of my 3 siblings, will be able to live out that dream.”
A Peek into Their Lives
“For someone who doesn’t know any of the photographers, I get a peek into their lives,” said Ellisha Khairi (19A01B), an awed attendee at the exhibition. Ranging from still lifes to scenery shots to portraits of loved ones, the varied choices of topic and style revealed the different interests and personalities of the batch–some took to street photography, others chose scenic shots, and still others chose to capture very personal moments in their own lives.
Curating the Exhibition
Selecting just 1-2 photos from a whole repertoire of images stowed away in memory cards proved to be the most challenging aspect of curating the exhibition, as many of the photographers reflected. After all, it is rare that we take photos for the purpose of having them up on display.
“It’s not just in terms of skill, but [showcasing] your own unique style,” Rahul shared. More than being “aesthetically pleasing”, every photo selected hid its own meaning.
According to RPS member Amy, behind each photograph was a tedious shooting and selection process. The photographers had undergone one-on-one consultations with their instructor Ms Deanna, who prompted them to find their own individual techniques and styles, as well as urging them to consider what kind of emotions and thoughts they wanted to invoke in the audience. After coming together to decide on the theme and flow of the exhibition as a CCA, they came up with the “Meraki” narrative- culminating in the showcase we saw.
Walking out of the exhibition, we felt like we had left an intricately curated and designed world behind. It was certainly inspiring and eye-opening to see the pieces of themselves that the photographers had bravely put on display, and we’re certain that each viewer walked away having discovered something new about themselves too.
By Keziah Lam (19A01B) and Sarah Chen (19S03C)
Photographs courtesy of Raffles Photographic Society
The production’s title – “Derailed” – kept us guessing up until the curtains went up and the show started. What would the performance be about? A train crash? A really distracted student? We couldn’t be sure. But there was one thing that was for certain – whatever we were imagining was not even half as good as what we got.
As the audience continued to chatter, waiting for the production to begin, actress Audrey Wan’s (19A13A) sudden unannounced entrance stunned us all. With the lights still on, the remaining cast members of the first play, Five Angry Spirits, emerged from the curtains and sat down, paying no attention to cheering friends and confused buzzing. After a few more moments of intriguing silence from the actresses, the lights finally dimmed and the show began.
Just like the audience, the five angry spirits were waiting – but what for?
Five Angry Spirits
Masterfully written by Yu Ke Dong (19A13A) and Kuang Shane Qi (19A13A), Five Angry Spirits focused on the interactions between five very different people – a dictator, an aspiring astronaut, a teacher, a mother and an unexpected criminal – who are waiting to get interviewed to secure a spot in heaven. This was an angle less frequently explored since, as vice-chairperson Audrey Wan puts it, “normally stories are told while [people] are alive”.
With a minimalistic and monochrome choice of set, the focus was very much on the raw emotion and interaction between the actresses – who also served as stagehands – as their characters took turns under the spotlight, re-enacting and examining the actions that each had taken when they were alive. The proximity of the stage to the audience (some of whom were seated on the floor right in front of the performance area) served to heighten the intimacy between the actresses and audience members. The effects were also well-timed and inventive, with the Criminal’s sequence (during which she channel-surfed in time to the lights and sounds) eliciting murmurs of awe from the audience.
Not only did the play draw laughs from the audience with its more comedic moments (notably during the Dictator’s bombastic character focus) and tug at their heartstrings (the Mother’s tender interactions with her daughter and the Teacher’s selfless protection of her students), the play managed to drive home much more pertinent and deep-reaching concerns about our actions in life and judgement after death.
The other characters playing the part of the Dictator’s adoring supporters during her character focus.
The thought-provoking play was the result of multiple rewrites on the part of the Players – indeed, they had not decided on an ending until right before the production itself – ironic considering how the play concluded on an open-ended note, inviting audience members to judge the actions of the characters for themselves. The seamless intertwining of the various characters’ narratives also inspired us to reexamine the motivations behind our actions and those of the people around us as well as the repercussions that they would have on others. Mature and introspective, it was certainly a masterpiece of a play both in script and in performance.
Everything But The Brain
After the intermission, we were brought back into the Theatre Studies and Drama Room (TSD) for a play which again toyed with the concept of death, though with a plot and approach completely different from the first. Through the narration of the main character, Elaine, and three imaginary bears, the audience was sucked into a story spanning from Elaine’s childhood to her middle-aged years, focusing on her relationship with her father.
Written by local writer Jean Tay, the play zooms in for an intimate portrayal of the relationship between a single father and daughter.
With both Elaine and her father having a passion for Physics, the play weaved in concepts from the field of study to tell an emotional story about the passage of time in our lives. Luckily for non-Physics students like us, the complex scientific theories and concepts were broken down into simpler terms with the help of the three bears: Papa Bear, Mama Bear and Baby Bear.
For us, what made this play especially unique were the bears, who slipped in and out of scenes and played a crucial supporting role. By interacting with Elaine, they not only coaxed her thoughts and opinions out, but also added humour and entertainment to an otherwise bleak situation. Despite their general lighthearted approach when discussing matters of life and death, these comedic characters were responsible for some of the play’s most touching moments, such as when Mama Bear, standing alone in the spotlight, shed genuine tears towards the end of the play.
Papa Bear, Mama Bear and Baby Bear
This has, of course, not been said to downplay the brilliant performances put on by the other actors. As we all know, there is no relationship more complex, confusing, and infuriating as the one between a parent and a child. Because of the highly relatable struggles Elaine faced with her father, it was almost impossible not to feel Elaine’s overwhelming exasperation at her father’s stubbornness or tear up at her father’s rough-around-the-edges love for his only daughter.
Everything but the Brain’s strong focus on what time can do to a person also highlighted the temporal nature of human life, and this, combined with the frustratingly strained relationship between Elaine and her father, created an emotional journey which hit home for many of the audience members. It forced us to reflect on how we treat our family, how we express our appreciation and anger towards them, and the short-lived time we have with them.
With such a heavy topic at hand, it would be natural to expect a grim and depressing play – but then again, it wouldn’t be a Players production without some humour. In fact, parts of the play had the entire audience laughing, mostly thanks to Samuel, Elaine’s father’s doctor, whose side-plot with Elaine gave us many hilarious and cringeworthy (in a good way) moments. Through Everything but the Brain, Raffles Players cleverly told a story that was, at times, intensely emotional and others, delightfully humorous – but always meaningful and poignant, with lots for the audience to reflect on.
And so, the J1s’ first full production as a batch came to an end. “Our seniors kept telling us how J1 prod [was] sure to bond our batch very well and I never really believed that – until I saw it happen,” said Players member Loh Lin (19A01D). With every member, from director to cast to crew, putting in hours of effort, the production truly was a labour of love – emphasis on labour. Through putting on two plays drastically different from June’s comedic college production, 2018’s J1 Players showed us their batch’s unique character and prowess. We look forward to another display of their outstanding abilities in next year’s college production with great anticipation.
