City Times – Angelica Wallingford

Life behind the screen(writer)

Longtime San Diego City College screenwriting professor Russell Redmond recalls his adventurous life in TV, cinema and education

In the quiet corner of the first floor of the L building, students stagger out into the unusually hot September sun on their last in-class session of Introduction to Screenwriting class. Left behind was a their teacher, longtime San Diego City College professor and screenwriter Russell Redmond.

“Russell is very patient, and you can gather the fact, especially when it comes to the attention given,” Erny Rivera, a student enrolled in Redmond’s online Introduction to Screenwriting class said. “Writing is still a delicate craft, to which Russell helps transform into an artform.”

Underneath Redmond’s casual demeanor lies a fun and energetic man with a passion for all things cinema and storytelling. Sitting behind a small desk in L-108 he began to recall his colorful journey to that lead to his love of film and teaching screenwriting at City; starting with his love of stories.

“I was always interested in storytelling,” Redmond said. “You know, you grow up watching TV as a little kid and you go ‘oh, that looks like fun’ and it seems exciting and so you proceed down that avenue thinking ‘maybe I’ll be interested in that’.”

He recalled going through high school and being in that phase all young men and women go through and figure out what they want to do with their future.

“…You have to decide (and say) ‘well, you know I think I really have a burning desire to get into film’ and of course everybody want to be not only an actor but a film director or someone else,” Redmond said. “I mean they want to do everything… and that was me.”

After graduating high school Redmond left Carlsbad and headed north to attend the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). After he graduated in 1973, Redmond received an offer from his screenwriting teacher, so he packed up and headed to Europe where he wrote for the BBC show “The Old Man’s Blood.”

After his run writing for the show, he moved to the European film capital of Almeria to work on a screenplay about “The Little Prince” author Antoine de Saint-Exupery and work as an extra in Spanish Western films starring Jack Palance and others.

During his stay in Almeria he was approached by director Sergio Corbucci, best known for his Spaghetti Western films and being a protege of Sergio Leone, to star in a film called “The Three Man War.”

“… It’s was a modern World War II movie where there’s three characters: a German, an Italian an Englishman; and it’s set in the desert of Libya but of course we’ll shoot it here in Spain,” Redmond recalled. “There was an interesting plot about it but there was only three characters in it. One of them was going to be Peter O’Toole, the other was Anthony Quinn and the other third one was going to be me.”

Funding for the film eventually fell through, however, before Redmond learned of that he boarded a plane and headed home to the United States where he got an agent and wrote more screenplays. About a year after he returned to the U.S. he dropped out of the film scene and became an illustrator in San Diego and Los Angeles for 10 years.

In the ‘90s Redmond struck up a friendship with City College professor Hope Shaw, whom he and his wife had met while sailing through Mexico working on various projects. Shaw became a great friend and told Redmond that she wanted to retire and if he would be interested in taking on one of her screenwriting classes.

“I said ‘no way, me teach, you’re crazy’ I mean no way I was going to do that,” Redmond said. “I just thought that was the worst Idea and that woman could talk anyone into anything. She was good; and by God she talked me into it and I finally said ok, I’ll do this one class and I went in there and I realized that this isn’t so bad.”

When Shaw died Redmond was asked to teach both sections of the Introduction to Screenwriting class, where he enjoys talking about films with his students.

“You end up talking about stuff that you should be remembering all the time you know you go back to beginning screenwriting and you start talking to kids about characterizations and how you should structure your film and motivations…’” Redmond said. “…you’re really getting in there, in the nitty gritty of the ‘this doesn’t work and that doesn’t work’ so you’re thinking about film structure all the time.”

RTVF department chair Laura Castaneda has worked with Redmond since she started as a part-timer at City College in 2000.

“It’s such an incredible experience (working with him),” Castaneda said. “He’s such an interesting person with an interesting perspective on life.”

Currently, Redmond has a short film out called “El Camino,” based on a true story about an undocumented woman’s journey through rough terrain to get back to the U.S. after visiting her sick father in Mexico, which he released through his production company Work With Me Films and hopes to make a feature film out of it here in San Diego in the near future.

Originally published in City Times, January 2016.

Paris attacks hit home

Parisian born San Diego City College professor Philippe Patto shares his reactions and thoughts on the Nov. 13 Paris terror attacks

On the night of Nov. 13, one of the deadliest attacks on French soil since World War II occurred in multiple locations across Paris and Saint-Denis claiming more than 132 lives.

Meanwhile, 5,000 miles away, San Diego City College professor Philippe Patto was in a park with his husband walking their dog when he heard the news that his hometown was under attack.

