Get Ahead: Join A Student Organization

I'm in my fourth year of college, and I've just discovered something: Student Groups. I figure I may be well behind the curve on this discovery, but if your like me, and you haven't realized the potential benefits of joining a student organization on campus, keep reading.

I'm interested in developing a career in television one day. The majority of my accomplishments which would lead me toward this goal are the day dreams I have while in a class about Victorian Literature (I went the romantic route and decided on an English major). Recently, a friend invited me to a meeting for a group called Student Video Productions.

And boy, how it hit me, when I realized how much I'd been missing out.

The group was filled with my peers, all interested in developing programs and, well, video productions. They offered oppurtunities to create and produce shows that actually air on T.V. Not only that, but they offer an array of services. They have a vast amount of cameras available to rent, as well as people who are willing to teach you to utilize all of their capabilities.

Forgive me if I seem naive, but this was all too good to be true.

I came to realize all of the oppurtunities associated with joining a student group, as well as the potential resume builders. Student Video Productions boasts a budget of more than $50,000. The treasurer is sure going to have something to brag about.

In addition to all the practical aspects of joining such a group, it's also just a lot of fun. There are people there who share similar interests, and you get to immerse yourself in your own passions and potentially find new ones.

Box Office Blab

This past weekend the Dr. Seuss animated feature Horton Hears A Who topped the box office yet again, taking it's 2 week total to more than 86 million. If this says one thing, it's surely: Don't mess with the animated epics. Pixars slew of animated features (everything from the Toy Story's to last years academy award winning Ratatouille) have all proven to be box office gold. Though their budgets can border around the 100 million mark, they have each gone on to take in at least three times that amount. Dreamworks Animation, which produced the Shrek trilogy, has grossed nearly 4.5 billion dollars since 2000, with their budgets amounting to about 1 billion. That's a lot more than your average Bee Movie.

Also of interest Tyler Perry's new feature: Tyler Perry's: Meet The Browns. I think Perry's name carries clout. He's one of America's most successful playwrights, and his first feature, Diary of a Mad Black Woman, gross over 50 million on a budget of a little more than 5 million. His next movie, and the latter's sequel, Madea's Family Reunion, duplicated that success plus 10 million, bringing it's box office revenues to more than 60 million. All of Perry's movies have seen substantial profit, as well as more than modest opening weekends. It looks like Perry has a bright future (as well as present) ahead of him.

As for Drillbit Taylor, it's safe to say it's a dissapointing weekend for the Owen Wilson helmed project. It may go on to gross around 20 million, but with a $40 million budget, it seems that Taylor's a dud. The trailers weren't very appealing, with Owen Wilson being the only recognizable figure in the cast. It looked as though they were trying to reproduce the success of last years surprise hit Superbad. (Seth Rogen was a writer on both)

10,000 B.C.'s steam is dying down, as it brings its total tally to 76 million. Though it's budget is almost double that, worldwide it's surpassed 150 million. College Road Trip, starring Martin Lawrence and Rayven Symone seems to be a modest hit with $32 million up to date (I can't imagine the budget was more than half that).

Look forward to this as a new feature on It's A Generation Y Thing.

Sources: The-numbers.com, wikipedia.org

Past Weekend Box Office Results

Weekend Box Office Estimates: Mar 21-23, 2008
Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears A Who! (Fox) $25.1 million 2 wk total $86.5m
Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns (Lionsgate) $20.0 million opening weekend
Shutter (Fox) $10.7 million opening weekend
Drillbit Taylor (Paramount) $10.2 million opening weekend
10,000 B.C. (Warner Bros.) $8.7 million 3 wk total $76.1m
Never Back Down (Summit) $4.9 million 2 wk total $16.8m
College Road Trip (Buena Vista) $4.6 million 3 wk total $32.0m
The Bank Job (Lionsgate) $4.1 million 3 wk total $19.4m
Vantage Point (Sony) $3.8 million - 5 wk total $65.3m
Under the Same Moon (Weinstein Co.) $2.6 million opening weekend
Source: Box Office Mojo

Come back for an analysis.