Credits
Five Angry Spirits Directors/Scriptwriters: Kuang Shane Qi (19A13A), Yu Ke Dong (19A13A)
Cast: Ada Lum (19S06O), Audrey Wan (19A13A), Charmaine Teo (19A01B), Laura Sim (19A13A), Loh Lin (19A01D)
Everything but the Brain Directors: Loh Su Jean (19A01A), Kevin Chiramal (19S06S)
Cast: Aidan Ong (19A01B), Adlina Anis (19A01D), Low Jia Yi (19S07B), Naia Nathan (19A01A), Ganeshaa Arul (19S03G), Fang Yihang (19A13A)
As those who know me might attest – I’m not the biggest fan of superhero fare. No, I’m not just being a hipster (okay, maybe a little), and no, please do not crucify me. Pitchforks down, please (though you are most welcome to drop us an angry email over at press.raffles@gmail.com – we’re lonely over here).
Take it from me, then, when I say that Spider-man: Into the Spider-Verse is an incredible experience. What it may lack in narrative depth, it makes up for with technicolour spectacle, with a joyous phantasmagoria of stylish, frenetic energy that grabs hold of you right from the Columbia Pictures logo and never lets go. And it’s absolutely fantastic for it. It’s a labour of love to the comic book and animation industry that shines through every meticulously-crafted frame and revels, unapologetic, in its candy-coloured wonder that only an epileptic won’t find joy in. To say the least, it’s marvelous fun.
The story isn’t anything you haven’t seen before. Miles Morales, a sulky teenager frustrated (and demoralised… haha) by his stressful school life and an uptight father, wants nothing but to run around town with his uncle Aaron and do graffiti on walls. He gets bitten by a radioactive spider, develops spider-powers, and stumbles into a plot by the nefarious Kingpin to bridge several dimensions across the multiverse – a plot that threatens to (wait for it) destroy the world. It is also a plot that inadvertently introduces Miles to some interdimensional friends – Peter B. Parker, Spider-gwen, Spider-man Noir, Spider-ham and the almost-unfortunately-named Peni Parker.
From there, Miles and his motley crew must obtain a macguffin (“goober”, as Peter Parker calls it) in the form of a digital key to shut down Kingpin’s dimension-bridging machine before it annihilates everything. Along the way, Miles learns what it means to be a hero – and to grow up.
There are moments of pathos and drama as characters grapple with emotional arcs, and, without spoiling any plot points, Miles’ arc in particular feels compelling and well-realised – heartwarming even – even if it hinges on some plot conveniences every now and then. Notably, some of the more wacky minor characters – Noir, Peni, and Ham – felt woefully underutilised, though given the runtime, one can imagine why. In all, the story was serviceable, if not exceptional.
Story, however, is the least of one’s concerns when it comes to a movie like this. What makes Into the Spider-Verse’s approach particularly unique is its way of taking seemingly disparate influences and combining them into a cohesive whole that takes on a life of its own. From Miles Morales’ graffiti and an urban, hip-hop soundtrack, to Spider-man Noir’s hardboiled, detective noir roots, to Peni Parker – the hyperactive, bug-eyed, giant-robot-piloting anime stereotype – to, most notably, the pages of the comic books from which Spider-man sprang to life – all these coalesce beautifully into a whirlwind of a love letter to pop art of all sorts while ingeniously toying with tropes and cliches to amusing effect. Spider-Ham, a tribute to the Golden Age of animation of the 30s, 40s and 50s, summons anvils and wooden mallets to pummel his enemies (“it’ll fit in your pocket”). Characters’ inner monologue appear on screen in comic-book caption bubbles, the screen sometimes splits up as if emulating the panels on a comic book page, and strong blows are sometimes accompanied with the appropriate ‘KAPOW!’ Spider-man Noir, having lived all his life in a dimension of black and white, struggles to comprehend a Rubik’s Cube.
Overarching stylistic decisions aside, individual characters are also animated with astonishing expressiveness. One benefit of animation is its ability to exaggerate – see animation legend Chuck Jones’ revolutionary ‘Smear’ technique, for example. Animation allows filmmakers to create incredible fluidity in motion beyond the physical capabilities of reality. These cartoon physics help lend the extraordinary momentum and kinetic energy that Into the Spider-Verse’s action scenes possess in oodles. Just look at how the characters bounce around like pinballs in the fight in Aunt May’s house, or Doc Ock’s flailing robotic tendrils, or the catlike Prowler’s billowing cape. Unique quirks also lend personality and occasionally some levity to each character – Miles Morales’ graffiti motif effectively captures his frustrated, rebellious adolescent spirit. The hyperactive Peni Parker constantly munches on sweets. Spider-Ham oozes around like a Looney Tunes character, reflecting his golden age roots. For minor characters like Peni and Ham, it’s an incredibly effective way to make them memorable despite their limited screen time.
Of course, action is not the only sphere in which animation shines – exaggerated features and physical features are also a simple and effective way to emphasise character traits and create memorable personalities. The imposingly large, square, body shape of the main baddy Kingpin, for instance, instantly conveys his sheer brutality. Spider-gwen’s impossibly slender figure and sleek, angular frame emphasises her superhuman grace and athleticism (her haircut, of course, conveys her impeccable fashion sense. I wholeheartedly agree with Miles.)
“You don’t get to like my haircut.”
What really brought the art together, however, far beyond these general techniques, was how Into the Spider-Verse’s directors – Peter Ramsey, Robert Persichetti Jr. and Rodney Rothman – injected their own comic-book twist into the visual mix. As Persichetti mentioned in an interview with Collider: “If we were going to make [the film] animated, there is no better medium for honoring where the comics first came from – which is a printed comic book. And so we took a lot of the same processes that were 75 years old, and we tried to turn that into a cinematic language.” In the process, they created a new animation pipeline that Sony is now in the process of patenting. Looking at the results, it’s hard not to see why. Among the techniques used was the use of smeared lines to evoke motion (Prowler’s purple claw swipes come to mind) and the use of separately-animated line-work to highlight characters’ faces instead of pure geometry.
Even beyond that – throw in some occasional chromatic aberration around the edges, the comic-book halftone gradient, the colour palette that just pops – it’s perhaps impossible for me to describe here just how much invention and homage has been infused into the visual direction of this film. The result, as you might have inferred by now, is sheer delight.
Into the Spider-Verse isn’t just a movie, it’s also a sort of psychedelic fever dream – achieved in a way perhaps only animation could. Much like Miles’ graffiti, it drips with style and effortless cool. It is exceptional in the way it breaks some traditional cinematic boundaries while toeing the line with others, delivering an experience that is at once familiar yet forges a vision all its own. Unrelentingly self-aware and self-referential, it’s at the same time a traditional, heartwarming, adrenaline-pumping superhero origin flick, and an appropriately post-modern take on the genre that ditches the cynicism that comes with the package and chooses instead to celebrate its heritage.
And what a celebration it is. No doubt there will be a sequel in its vein – Sony didn’t spend all that money on patent attorneys for nothing – and I fear it might lose its unique lustre in the process. But until then, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse will remain a shining gem in Sony Animation’s repertoire, a joyride of visual insanity, a cinematic delight. Maybe superhero fare isn’t too bad, after all.