“My husband had the phone and he got beeped for an alarm,” Patto said. “He checked and he told me the news and right away.”

Patto heard from a friend in France via email about the situation but had poor reception so he and his husband went back home.

“We had the headline and I was devastated when I heard,” Patto said. “I didn’t know what was happening.”

The attacks started at approximately 9:20 p.m. French time and lasted until 9:53 p.m.

The three suicide bombers detonated an explosive belts near a gate and on the outside of the Stade de France stadium during an international soccer game, according to Reuters. A fourth suicide bomber detonated another bomb in Le Comptoir Voltaire restaurant, killing himself and injuring one person.

In the midst of the several suicide bombers detonating their explosives, gunmen opened fire in the front of the A La Bonne Biere bar and the terrace of the La Belle Equipe restaurant, killing a total of five people and severely injuring 18 more, Reuters also reported.

The deadliest of the terror attacks happened during an Eagles of Death Metal concert at the Bataclan theater and concert hall where gunmen opened fire on the crowd killing 89 people and injuring many others.

Luckily, Patto had no family in the area during the attacks.

“When it happened, I didn’t think it would affect me this much and it really hit me hard, I’ve been trying to grasp what happened,” Patto said. “What shocked me the most was that it took place in France.”

French President Francois Hollande has called the terror attacks an “act of war” and places blame on the Islamic State (IS).

“France will be merciless in its response to the Islamic State militants,” Hollande said, according to the BBC. “(France) will use any means within the law … on every battleground here and abroad together with our allies.”

While the culprits responsible for act remain unknown, IS has taken credit for the attack stating that “eight brothers wearing explosive belts and carrying assault rifles” attacked “carefully chosen” individuals, according to the BBC.

Patto feels that Hollande’s instant reaction to the attacks was expected and that as a leader Hollande wanted to show the French people that the government was doing something and that those responsible wouldn’t just get away with it.

“I’m just hopeful that we will not take drastic measures and go into war with somebody,” Patto said about the possibility of France entering into war. “We don’t even know where they are, we don’t even know who they are.”

Patto hopes that the end result will be a well balanced one and that Hollande will reach out to other countries so that attacks of this magnitude will not happen not only to the French people but anyone around the world.

The attacks sparked a great debate over admitting Syrian refugees not only in the United States but around the world. Since the attacks, Congress swiftly passed a bill that suspended the admittance of both Syrian and Iraqi refugees into the U.S. and 31 governors oppose accepting Syrian refugees into their states, according to CNN.

“That is fear,” Patto said “As long as we react out of fear we are not any different than the terrorists.”

“I think it’s wrong for the government to implement such drastic measures like that,” student Raul Flores said about congress’ decision. “You can’t place all the sins of the attackers onto the refugees, they can’t be condemned for what the attackers did.”

In contrast to the U.S., Hollande said that France will accept more than 30,000 Syrian refugees within the next two years.

Patto cites the outpouring of support from all around San Diego, such as the candlelight vigil at the House of France in Balboa Park, as something that is much needed during this situations for both the people of France and the Syrian refugees

“We should never act out of fear, we should react out of love and try to understand,” Patto commented. “I say to my students ‘there’s plenty of love in the world,’ it’s the thing we need right now, love not fear.”

Originally published in City Times, December 2015.

City College stands with Umpqua

About 200 of San Diego City College’s faculty, staff and students gathered for a moment of silence for the victims of the Umpqua Community College shooting in Oregon on Oct. 8 in Gorton Quad.

The moment of silence at City was a part of a larger observation coordinated by the American Association of Community Colleges, according to The San Diego Union-Tribune.

“I think it’s for all of us to be aware that safety is all of our business. Safety is something that we all ought to be aware of. We can’t just rely on a certain group of people but we all have to be aware of safety at the college and we have to be the eyes and ears for the police department,” City College President Anthony Beebe said. “It’s a big campus; it’s 60 square acres here and the only way that we can have the entire place covered is if all of us take a little bit of responsibility in making sure that we report anything’s weird or suspicious like I was saying and making sure that somebody’s aware of it. Don’t just turn your back and walk away. We can’t do that; we have to be responsible for that. That’s the critical piece of it.”

In his President’s Waypoint newsletter, Beebe addressed the tragedy at Umpqua and recalled the time he spent in Roseburg, Oregon, as a firefighter just one mile from the community college.

“… No one could have imagined that some 40 years later, the small community college just a mile down the road from that station would become the site of the most deadly mass shooting in Oregon history,” Beebe wrote.

San Diego Community College District Chancellor Constance M. Carroll also released a statement to the district’s faculty and staff on the shooting on Oct. 1.

“Our thoughts, best wishes, and support have been extended to our colleagues at Umpqua for what they have suffered today and for the valuable and promising lives that have been lost,” the statement said.

Carroll also referred to a YouTube video entitled “RUN. HIDE. FIGHT. Surviving an Active Shooter Event.” The almost six-minute video shows what options people could have in a potential active shooter situation.

“… Coping with an active shooter situation is a matter of personal decision,” Carroll wrote in her statement. “Therefore, I am resending the video that was previously distributed and discussed at our campus and departmental meetings.”

On Oct. 6, President Beebe sent a follow-up email to City College faculty and staff thanking them for the outpouring of responses he received from his President’s Waypoint.

In the email, Beebe tells faculty and staff that he met with Chancellor Carroll before the weekly Chancellor’s Cabinet meeting to address everyone’s concerns.

Beebe also mentioned that he also brought up those concerns during the Chancellor’s Cabinet meeting.

“In the end, the Chancellor’s Cabinet was unanimous that the district move forward with the following 12 point safety response plan for City College,” Beebe said via the statement.

The 12-point safety response plan includes the hiring of two full-time City College officers, police forums and town hall meetings, safety and evacuation plan, safety surveys and “Knight Patrol,” paid student ambassadors who will act as the eyes and ears of administration and College Police, according to the email.

Originally published in City Times, October 2015.

Editorial: Prioritizing campus safety

On Oct. 1, Christopher Harper-Mercer fatally shot nine people and injured nine others in a rage-filled attack on Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon.

With this event still very fresh in everyone’s mind, it begs the questions: What if this happens at San Diego City College? Are students, staff and faculty prepared? Is there a plan?

Memories of evacuation and disaster drills are far gone in most of the minds of current City College students and most students currently have no experience with drills dealing with active shooter situations.

In light of this recent tragedy, it’s evident now more than ever that City College needs a plan. Not a plan that’s talked about through email to administrators and never really put into action but a plan that’s known by students, staff, faculty, administrators and everyone who  attends City on a regular basis.

A YouTube video entitled “RUN. HIDE. FIGHT. Surviving an Active Shooter Event,” linked to San Diego Community College District’s staff and faculty in an email by Chancellor Constance M. Carroll, shows three different ways people can deal with a potential active shooter situation.

In the Oct. 1 email, Carroll said that this particular video was discussed and distributed in departmental and campus meetings, which would mean that this issue would have been discussed long before the recent shooting in Oregon.

Why wasn’t any of this information or this video shared with students?

According to the 2014 edition of the City College Fact Book, the campus had 16,737 students in the spring 2014 semester. With thousands of students spread out over an open campus spanning 60 acres, you would think that some type of disaster preparation drill would have been shared with students at this point.

Students are usually told to just to report suspicious activity to the Campus Police or the San Diego Police Department wherever and whenever they see it on campus. The population at City College needs something more than “alert the police.” Alerting the proper authorities is a great idea, but we need to be aware of what else we can do when a major catastrophe happens. We need a plan of action. We need to have some ideas on what we can do during potentially dangerous situations.

The “RUN. HIDE. FIGHT.” video should have been shared with students. Not just shown and discussed at campus and departmental meetings. Showing and discussing with administration doesn’t really help if something were to happen on campus.

At the end of the day, it’s better to have a plan and not use it than to be left unprepared if something happens at City College.

Originally published in City Times, October 2015.

TV students’ work catches FBI attention

Police question ‘Newscene’ reporters after filming in front of building

Three San Diego City College student journalists were questioned by authorities before and after capturing video in front of San Diego’s FBI building on April 7 for a report on sex trafficking.

Abtin Mohammadi, Daniela Porter and a third student who doesn’t want to be identified were recording a stand-up report for “Newscene,” City College’s student broadcast news show, about how the FBI named San Diego the eighth most popular location for sex trafficking crimes to occur.

According to Mohammadi, one security guard said it was fine to capture footage in front of the building.

However, while the students were setting up equipment, another officer approached the students asking for their IDs, taking down their information and proceeding to give the three a half-hour time limit to shoot. After about 20 minutes, the same officer came out and told the students to wrap up filming.

Some time after filming in front of the FBI building, Porter and Mohammadi said that the third student involved told them that a detective from the San Diego Joint Terrorism Task Force came to her home while she wasn’t there with photos of them filming and wanted the footage that the three of them shot to be handed over.

“The (third student) called me and what she told me was that she wasn’t home; the detective went to her house when her mom was home …” explained Mohammadi.