Photographs courtesy of Raffles Photographic Society
It was 5.30pm on the dot when the first line of Year 6s streamed through the entrance, roses in hand, sharply dressed in flowing dresses and sleek tuxedos. After stopping to take the obligatory selfie, they headed down to the Flower Field Hall , most of the girls lamenting about their heels as they descended warily. Izaac Tay (19S05B) took this chance to immortalise their entrance in a video, making one girl in particular walk back up for a complete shot (she pulled it off effortlessly). Meanwhile, in the kitchen, the performers were tuning their guitars and vocal cords, preparing to take the stage later that night. Grad Night 2018 was about to begin.
Waiting in anticipation
The Year 6s mingled, finding their seats and helping their friends adjust their clothes, to the upbeat music that played in the background. Song dedications went out (“This song goes out to Kelly!”) as the conversation grew to a crescendo — the evening now began to cast its shadow on the Hall as more entered and took their seats. Orbs of light, glowing green, imbued the room with a certain otherworldly magic as they shimmered, starlike, in the fixtures above. Through the window, one could gaze upon the foliage of the Flower dome, a cornucopia of colour (and a choice photo backdrop – it appeared – as the Y6s lined up to get a snapshot of their special day).
Grad Night Playlist, thoughtfully curated by Council.
A little over an hour later, a wash of blue enveloped the ceiling orbs, casting aquatic ambience over the room. Sensing the anticipation in the air, the Y6s took this as their cue to return to their designated tables, squeezing in a few frantic pictures even as the emcees, Shaune Chow (18S03A) and Aravind Madabhushi (18S06H), took to the stage to commence the event proper. A customary video montage of memories was played, drawing bursts of embarrassed laughter as friends thumped one another on the back upon recognising each others’ faces on the screen. The collection of photos spanned over the past year and a half, bearing testament to just how far they had all come.
The opening video
The crowd grew silent as Ms Janissa Soh took the stage to deliver the opening address, waiting for the words that would undoubtedly take them on a trip down memory lane. As she mused how the faces looking at her were no longer “that of blur RI students”, Ms Soh also added a playful quip that “perhaps the hair and dressing make a difference”, after all. At this, sheepish chuckles rippled across the room, many exchanging wistful smiles and grimaces alike at the recollection of those awkward, early JC days.
LED lights cycling through a rainbow of colors throughout the night
And how far they had all come. From tentatively trying to carve out a place for themselves during Orientation to reveling in the glory of conquering their final exams, they were now in their final moments together as a batch, having left the turnstiles of RI for good. “You are now officially an old Rafflesian,” she concluded. “Congratulations. Go forth and make us proud. Seize the night.”
And just how do Rafflesians seize the night? Well, many made a beeline for the buffet with fervour, while others went straight for their friends, heading to the hall outside to take more pictures together. A subsequent meander through the crowd revealed many bold hair colours and unconventional outfits that immediately grabbed our attention.
The mane (haha) attraction of the night
One such stylistic choice included a Y6 dressed in a grey tank top – with a bowtie to top off the disarmingly casual look. When asked about his fashion decision, he grinned and claimed that he “didn’t get the dress code”. As for the girls — while undeniably stunning, their outfits posed them a slight challenge in their manoeuvres around the packed hall, with someone jokingly complaining that she couldn’t “whip in this dress” and at least six others narrowly missing a step as they headed down the stairs.
Raffles Press brings you exclusive footage of the event. Bring back any memories?
At various points throughout the night, performers from both batches graced the stage to entertain the graduates. Wild Squared kicked the night off with a pop hit — 2002 by Anne-Marie — and took everyone through a mashup of songs they probably grew up listening to. Up next, Sri let loose an impressive beatboxing solo which drew raucous applause from the crowd. Jings Without Jing, who took the stage later that evening, had quite the fan following — their performance saw many of their friends rushing to the front of the stage to cheer them on and sing along.
Wild Squared taking the audience through a nostalgic pop hit. Subtle raving from the crowd was observed
Earlier, Shaune had urged everyone to vote for their deserving batchmates for the Rafflesian Awards with the reminder that the results will, on this one occasion, “not be decided by bell curve”, but by every single person in the batch. The time had come for the graduating batch to decide their winners — the names of candidates for each category were flashed on the screen, after which everyone scrambled for their phone for thirty excruciating seconds before the respective winners were announced to a thunderous applause.
This next event — the Lucky Draw — garnered the most raucous cheers. Everyone swivelled around to watch the lottery generator scroll through several names, pointing eagerly and nudging one another in almost palpable anticipation. The excitement in the air was electric as many stood up and craned their necks to watch the random number generator plough through several names before slowing down and finally landing on one. Triumphant yells shot through the suspense, and before long, friends were jostling their peers to make their way to the stage to collect their prizes.
When a lucky Y6 won a pair of movie tickets, Shaune prompted him to share with the crowd who he would bring to watch the movie with, a question he hastily brushed off with a bemused “no comment”. Not to be fazed, however, Shaune quickly hit back with a conditional extension (“if you have to pick someone?”), and gleefully announced that he was “blushing already” from her onslaught of questions.
Always camera-ready
By the time Reuben Chan (19S03B) took to the stage for the last performance of the night, the lively buzz from the evening had faded to a soft lull, with friends huddling together not to take their last pictures of the night, but to sit in silence and pass the last few minutes with one another. The magic of the moment was imbued not just by the iridescent glow of the light bulbs above, but also by the sheer surrealness of these final moments in an education that had once felt timeless. As Mohammad Faisal (18A13A) confessed — “I can’t believe I graduated”. His sentiments were echoed, if emotional Instagram posts are anything to go by.
Okay, just another 200 pictures to go
As the night finally drew to a close, many left in small groups, freeing themselves from the constraints of their tuxedos and heels the minute they left the hall. As the Y6s headed off into the night, never looking back, their silhouettes against the backdrop of the Christmas lights made for a mesmerising picture.
During her speech, hearkening back to days long past, Ms Soh had asked the crowd: “Do you remember the trepidation as you first walked through the turnstiles of RI?” This same trepidation will undoubtedly follow them as they embark on the next chapter of their lives beyond JC, but we are just as certain that they will make it through the same way they have emerged from their formative schooling years — holding each other close and laughing at the end of it all. After all, the only way is forward.
With that, Raffles Press wishes the graduating batch of 2018 the best of luck with their future endeavours, and we hope that adventures will await them no matter where they go.
You must be wondering, what is life like as a Chamber Ensemble musician? Stuck behind a music stand, staring into music written by composers hundreds of years ago? That can’t be! Our enthusiastic members come together every Wednesday from 2.30pm to 6.30pm for rehearsals in our cozy Chamber room. A typical practice session will involve 2 hours of Chamber group playing, followed by 2 hours of Combined! It is honestly an honour and pleasure to make music with other passionate and talented musicians, as well as a good time to break away from the academic stress from tutorials, upcoming tests and exams – we kill two birds with one stone!
Our members look forward to rehearsals because of the cordial and candid atmosphere, where we often share our experiences and jokes – you really can’t miss the good viola jokes here! Here’s one: Why don’t violists play hide and seek? Because nobody would look for them. Here’s another one: What’s the difference between a viola and an onion? No one cries when you cut up a viola. Aww…
Our batch!