Mohammadi said that the third student told him that the detective showed up at her house while she was not home. The detective told her mother that he heard of some suspicious filming at the FBI building and wanted to know who was involved with the recording and wanted the footage from the day they were filming.

Mohammadi also said that the third student said the detective’s name was Dan Vile.

In an email to “Newscene” adviser Laura Castaneda, provided by the San Diego Police Department media relations office, Vile said he wanted to verify who the students were and to make it clear that it was an assessment — not an investigation. Vile also verified that the students did speak with security personnel but did not state why they wanted to film in front of the FBI building and after filming in their first location moved to another location where it looked like the students were filming cars moving in and out of the building.

Vile wrote that while he understands that police visits can be uncomfortable, he said that it’s apart of the job of being an officer and maintained the visit with the third student’s mother was respectful. Vile also confirmed that the third student gave him the information he was looking for. Vile said that post Sept. 11, police have to be “as thorough as possible with our inquires.”

“To be clear, no one is questioning their rights to photograph or film the building. Nor is anyone saying what they did was illegal in any way,” Vile wrote. “However, it is not only appropriate, but also a necessity, for us to simply ask, ‘why.’ Their answer, or even lack of one, is their business.”

The FBI did not respond for comment at press time.

After the April 7 incident, Porter said that Mohammadi told her that he would take care of things and talk to Vile. However, on April 29, Porter received news from the third student involved that she needed to contact the detective because he had warrants out for the students involved.

“I found out from the third student involved what the message was, (she said) ‘Daniela he said he has a warrant on you guys and you must call him back’… then it was like wow, I didn’t know that … I didn’t like that at all,” Porter said.

Mohammadi said he called Vile and explained everything regarding the situation but that it seemed like the detective didn’t know exactly what was going on and asked for all of the information starting from the beginning.

After Mohammadi answered all the questions again, he said, the detective told him that everything was OK and that he just wanted to know because of “global terrorist things and suspicious activity out there.”

In an email statement, “Newscene” adviser Castaneda said, “I wish I could tell you more, but I’ve been asked by Dean Trudy Gerald to forward all law enforcement and media inquiries to her.”

The students have consulted with Frank D. LoMonte of the Student Press Law Center, a nonprofit organization that specializes in helping and educating high school and college journalists about the “rights and responsibilities embodied in the First Amendment and supporting the student news media in their struggle to cover important issues free form censorship,” according to its website.

“There’s no problem with asking why people are outside the building filming. That’s a perfectly fine security precaution,” LoMonte said via email. “But where the police very clearly crossed the line into harassment and intimidation was in going to a journalist’s house and asking to be given a copy of the film. That’s indefensible and it violated the journalist’s First Amendment rights, without question.”

“There were many more effective ways to verify whether the student was genuinely on a journalistic assignment outside the FBI building, but the police purposefully picked the most frightening way to send a message to the journalist: we know where you live. If all they cared about was verifying the journalist’s employment, they could have picked up the phone and contacted the professor in a non-threatening way, but they chose not to,” LoMonte continued.

“It’s scary that someone wants to talk to you since we didn’t do anything. … We have the rights of the First Amendment to record outside in a public space and any citizen has the same right …” Porter said.

According to Mohammadi and Porter, before the students started filming in front of the building on April 7, Mohammadi went to a security guard, showed him his student ID and explained who the students were, where they were from and why they were at the FBI building in Mira Mesa.

After talking with the security guard, the guard gave the students directions on where they could park and gave the green light for the students to film as long as they didn’t show the building or images of the FBI. While preparing to set up to film the stand-up, another officer came out and started asking questions.

”I went back to the car … to basically get ready, then an officer came out, out of his office and he asked us, ‘Where you guys come from?’” Mohammadi said. ”We told him we’re from City College, the local broadcasting station, then he asked us, ‘Are you guys students?’ and I said, ‘Yes, we are from City College and we’re doing a report …’” Mohammadi said.

The officer then asked the three students for their California IDs and, according to Porter and Mohammadi, wrote all three of their information in a log in order to verify that they were students and proceeded to give them half an hour to film.

“He asked us for a California ID … and I didn’t hesitate; I just bring it out and said, ‘Here’s my ID,’ (Porter) showed it to him and so did the other girl. So, he just wrote information …” Mohammadi explained.

Mohammadi said that the officer just wanted to verify that they were who they said they were and after he took down their information the officer told him that they could only film for a half-an-hour.

“We wanted to get the shot because it was almost sunset, so we didn’t have much time for the light, so we were like, ‘OK we want to do this fast’ … And that was when they asked us so many questions and we just really wanted to record because we were outside … This is a public place where we can record and it’s just, you know, a stand-up, and then you know they got very, um, intimidating,” Porter said.

“He didn’t tell us anything about what he was gonna do with (the information), he just wants to verify that ‘you’re a student as you said, we just want to see if you have valid everything,’” Mohammadi said.

After about 20 minutes of filming, the officer came out and told the students that they had to leave without any explanation.

“We explained to him exactly what we were going to do. … We’ll be on the streets, I’m gonna shoot (Porter) and (the third student) just gonna do a little piece, but then he came again despite knowing all the information and kind of rushed us off, very nervously saying that ‘you have to leave, you have to wrap up right now,’” Mohammadi said.

Mohammadi explained that the three students wrapped up quickly, packed up their equipment and left.

“There is nothing wrong with filming the exterior of federal buildings and the Department of Homeland Security and Federal Protective Services have put out memos instructing federal agents not to overreact if they see people peacefully and non-disruptively filming from a public space, as these student journalists were. The police department owes these students an apology and a promise of better training for its officers,” LoMonte said.

LoMonte also explained in his email statement that it’s routine for journalists to film in front of federal and government buildings and cites the coverage of the U.S. Supreme Court as an example.

San Diego City College Public Information Officer Heidi Bunkowske said via email, “I have not spoken with the students or the FBI so I cannot comment regarding filming activities.”

Originally published in City Times, May 2015.

ASG election dates extended by a week due to low turnout

In an effort to get more students involved with Associated Students Government, Student Affairs extended the election dates for the upcoming election in April.

Potential ASG candidates originally had until March 16 to get their election packets turned into the Student Affairs office in M-200 with voting to begin April 15-16. However, due to low candidacy turnout, the dates were extended until March 23 for candidates to turn in their packet with voting to take place April 22-23.

“What happened is that we didn’t get much of a response from people wanting to run for election,” Lori Oldham, student affairs coordinator, said. “We had so many places still to fill in the ASG that we extended a week in an effort to get more people to apply for the particular position.”

“If they meet the requirements and have a desire and if they really want to one, be a leader that support and that is there to help support and figure out ways of helping support students. That’s one thing, so we’ll see by extending it (election dates) if we can get those other positions filled with candidates,” William Ponder, student affairs manager, said.

The low turnout was unexpected since the voter turnout for the ASG election last year rose from one percent of City College’s population to three percent.

“I believe our voter turnout on campus increased by two percent,” said current ASG President Adam Garcia in a 2014 City Times article. “Our percentage before was one percent so our percentage increased by two, so it went up to three percent.”

Oldham and the current ASG administration have boosted their efforts by reaching out to students through digital signs, emails to faculty and staff, ASG’s website, City College’s website and classroom announcements.

Another new thing that Oldham is utilizing to help get students to get out and vote is candidate profiles on the ASG website.

“When Monday comes and candidates are there, I’m gonna ask for a headshot and a brief purpose statement … and post that on our website so that students can go online, in the ASG section, and see who’s running for president and what their position statement is, and vice president and down the line,” Oldham explained.

To increase voter turnout for the upcoming election, ASG is adopting new methods of voting including utilizing the computers in the new student services building and having polling stations peppered throughout campus.

“We’re moving the voting into areas where students … all they have to do is come out of their class and sit down and do the vote,” Ponder explained.

According to Oldham, ASG has been working with the IT department to dedicate ports for voting. The ports will be on the computers in the ASG office and designated secure laptops to combat voter fraud.

“We’ll have one (laptop) in front of the Student Affairs office, we’ll have one computer at the AH quad and then two down at the MS building,” Oldham said. “We wont sit there with a paper ballot saying ‘hey, have you voted?’ and then come have them fill out a paper ballot. We’re taking the vote to the people.”

For more information on ASG, including a full list of election dates, visit sdcity.edu/asg.

Originally published in City Times, March 2015.

Everybody plays: A look at video games’ most outspoken critic, why her arguments for change of gender tropes are misguided

To advocate for an issue that you’re passionate about is admirable, however, to demonize an entire group of people in the name of the issue your advocating for is completely and utterly wrong.

Take that mindset and apply it to one of the most controversial pop culture issues surrounding one of the most popular forms of entertainment and you’ll end up being knocked out so fast you swear you’re in “Street Fighter.”

The Gamergate controversy started in August 2014 when the scorned ex-boyfriend of indie game developer Zoe Quinn made a long blog post detailing their break up and accused her of a number of things including a relationship with Kotaku journalist Nathan Grayson.