Chamber isn’t huge – not like the size you would expect of a secondary school string orchestra; we have 20 over musicians on average during our annual concert. So Chamber really is a snug CCA, like a close-knitted family. Every year, we take in slightly more than 10 passionate musicians who wish to join or continue playing in an ensemble. Fret not if you have no experience playing in an ensemble, because your fun and gregarious seniors will guide you along the way, while your batchmates can share their experiences and offer you some tips.
And of course, how can we forget our dedicated and quirky conductor, Ms Marietta Ku, who brightens up our practice sessions with her funny (and sometimes undecipherable) jokes and anecdotes! Also, Chamber is not complete without our supportive teachers-in-charge, Mrs Er Mui Kee and Ms Avadhani!
Featuring our conductor: Ms Marietta Ku
What’s interesting about Chamber is that we do not only play together as one; we also break into smaller groups of typically 3 to 5 people. These small chamber groups allow our members to better bond with one another as well as experience a different kind of music-making. Arnold Steinhardt, former first violinist of the Guarneri Quartet, once said that a quartet is like having a marriage between 4 people – how intriguing! Would you want to become a part of a quartet too?
Our members performing the 1st movement of Beethoven’s String Trio in E-flat majorOur members performing the 4th movement of Nielsen’s String Quintet
We have various performance opportunities for members to share the joy of music with others. Last May, we had our annual Chamber concert – Sombre ‘18, playing pieces ranging from Rachmaninoff’s String Quartet No. 1 to Joe Hisaishi’s View of Silence. Some may reckon that Chamber is full of boring and serious people who only play classical pieces. Don’t worry, as we do indulge in a variety of fun and interesting music from other genres as well! We arrange our own medleys ranging from musicals to movie soundtracks to pop music, and our members are free to suggest music they want to play.
Our members performing a movie medley featuring movies like Indiana Jones and Harry Potter!
Chamber certainly loves to give back to the community, participating in several CIP performances such as at Renci and Tan Tock Seng Hospital each year.
Performing at Renci Hospital, and featuring our new cellist, Ms Ku!
If you fear that Chamber sessions is all about practice, don’t worry! Our tiny CCA can’t miss out on bonding sessions together, where we watch masterclasses and concerts; last August, we spent a CCA session watching the Juilliard Quartet Masterclass at the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music. What’s even more exciting this coming 2019 is that on top of our annual concert, we will be re-joining SYF once again (after several years of hiatus), so members can anticipate a fun and event-filled 2019!
What are you waiting for? We offer friends, fun, great music and opportunities. Come join us! We hope to see you at our auditions :)
Bar 420. Remember to crescendo. The conductor prepares the final reprisal to the famous zhongruan concerto: Jie Mei Dao. Your mind is full, the swell of the final note fills the hall, and before you know it: the cascade of applause from below.Calls for “encore!” resonates with the rush of euphoria in your heart. We did it!
Intrigued by the thrill of performance? Read on to find out more!
Chinese Orchestra, shaped by 6,000 years of musical heritage, consists of five main sections:
弹拨 (tanbo – plucked strings)
弦乐 (xianyue – bowed strings)
吹管 (chuiguan – winds)
打击 (daji – percussion)
低音 (cello-bass)
Our practice sessions are usually twice a week, with 3 practices on weeks closer to competitions or concerts. Our usual CCA timings are: Monday 5:30pm – 8:15pm (Sectionals), and Tuesday 5:30pm – 7:30pm (Combined). We have 2 types of practices: sectionals and combined. Sectionals are sessions where similar instruments practise together under the guidance of our 12 sectional instructors. RJCO is very privileged to offer tutelage of many professional instructors, each leading in their respective fields. Combined sessions are when the entire orchestra come together after having practised their individual parts during sectionals. Combined sessions are led by our charismatic conductor, Mr. Yang Jiwei, who is sure to fill the session with banter and laughter.
RJCO performing a combined orchestral piece at “Cascade”.
Under Mr Yang’s baton, RJCO has achieved stellar results in the biennial Singapore Youth Festival (SYF) Arts Presentation, more recently clinching distinction in 2017. In 2018, we were also able to put up a wonderful concert, “Cascade“, which consisted of various solo performances, section ensemble items as well as full orchestra performances. As the main performance of the year, our hard work along the journey culminated on this memorable night.
RJCO alternates between a concert year and an SYF year, and 2019 is our SYF year. Hence, in addition to SYF next year, school events like Open House and Chinese New Year as well as self-initiated VIA projects enable members to extend their repertoire of pieces even further, giving us more chances to perform together as a CCA.
RJCO’s VIA performance @ Thye Hua Kwan Moral Charities
Stepping into the RJCO room on a Tuesday afternoon, one will be greeted by the sight of familiar faces working on assignments, playing cards (UNO only of course) or simply joking around. As practice starts, another evening of music-making begins, and soon you’ll find yourself immersed in the harmonies created when the instruments in the orchestra all combine their strengths – the huqin and western strings, with their smooth and complementary textures, percussion with their hard-striking tempo, chuiguan (wind instruments) with their bright melodies, and tanbo (plucked strings) with their confident accompaniments. Of course, words are never adequate when it comes to describing the experience of music; one must be there to feel it.
Orchestra members bonding before the start of combined practice
Furthermore, RJCO is not just about the music, but also the family of like-minded individuals that we take comfort in. It is a respite from relentless lessons in school; it is banter with our batchmates; it is messing around trying to learn each other’s instruments before combined and during breaks; it is wincing at a fellow member’s particularly challenging scores and sympathising, “wah, good luck”. Though everyone has different experiences, one thing’s for sure: RJCO is a place of good music, comradeship, where we all strive to better ourselves with the support of those around us.
Late dinner after a combined practice.
This family spirit also extends beyond CCA hours – members frequently grab a meal together before or after practices, which we affectionately coin as “early” or “late dinner”. The different sections also organise outings among themselves, where we simply have fun with our friends. Furthermore, our annual March Chalet is an unbroken tradition of having the best times together during the March holidays, where incoming junior members bond together with their seniors through enjoyable section lunches, station games, and even a horror escape room!
Members playing “Protect the egg” during our annual March Chalet!
We would like to emphasise the openness of the RJCO family: whether or not you have a music background, all of you are welcome to come for our January/February CCA trials. You can also visit our CCA booth at Open House 2019 to talk to a senior and find out more!
As Confucius once said, “Music produces a kind of pleasure which human nature cannot do without.” Regardless of whether you join us, we hope that you find a CCA that recharges you, which is what RJCO does for all of us :)
By Chew Yun Ting (19S02A), Chairperson, Leong Sheu Wen (19S06S), Vice-Chairperson, Nicole Zhao (19S06M), Secretary, Harishini D/O Thiruselvan (19S03J), Welfare head, and Kelly Png Zi Yin (19S07A), Quartermaster
Are you a lost soul wandering about with only a pencil and a piece of paper? Wander no more, for Art Club is just the place for you! We meet every Wednesday from 2.30-5.30pm at the cozy Art Room, where we make art while enjoying the company of fellow artist friends!