Gamergate has sparked somewhat of an uproar in the gaming community and has made various figures such as Quinn and developer Brianna Wu bring up issues such as sexism, gamer identity and misogyny.

However, both Quinn and Wu have been relatively quiet compared to gaming’s most infamous outspoken critic – current gaming public enemy number one: Anita Sarkeesian.

Through her website and YouTube account Sarkeesian’s commentary on video games, called “Tropes vs. Women in Video Games” discusses famous gaming tropes such as the damsel in distress, the sexual object and the background character.

Sarkeesian’s bare bones argument about how there should be more women characters in video games – on top of the already long laundry list there are – is completely valid and is something that most, if not all, gamers are in completely favor of.

Where Sarkeesian’s argument falls flat is when she attacks and accuses gamers and developers of being sexist and misogynistic just for playing or developing a game that has even an ounce of sexualizing women or having violence against them.

“It gets worse and worse,” Sarkeesian said in an interview with ABC News. “It reinforces this idea that women are sexual objects… it reinforces the idea of women as… playthings for amusement.”

It almost goes without saying that Sarkessian’s strong comments, critiques and analysis against gaming has gotten her a lot of negative reactions and backlash. Sarkeesian, like everyone else in this world, has every right to voice her opinion, no matter how wrong or flawed her analysis about games and gamers might be.

However, gamers and developers also have the right to respond to her allegations of sexism and misogyny. The problem is that a very very small percent of gamers and “trolls” take things way too far, bombarding Sarkeesian, Quinn and Wu with a multitude of death and rape threats.

One of the most famous cases happened in October 2014 when Sarkeesian was to speak at the Utah State University. The university received terrorist threats from a person perpetuating a student. The letter-writer said they would commit “the deadliest school shooting in American history,” and cited the 1989 Montreal Massacre as inspiration.

That threat was just one of many threats that Sarkeesian and company get on an almost daily basis. Death and rape threats like these are proving her point that gamers are sexists and misogynists that only want gaming to be some sort of a “boys club,” which, on the grander scale of gaming is false.

If the small percentage of gamers and trolls really want to make a statement about Sarkeesian’s skewed critiques and analysis then they would stay silent.

Silence speaks volumes. If they would just keep their mouths shut and log off of whatever social media site they frequent then Sarkeesian and her war against tropes would just go away and fade out. However, that doesn’t mean that Sarkeesian can completely escape criticism.

For Sarkeesian to call an entire group of people, both male and female, sexist for killing random woman character A on the street in “Watch Dogs ”or for picking up a prostitute in an off-brand knock off of a Ferrari the “Grand Theft Auto” franchise is completely absurd.

Objectives such as these examples are almost always optional when playing a game. No one is going to hold a computer generated coded gun to your characters head and make them do any of those things. It’s all up to the player, which brings in a discussion of the person playing, not video games at large.

To accuse developers of being misogynists because they have sexy female fan service characters or the token female character is illogical. By that conclusion, that would mean that the developers of games such as the “Call of Duty” and “Wolfenstein” franchises are Nazi sympathizers for featuring Nazi figures in their games. It would mean that Juliet Starling of “Lollipop Chainsaw” would just be that sexy blonde all-American cheerleader sucking on lollipops and not the fierce chainsaw wielding, limb maiming, decapitating zombie slayer that she is in the game.

The fact is, none of these age-old video game tropes are going away anytime soon.

Mario is always going to save Princess Peach, there’s always going to be those random side characters with extraordinary “jiggle” physics that serve absolutely no purpose but to be looked at, killing random characters A and B is always going to an optional objective and the one of the most iconic and fierce video game characters – Samus – is always going to be female.

Originally published in City Times, March 2015.

A campus divided

Bridging the gap between City College’s ASG and its students

Off in the corner of a somewhat vacant part of campus, only steps away from the social hub that is City College’s cafeteria sits the Associated Students Government (ASG) offices. Tucked away in the corner of D-105 is a small office with two desks stacked with papers and files. It’s typical to see people running in and out, sometimes with papers in hand, getting signatures from and updating information to ASG President Adam Garcia.

“I believe that it is important to have that ASG/student connection because it is the ASG leadership that represents all City College students,” Former ASG President Carolina Moreno said via email.

ASG runs like a well oiled machine, with its cogs turning and producing events on campus, such as Spirit Day in September and the Halloween carnival in October, advocating for student concerns and making the decisions on how to spend student funds. However, even with some events producing up to 250 participants, the gap between ASG and students seems to have drifted over the years.

“I only know (about ASG) because I was looking for a club to join and happened to pass by their office,” student Muna Diriye said of her knowledge of ASG.