In our sessions, we dabble in a variety of art mediums and techniques, ranging from acrylic to watercolour or even figure sketching. Each Wednesday ends with a critique session, during which we share our ideas, opinions, and art pieces. Through this, we hope to encourage members to strive for improvement, as well as to promote an open and comfortable environment within our CCA.
A quick glimpse into our critique sessions Art Club members immersed in acrylic painting
Other than art and critique sessions, we also hold an annual exhibition to share our works with fellow schoolmates. Last year, we went through a digital and illustration workshop, culminating in a showcase of our final products in a school-wide exhibition, “Reverie”. Organising the exhibition was an intensive journey, during which all members of the CCA were involved in the process of planning, curation, and execution. From generating an overarching theme to sticking individual pins onto the exhibition boards, we gained a thorough understanding and appreciation of what it takes to set up a proper exhibition. Some of us even had the opportunity to interact with interested passers-by, such as students’ parents, who gave us valuable feedback and interesting insights.
A snapshot of the launch of our 2018 exhibition, “Reverie”
As a member of the Art Club, you can also look forward to excursions that will deepen your understanding of art. Here are some photos of our outings to the CBD area for urban sketching, Gillman Barracks, as well as a tour of various murals in Singapore led by the artists of the murals themselves! Getting a firsthand view of a professional’s art was an eye opening experience for all of us.
How many cats are there in this picture? A fellow art club member patiently counts… Picture taken at Gillman BarracksTwo friends peacefully sketching a scenic view by the Singapore River
As part of the CCA, you can make use of your artistic talents to reach out to the wider community, in addition to self expression. We hope that through creating and sharing art, we can add colour to mundane situations and inspire appreciation.
So what are you waiting for? Drop by our booth during Open House or check our instagram account @rafflesartists to find out more. For CCA trials, experience isn’t a requirement, although we recommend bringing along a physical or digital portfolio for auditions. See you there!
Got an artist block? Talk to fellow friends in the Art Club!A splendid masterpiece, inspired by a simple view from an open classroom window
Your morning assembly is never quite the same without us. For everything else, there’s a loudhailer?
Have you ever thought of being the “backbone” of events, or wondered how events are able to run so smoothly? Have you ever looked up at the “black box”, imagining yourself managing rehearsals, ensuring that both lights and sound work out just fine?
Well, then AVU might be the CCA for you.
Upon joining AVU, terms like EQ, XLRs, and even snakes will become part of your vocabulary. You will learn how to manage lights and sound, which are useful skills in a Singapore that aims to be a Smart Nation. Furthermore, your batch can decide to pick up a batch course, such as a DJ course! If this interests you, AV is definitely the CCA for you.
DJ training course
While AVU as a CCA demands technical skills, prior technical experience is absolutely not a prerequisite for you to join us. By joining AVU, you will be able to pick up a few new skills! Through training sessions organized by us as well as by participating in events, you will definitely be equipped with the relevant skills over time. By the end of this close to 2-years journey, you will even be able to mic up a full band, so do not worry!
Throughout your AV journey, you will be given the chance to interact with many different groups of people, as we support school events such as Orientation and school celebrations, concerts held by the Performing Arts CCA, as well as symposiums and events hosted by clubs and societies.
In AVU, you will be required to attend weekly afternoon training sessions as well as to sign up for events of your choice. Rehearsals as well as the actual day of the event can end as late or even later than 10pm, so AV might not be suited for you if you have curfews. In addition, every AV member has to fulfill 60 hours of service. After these 60 hours, the service hours will be counted as VIA hours.
Nonetheless, AVU is not merely a tech-driven CCA or a service CCA that we can use to gain VIA hours. To us all, the people that we meet in AVU, as well as the friendships forged, is what makes our time here enjoyable. Every one of us, with different backgrounds, come together as one to ensure that events run smoothly, going through ups and downs together as a united batch. Although it is our responsibility to ensure that such events and concerts proceed well, we do not seek recognition or appraisal from others. We know that we are the backbone that holds these events together. Knowing that, we are always elated when events come together, and we will do whatever we can, backstage as well as in the control room, to ensure that the event runs smoothly.
AVU at Induction 2018
So, if you are looking for a close-knitted CCA, and are not afraid to take up the challenge of managing shows and events, then AVU is definitely the CCA for you.
The Word of Mouth search bar. Always handy, always helpful, (nearly) always reliable. But behind the scenes, what our readers key into it is a different story. Here are some of last term’s very best queries, taken from your collective search history. (Vol. 1 | Vol. 2)
Note: Queries posted here are completely unedited.
1. We Faced the Challenge of the Day: to Give Our School a Name
We think it’s safe to say that when Stamford Raffles held the torch, he probably didn’t cast the Promethean flame very far.
TL;DR: LiHo’s cheese tea is surprisingly good, Gong Cha is back. And for some reason, people seem to love asking us about both of these things.
“0% sugar milk tea” – Mar 2018
“liho best drink” – Apr 2018
“koi liho or gong cha” – Apr 2018
“best liho drinks” – May 2018
“most refreshing liho drink” – May 2018
6. Love, Actually
Valentine’s Day has come and gone, but as always, love is in the air. With cuffing season soon upon us, it’s time to revisit some of this term’s—ahem—curious queries.
“is it good to keep underground relationship” – Mar 2018
“why u shouldnt date in jc” – Mar 2018 (If you’re looking to be convinced, here’s a good place to start.)
“having relationship in jc” – Apr 2018
“dating in junior college” – Apr 2018
“junior college bgr” – Apr 2018
“boy girl relationships in jc” – Apr 2018
“is jc the best tkme to date” – Apr 2018 (Depends. But don’t take it from me; take it from the couples we interviewed.)
“dating in jc” – Apr 2018
“any platformnto have guy friend” – May 2018 (Just… go to school?)
“should there be opposite sex relationship among the secondary school students?” – May 2018 (Kids these days!)
“are rgs girls pretty” – May 2018 (KIDS THESE DAYS!!)
7. Does an Apple a Day Keep the Doctor(s) Away?
The quota for medical students in Singapore, despite remaining eye-poppingly low, apparently hasn’t managed to deter everyone. While we sympathise with your plight, medical hopefuls, this probably isn’t the place for the secrets you so frantically seek.
“getting into nus medicine” – Mar 2018
“how to get into nus medicine” – Mar 2018
“who was yong loo lin” – Apr 2018 (Might be wise to find out before you apply!)
“nus medicine interview results 2018” – Apr 2018
“nus dentistry admission results” – May 2018
8. When in Tekong…
“compulsory conscription of women exmaples” – Mar 2018 (Israel, for one.)
“why should women also serve ns” – Mar 2018
“views on females serving national service” – Apr 2018
“debate on singaporean women in army” – Apr 2018
“hate people who chao geng” – Apr 2018
“white horses in ns” – May 2018
“should females be conscripted” – May 2018 (Some think so.)
All I have to say is, we severely underestimated the extent to which Marvel fever would grip the populace. Still, with Black Panther raking in US$7.4 million here, I guess we should have seen it coming. “For Wakanda? Without question.”
“raffles press black panther” – Apr 2018
“wakanda nigeria” – Apr 2018
“wakanda” – May 2018 (Not once, not twice, not even thrice. This was searched twelve times in one month.)
“war rhino black panther” – May 2018 (Unless you’re Okoye, don’t even think about it!)
“black panther rhino” – May 2018
“wakanda from black panther” – May 2018
“rhino from black panther” – May 2018
“black panther image wakanda” – May 2018
“wakanda black panther” – May 2018
“black panther wakanda” – May 2018
“imagens de wakanda” – May 2018
“imagenes de black panther de wakanda” – Jun 2018 (For the record, I love the fact that some Portuguese speaker came to our website, saw the URL, and immediately concluded that this was the best place to find pictures of Wakanda.)
“can knights of pendragon get into the mcu” – May 2018
10. Singin’ the Blues
People, apparently, really love our take on blue-ticking. Although the following readers would probably be much better off taking the advice of one commenter: “Just turn off blue ticks, save yourself and your friends from the agony.”
“blue word with a tick” – Apr 2018
“blue ticking someone” – May 2018
“he blue ticked me” – May 2018 (The brevity of this one makes it all the more depressing.)
“lyrics about being blue ticked on whtsapp” – May 2018
“when they blue tick you and go offline without a word” – May 2018 (This sounds like a lyric from a sad country song.)
“blue ticked me” – Jun 2018
“should i blue tick her” – Jun 2018 (No! Or she’s going to end up searching #3 again.)
“how can i blue tick someone on texts” – Jun 2018
“how to handle blue ticks” – Jun 2018
“what does it mean when you are blueticked” – Jun 2018
11. r/AskRaffles
The last time we collected your questions, you memorably asked if Mr Rollason was still alive. (Which, by the way, he is.) In keeping with tradition, this round of queries did not disappoint, and we’ll endeavour to do the same.
“what is a jc lecture” – Apr 2018 (Basically: we gather in a big hall and try not to fall asleep for an hour at a time.)
“how to sit for sat in singapore” – Apr 2018
“how to get euphoria bts on spotify” – Apr 2018 (As I have been reliably informed, you can’t. You can watch it on YouTube, though.)
“can i do psychology with physics a level” – Apr 2018 (Yep. All you need is math.)
“where to study in causeway point on public holiday” – May 2018
“why dont the people in pasir ris dog farm allow people to touch the dogs?” – Jun 2018
“what are the stages of dance in cca” – Jun 2018
12. Assorted Amusements
I must confess: none of these queries have anything to do with one another. (Y’all search a lot of weird stuff that’s almost impossible to categorise!) But they’re funny, and that’s what really matters at the heart of this arguably farcical column.
“where to hobo at singapore” – Mar 2018
“are ruggers tough” – Mar 2018
“raffles press ugly truth behind” – Apr 2018 (Why didn’t they finish their search, you ask? Because we killed this person before they could expose us.)
“example of conversation between a principal and the assistant principal” – Apr 2018 (I know we’re a school paper, but this is like, oddly specific.)
“what is the meaning of the phrase hustle hit never quit” – May 2018
“how to survive life in singapore proson” – May 2018 (Are you planning to be thrown in jail? We have so many questions!)
“changi airport group scholarship scholarship rate” – May 2018 (Please free us from the Changi Airport queries. Please.)
“other unexpected food courts eg. costco, supermarket, ikea” – May 2018 (Do you, like, walk into food courts not knowing they’re food courts? I’m intrigued.)
“calorie in homaido slamon burger macdonald” – May 2018
“cap wored with suspenders and bowtie” – May 2018 (Steal his look!)
“without faith it is impossible to please god images” – Jun 2018
“mac won’t print to printer” – Jun 2018 (Trust me, we’ve all been there.)
13. ????
“indian group smile png” – Mar 2018
“barefoot everyday” – Mar 2018
“show tourism icons on mind the gap” – Mar 2018
“poker scene cinematography” – Mar 2018
“flying thrown judo” – Apr 2018
“ancient mummy แร็คthor” – Apr 2018
“origami head” – Apr 2018
“paper human head” – May 2018 (Honestly, I didn’t want to say it, but y’all have an obsession with heads that is bordering on unhealthy.)
“poverty shoes” – May 2018
“xxx bload new 2018video” – Jun 2018
Honourable Mentions
Let’s Not Get Irrational
“is h2 math important” – Mar 2018 (Honestly? Not really.)
“is h1 math” – Apr 2018 (You know that feeling when doing math leaves you so numb you forget how to finish a sentence?)
“need to pass m2 to take h2 math” – May 2018
“ri failed math 2 can still take h2 math” – May 2018 (To this poor reader, who queried both of these in quick succession: yes, you can. Just make sure you pass both M1 and M2 overall.)
“h2 math syllabus change vectors” – May 2018
The Perennial Woes of Project Work
“2018 a level project work explained” – Mar 2018
“when will a level result project work” – Apr 2018
“a for pw” – Apr 2018
“is getting a for project work hard” – Apr 2018 (It’s as hard as you make it out to be, basically.)
Friendship is Magic
“sec achool friends and jc friends” – Mar 2018
“no friends in jc” – Apr 2018
“friendship in jc” – Jun 2018
Whoever Just Gave Up, Keysmashed and Hit Search, Because Honestly Same
“syfchvkccz” – Apr 2018
“b3comganguscka_po4bl6s613z_5golpnk8xwv0rs7bngatol6_iwnu5i8rgsxlswakcrftk74avcyqkvh0yrvtyalz8xulss6ssgo3vm4phs9_fgknk-tdxgcq1lguh2ynyw2keayrnwzpz89rahorkfawy77jop5a_wisths2qkgdojzaofls_wdunqnnx1wfsw_3ss4tf4ygj15mlkt3v639uqd4xgdt7hlni-i2f3tboejjlxocfho1ub5dummfhcdrf3w18lk_grhfjoqauxcmzhp8eygfuechgvdcwd7-wty5xwgfi3otlmoms7upyuahk7l2myb21dipvqq” – Jun 2018
“fhf9sdpkwdxqrc34b3a0oibdno6ia2dkmcpyaykuw2w5l1r4fsoaabvh74qrcywkdxrmtadvvqiovx-vokk2snhfa3dvxzjje8ajcag9a_dxjxinfwumnup3ja5cswgtnhmnvdydqn9djcrdhmjg8r-8l68tsm3qsqkx2yetucm5nspv6tgahty5bghdf7l_igh_bnfbp30vjg3hkfbwx0qkizfmla3xs6nlhnuod3v8epmrhz9ve7ql9uasxkggas92g8voepvak6varb6gfadezwatyef9lunvmgxtx7vbnht6o61n16_j7ompnd5ltmuaq6let9cowh9uty0u2a” – Jun 2018 (Yes, this was a real search.)
Cover Art is “Flood in the Art Room” by Yu Ke Dong, which was also exhibited at Idëa.
By Alyssa Marie Loo (19A13A)
Peer into the fishbowl art room and it might feel like peeking into an alternate dimension. In fact, H2 Art students befittingly look like aliens during crunch weeks: urban legends speak of them wandering blearily across school halls, finally settling to hermit in the art room until 9-10pm. If you’ve ever asked, ‘why do these Art Room creatures torture themselves as such?’, you would’ve found the answer by visiting these mythical beings and their creations at their inaugural Art Show 2018, Idëa, held in November this year.