Even with the obvious gap between student government, Garcia said that participation has been up since previous semesters. Voter turnout for elections has gone up from one percent to about three percent.

“I believe our voter turn out on campus increased by two percent, I believe, so as opposed to semesters before,” Garcia said. “Our percentage before was one percent, so out percentage increased by two so it went up to three percent so I believe it was three or two percent.”

Aside from the events on campus ASG hosts a weekly event, Talk Thursday, which involves an informal approach to talking to ASG senators about issues that students might have with classes, financial aid and whatever else is on the student’s mind.

“The board gets involved with playing board games and what not with the students,” Garcia explained about the atmosphere of Talk Thursday. “We don’t want to approach students in you know an intimidating way, you know we’re the Associated Students Government, just more of a friendly ‘we’re here, talk to us’ type of venue.”

However, student turnout to Talk Thursday depends on the location of the informal meeting.

“It depends on where we do it,” ASG Senator Breona Harris said.

“Because we don’t have a set location… Right now the buildings being constructed, the BT (Business Technology building) just got done and the AH (Arts and Humanities) as well,” Garcia added. “We usually do it between the cafeteria and then we usually move it over to the MS (Math and Science building), so it depends on where’s the most traffic.”

Although ASG reaches out to students with Talk Thursday and campus events, some students feel that ASG only makes the effort to reach out to City College’s population when election time rolls around.

“… I feel like during the rest of the year, you only hear them speak up when they are trying to get people to vote for them during election season,” Diriye explained.

Whatever way students feel about ASG, Moreno urged more and more students to get involved and that doesn’t essentially involve becoming an ASG member.

“Get involved. Voice your concerns. Share ideas. Even if it’s just showing up to ANY event happening on campus or a campus club,” Moreno said. “You don’t necessarily need to join ASG (to get involved).”

ASG and student involvement does show some optimism with some students having a genuine curiosity about learning and getting involved with ASG and ASG events.

“No, not really,” student Lexy Allen eagerly replied when asked about being aware of ASG. “But I do want to know about this student government we have on campus. What do they do, what are they all about?”

Originally published in City Times, December 2014.

Square Enix drops a game-changer with ‘Kingdom Hearts 2.5 HD Remix’

Oh, nostalgia. So long are the days where controllers had wires extending to the console and games weren’t running in high definition. Sometimes gamers yearn for a little nostalgia every now and then. “Kingdom Heart 2.5 HD Remix” is the perfect remedy for any gamer wanting that feeling without having to dust off the old Playstation 2 and all while taking advantage of the glorious HD consoles we have today.

Square Enix’s final mix of the fan favorite series is the perfect blend of the dark undertones of the “Final Fantasy” universe and the colorful world of Disney — all in pristine high definition with added cut scenes, redone musical scores and brand new boss fights that keep players on their toes.

“Kingdom Hearts 2.5 HD ReMix” is broken up into two games — “Kingdom Hearts 2 Final Mix” and “Birth by Sleep Final Mix” and exclusive high definition cut scenes from the Nintendo DS game “Kingdom Hearts Re:coded.” The final mix versions of both “Kingdom Hearts 2” and “Birth by Sleep” were never released outside of Japan — until now — and it was the best decision that game director Tetsuya Nomura and the folks at Square Enix ever made.

“Kingdom Hearts 2” has always been a really good roleplaying game (RPG) that has always stood the test of time. “Kingdom Hearts 2 Final Mix” doesn’t fall short to its predecessor and when played on HD consoles like the PS3 or PS4 enhances the experience.

Taking place one year of years after the events of the first “Kingdom Hearts” game, “Kingdom Hearts 2” sees main characters Sora, Donald and Goofy reunited after Sora awakens from basically a coma. This time around the trio are on a mission to find King Mickey and Sora’s best friend Riku, who, after the events of the first game, are both wandering in the Realm of Darkness.

The twists and turns start right as the player begins the game. Instead of playing as the fan favorite and main character Sora, the player starts out playing as a new character named Roxas. There’s more than meets the eye with Roxas, as everything and everyone is not what they seem. The connection between Roxas and Sora runs deeper than just being able to wield the keyblade, which makes playing through the introduction a very interesting — albeit long — experience.

Traveling from one Disney-themed world to another on Chip n’ Dale’s Gummi Ship, Sora and company reunite with characters such as Beast from “Beauty and the Beast” and a grown-up Simba from “The Lion King” from Disney and Leon and Yuffie from the “Final Fantasy” universe.