The art room turned into a gallery!
A department store spoof on an art exhibition, Idëa was a multi-location, multi-media showcase of this Y5 batch’s work (and though all the artworks had price tags, we were sad to learn that nothing was actually on sale!). What a grand showcase it was indeed: the Art Room — usually an organised anarchy of a classroom–was turned into a gallery overnight. Arranged on white flats were artist mood boards, gathered from each artist’s UOB Painting process, style transposition task and various other assignments done during the year. If that didn’t already give enough detail, sketchbooks waited on the table for any curious hands to leaf through, and eager art students hovered around to catch any questions.
Valerie Lu (19S05A) introducing her mood board to guests.
Despite the different style, subject and artist influences displayed on each mood board, there was one striking commonality across them all: a tireless refinement through trial and error. All moodboards proudly displayed ‘incomplete’ works: a photorealistic cat study missing an eye, multiple tiny canvases just exploring brushwork and colour, and 1st trial studies that still had a long way to be refined. The well-worn sketchbooks were also bulging with photographs, painting pieces and attachments that students had stuffed inside, their pages filled not just with visuals but also paragraphs of words detailing thoughts and research. To us, the first thing that the art show showed us was that merely looking perfect and pretty is a gross misunderstanding of art as a discipline. And this is perhaps clue one to understanding why art students seem so endlessly busy: art requires endlessly making quantities of exploration before anything translates into quality.
Visitors looking at the sketchbooks on display.
And certainly after all their slogging, the batch is deservedly proud of their works. Eager artists personally gave visitors walking tours to art installations placed around the school, with each piece responding to its respective space. Experiencing these spaces first-hand alongside installations, even mundane walkways became places of special experiences.
One such artwork was Zara Asriani’s (19S07B) installation: 4 printed panels displayed on the Block C 4th level walkway, facing the sculpture garden. The work featured distressed, scratchy grayscale backgrounds, with circles of colour floating across each panel. Despite seeming detachedly abstract, Zara’s work warmed our hearts when she shared that it was “inspired by a friend who blew bubbles”. (Even we had heard of this mysterious bubble blower in the 2018 batch, oft spotted spreading soapy love after tutorial blocks!) Our appreciation grew when we learned that the circle-bubbles contained coloured facades of A/B block, while the scratchy background was edited from the cement ground of the installation. To us, Zara’s work perfectly captured the feeling of wonder when we see schoolmates doing small acts of kindness (and zaniness), adding rhythm and colour to an otherwise monotonous school life.
Aside from the campus installations, another set of stunning artworks were the batch’s submissions to the UOB Painting of the Year competition. The large paintings sat humbly at Pick-Up Point 4, their quiet presence not at all betraying the arduous month of effort, heart and soul that had been poured into every work.
Alvin’s “The Art of Painting” on the left.
We found Alvin Lim’s (19S06B) painting particularly tongue-in-cheek, aptly named “The Art of Painting”. The model in the painting casts an arresting gaze at the viewer through the canvas, while a painter paints him within, well, the painting. The self-referential nature of the painting depicting the process of painting is both amusing and intriguing, and its baffling effect is enhanced even further considering that the two depicted figures are based on the actual artist himself. Furthermore, Alvin uses an impressionist style to great thematic effect to emphasise that, even while depicting a scene of painting, the original work is undoubtedly a painting as well. With its lilac-mustard pallette and subtle vignette, the work also has a dreamlike quality that cohesively packages its self-referential theme.
The batch after a long night’s work at the art show.
Yet, not everything in the art room is about reaching intellectual and artistic heights. Asking curators Zara and Valerie Lu (19S05A) about the name Idëa, Zara casually explained that it was “because we stay late and we go to Chill a lot, and ‘cause a mini-mart….has a variety and assortment of things just like our batch”, while Valerie laughed that “we were just bouncing each other’s ideas off and suddenly Idëa!” Perhaps this gives a glimpse into the character of the art batch: while being a group frenzied with individual artist development, it is also at the same time a warm, tight-knit family that is bonded through long hours, mutual suffering, but most importantly, love and trust for each other’s growth.
And because of that, maybe the art room’s vibrancy and its students’ unbelievable dedication to their craft aren’t all that incomprehensible after all.
“A lot of things have happened this year but it all made us stronger. […] We grew a lot not just as art students, but as people.”
By Loh Su Jean (19A01A), Chairperson, Audrey Wan Earn Jia (19A13A), Vice-Chairperson, Yu Ke Dong (19A13A), Treasurer, Ada Lum (19S06O), Quartermaster, Hannah Chiah (19S06T), Quartermaster, and Naia Nathan (19A01A), Secretary
No, we’re not those kind of players.
Raffles Players is a one-of-a-kind one-and-a-half-year journey that’ll take you from “do we have a script?” to curtain call. In other words, we’ll show you what it takes to put up a show-stopping theater production. In the process, you’ll pick up skills you never thought you’d need, receive mentorship from experienced and well-learned theatre practitioners and make some of the best friends and memories of your JC life.
Be warned, the path to becoming a full-grown Player isn’t exactly paved with roses. Between the late-night set construction, hysteria in the lights box, and that one monologue that no one can remember right, Raffles Players is certainly not the CCA for anyone looking for a simple commitment.
Raffles Players is a vibrant community passionate enough to put any idea into practice. Here, you might just find your home away from home. And as the last spotlight shuts its golden eye and the music reaches crescendo, no one could say the people around you weren’t worth the effort.
Do you need Broadway or West End experience? Absolutely not. We are open to new additions from all walks of life; the greater the diversity, the better. We love having a good time, and between our zumba warm-up sessions and pre-production dance parties, we sure as hell know how to have it! And despite the niche appeal of drama, the things we learn range far beyond what is only applicable in the theatre, including basic construction and design skills, vocal projection, body language and public speaking techniques (perfect for PW OP). Sounds good? Let’s continue!
We love a good time.
What productions do you do?
Raffles Players engages in three or more significant productions each year, making it a pretty hectic time at certain points of the school year.
Dramafeste/ SYF
The first production of note is either Dramafeste or SYF; both events are biennial and take place in lieu of each other every year. Dramafeste is a inter-house competition organised by Raffles Players, where teams of house members put up small 15 minute plays and are judged for their creativity, flair, and wit (as well as responsibility and cleanliness!) It is an exciting time, where both Players and non-Players put their minds together and invent brilliant skits to entertain their schoolmates.
In the case of SYF (Singapore Youth Festival), Raffles Players creates a 15 minute play from scratch and presents it at the Festival. We work hard for many months to put together a good play, and for many of us, it’s an important experience that allows us to learn from each other and from other talented theatre students.
College Production
Our College Production is held once a year at the Performing Arts Centre. You may have heard of our College Production last year: Noises Off, a three-hour farce comedy featuring an eight person cast, a revolving two-storey set piece and a whole lot of sardines. College Productions usually involve both senior and junior batches working together, with two or three performance nights and a larger cast and crew. These tend to be ambitious, large in scale and highly demanding, but are also the most exciting productions of the year.
A scene from our College Production “Noises Off”, which featured physical stunts, lots of doors that opened and closed but were not necessarily capable of both, and which had the audience in helpless laughter at the end of the show.
J1 Production
Our J1 Productions, held during the A Level period when the seniors have gone into extreme studying mode, are meant for the junior batch to experiment and find their own unique theatrical voices. This year’s J1 batch put up a double bill: Five Angry Spirits and Everything But The Brain. The two plays’ distinctive styles, narratives, and directions left the audience reeling.
And that’s a wrap!
What are the hours like?
You may have heard that we have only one official CCA session, on Wednesday from 3pm to 5pm. This, however, often doesn’t hold true. During production season, these sessions often go into overtime, and that’s given that members often attend additional rehearsals twice, thrice, and occasionally, even four times a week to prepare themselves for production night.
What do you do in sessions?
What we do in sessions often depends on whether it’s production season or not. When we aren’t conducting our own rehearsals for upcoming productions, we are honoured to have seasoned theatre practitioners and trainers from Buds Theatre Company to come in and teach us the art of drama, from mime and improvisation workshops to musical theatre trainings.
When it comes to production season, what we do during sessions highly depends on your own role, which will differ in each production so that everyone has an opportunity to learn new skills and gain new experiences.
For instance, if you have been cast as an actor, you will likely be working together with talented castmates to achieve a moving portrayal of your character. If you are a part of the Lights and Sounds committee, you will be working with an exciting range of technical effects to give the production that out-of-this-world sensation. If you are a part of the Sets committee, you will have a hand in designing and putting together set pieces to bring the production to life.
Learn your cues and the ladies of Lights and Sounds will smile fortune down on you.
If you’ve been placed in Production comm, which includes roles such as stage manager and production manager, you’ll be the glue that holds everything together, tackling everything from taking stock of props to scheduling rehearsals. And of course, the Director provides the creative vision for the team to adhere to.
Should I join Players?
While some of our members come with a background in drama, many of us do not. However, what remains consistent is the willingness to try out new things; in other words, be a good sport. We don’t presume to know everything; therefore, we also have to be receptive to criticism from our mentors and from each other. We are also a relatively small CCA, so our members have to stay committed and work together as a team to put everything together for the big night.
Dedicating ourselves to creating a brilliant production is probably the most important prerequisite to being a Player. We are nothing if not passionate about the art of theatre , and we take joy in putting together a good play that we all thought would be impossible to achieve.
Auditions will take place some time in February. It’ll include segments such as monologue reading, interviews, group improvisation, and more! Sounds intimidating? Don’t worry, because our CCA seniors will be around to provide a guiding hand and make things as fun and chill as possible!
So, do you believe you fit the bill (pun intended)? Will you cast in your lot with Raffles Players (again, pun intended)? Then see you at our auditions soon!
By Joash Ho (19S03J), Chairperson and Janika Oh (19S05B), Vice-Chairperson
[DISCLAIMER: To all geology enthusiasts, this CCA is a far cry from an intellectual pursuit.]
The magnitude of sound was astronomical. The decibel level was on the threshold of pain. The barrage of sound assaulted my eardrums mercilessly. With each strike of the drums, I could feel the intense reverberations of the organs within my chest.
Welcome, to just another practice in the Jamming Studio, the humble abode of Raffles Rock. A lot of people have seen Rock perform – the violent head-banging, the jumping, the screaming. But what really happens behind the scenes of a typical CCA session? Do we just stand around in a circle and sing songs? (no, you’re not the first one to ask this) (and yes, we do this). A typical practice begins with us coming into the studio and randomly jamming some tunes. After a couple rounds of “YOUR AMP IS TOO LOUD” and “SHUT UP”, we start getting down to business and practise songs that we have chosen to play for upcoming gigs. Sometimes we don’t really have a specific agenda and we start randomly jamming to classics like the intro of Sweet Child O’ Mine except we all play it in a different key, or the chorus of 童话 with the iconic up-key transition not two but eight times (or until the vocalists start sounding like Mickey Mouse being rolled over by a truck).
These sessions officially occur on Tuesday afternoons from 4.30 to 7pm and on Thursdays from 3.30 to 5pm, if needed. However, we usually go to the studio the moment class has ended, and only leave when school security comes knocking on the studio door.
Snapshot of afterhours at Sian Chay Charity Concert 2018
Apart from school events and YFC gigs, Raffles Rock usually holds two annual concerts: Rock In, held in school around April, and our main event, Rockout, held at *SCAPE at the start of the June holidays. While Rock In is held in the middle of the school term, there is NO excuse not to buy a ticket to attend Rockout! Along with professional sound and light crews, an imaginative stage design and months of hard work from the J1 and J2 bands, Rockout is a full-fledged rock concert and definitely does not disappoint.
Rockout 2018
Raffles Rock is mentored by Mr Ian Toh, who is also the director at Thunder Rock Music School. Ian is probably the only guy you will see walking around in school with long silky hair (that changes its colour with the seasons), while wearing a Pokemon shirt paired with berms. He’s a big name in the local music scene, and he knows just about everything from insider info about your favourite local band, to why certain pop artists are absolute trash. He gives us tips on how we can improve as a band, and often imparts valuable life lessons to us. TLDR: Ian is the coolest person ever (don’t ever tell him we said that). Speaking of cool, with the guidance of our guardian angels/teachers Dr Lena Lui (or Mrs Teo) and Ms Ng Pei San, the loons of Raffles Rock are always kept in check, allowing our delicate eardrums to live another day.
Rock loves Ian.
But how do you join the ranks of our sacred fellowship? One does not simply become a part of Rock until they go through a rite of passage to prove that they truly are worthy. Firstly, come for our OPEN JAM! We’ll be holding a chill jamming session before auditions, so come and jam with us – all are welcome! If you like what you see at the OPEN JAM and think you’ve got what it takes to be the next Singapore Idol, then come for our auditions! You’ll have to play one set piece (which will be released during JIP) and one song of your choice in front of us, our teachers and Ian. Auditions are chill and you don’t have to be too worried. It’ll just be like your first time jamming with us so just relax and have fun, we promise we won’t bite!
We’re hoping to accept roughly 2 vocalists, 2 guitarists, 1 bassist, 2 keyboardists and 2 drummers. However, this is subject to change based on the talent pool next year. Rock is a really small but tightly-knit CCA, and through Rock camp, gigs and countless CCA dinners, you’ll certainly forge some of your closest friendships. For many of us here in this CCA, Rock is the thing that we look forward to the most in JC, and it’s a safe haven where we can unwind through music after a long tiring day in school. It’s a place where you can just be yourself and goof around, and there’s never a dull day in Rock!
Several generations of Rock together at Rock Camp 2018
If you’ve ever looked in the mirror and thought, “Hey there, you’re a rockstar”, or simply imagined yourself on stage surrounded by deafening music and blinding lights in front of a hyped-up, jumping crowd, then maybe you should try out for Rock! We aren’t looking for the most technically advanced musicians who can play Bach with just their nose when they were 3, or the Eddie Van Halens who can tap the fretboard at the speed of light. If you have a love for music, a positive learning attitude and a passion for Rock, then we promise you that joining Rock will be something that you will never regret!
Follow us @rafflesrock on Instagram for more updates!