The mixture of characters may not look good on paper but the roles each one takes on in their respective worlds give Sora, Donald Duck and Goofy an advantage when fighting off enemies and leveling the characters up.

Fighting off enemies such as the Maleficent-controlled Heartless from the first “Kingdom Hearts” game and the newly introduced Nobodies is child’s play compared to the games main antagonists — the infamous Organization XIII. Made up of 13 incredibly powerful Nobodies, the organization members serve as the boss fights for the different worlds in the game.

During specific boss fights if the player’s health gets down to zero then the player has the chance to play as King Mickey and wield the Kingdom Key D, the keyblade of the Realm of Darkness. This moment is one of the few times that dying in a game can actually give you an advantage.

The reason why “Kingdom Hearts 2” is such a timeless play through is that there is a ton of replay ability opportunities including going and collecting items, leveling up to 99 and challenging optional bosses like the ever menacing sephiroth. The “Final Mix” takes that to the next level, especially with the newly added critical mode, which can test even the most veteran of players.

A really cool bonus for fans of the longtime series is two exclusive HD cut scenes from the highly anticipated “Kingdom Hearts 3,” rumored to be released next year.

With the count down to “Kingdom Hearts 3” already in full force, gamers can get both their nostalgic and “Kingdom Hearts” fix by turning on the Playstation and playing through “Kingdom Hearts 2 Final Mix.” After all, a little nostalgia every now and then never hurt anybody.

Originally published in City Times, December 2014.

Punk’s not dead, it just went pop

Pop punk is a genre that is guaranteed to ruffle some feathers. Some consider it a poser genre that gives “real” punk music a bad name and others see it as the essence and attitude of classic punk rock wrapped up in a nice radio-friendly package. Instead of fighting over it let’s just all sit back and enjoy the music. Here are some of my favorites:

1. New Found Glory – “Radiosurgery”

These guys are pop punk royalty; to have any pop punk playlist without them would be committing musical blasphemy. The challenge with this one was picking a song out of their massive library for this list. “Radiosurgery” is off of their latest album of the same name and has all the elements of an old school NFG song while also giving a nod to their hardcore roots. All in all, this is a near perfect pop punk song. “Radiosurgery” is going on two years old but the Orlando five-piece just released a new song and is planning on heading into the studio next year to record an album. In the mean time, you can check out all of their songs on iTunes.

2. Bayside –“Oliver’s Army”

Bayside is not really considered a pop punk band but its cover of Elvis Costello and the Attractions’ classic song is a perfect example of a pop punk cover done right. In fact, the band’s latest album, “Killing Time,” walks a fine line between both pop punk and the straight up aggressive alternative that it’s known for. Anthony Raneri’s killer vocals combined with the bands slightly up-tempo take on the song take this cover to the next level. In fact, the EP that this song is on is full of cover songs that Bayside has taken to the next level. You can get all of Bayside’s music on iTunes.

3. Knuckle Puck –“Stateside”

Pop punk bands seem to be popping up everywhere these days and most of them pretty much suck. Knuckle Puck, on the other hand, has proven to be one of the most talented bands of any genre that I’ve listened to in a while. “Stateside” is just one of the songs off of their stellar new EP “The Weight That You Buried.” The Chicago four-piece takes pop punk to the next level with their emotionally charged lyrics and aggressive in-your-face melodies. If you’re a fan of bands like The Story So Far then Knuckle Puck will have a place in your iTunes library. You can get all of their music on the band’s Bandcamp page: KnucklePuck.Bandcamp.com.

4. All Time Low –“Somewhere in Neverland”

All Time Low is one of the more popular and “mainstream” pop punk bands out today. Everyone listens to them, which could be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on how you look at it. “Somewhere in Neverland” is off of the band’s latest release “Don’t Panic” and addresses themes that everyone can relate to: growing up and taking responsibility; all while under the guise of a classic alt love song. Plus, the fact that the song refers to one of the most beloved Disney movies isn’t bad either. You can get this song, along with the entire album on iTunes.

5. Man Overboard –“Where I Left You”

This song is one of the more mellow tracks on this list but don’t let that make you think that Man Overboard is a laid-back sounding band. In fact, if I had to compare them to anything it would be a mixture of old school blink-182, circa the late 1990s/early 2000s and New Found Glory a la “Not Without a Fight.” “Where I Left You” is one of the best songs on the band’s latest album “Heart Attack.” The semi-heavy pop punk sound and really catchy lyrics make for enjoyable listening experience. You can get their music on iTunes and catch them out on tour, with a stop in San Diego on Nov. 15 at the House of Blues.

Originally published in City Times, October 2013.