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Students sing own song in Laurel docuâ€"drama Successfully to accomplish any task, it is necessary not only that you should give it the best there is in you, but that you should obtain for it the best there is in those under your guidance. George Goethals It is titled simply, I‘m Gonna Win. Perfect. Well, almost. The only flaw is the tense being used. Because for the staff and students at Laurel Vocational School who have put their hearts and souls into this 30â€"minute docuâ€"drama, they have already won. They have won the respect of those privy to the hard work invested in this yearâ€"long project. They have won the admiration of their peers for tackling the notâ€"soâ€"simple task of producing a film about themselves, complete with technical information, plot line, and insight into just what makes LVS the unique school that it is. And the biggest victory, an internal one analogous to the story line, was won in the realization that simply by being themselves, Laurel stuâ€" dents have proven to others their many praiseworthy qualities. Laurel Vocational is not an ordinary high school, with ordinary students. Staff and students joke about it inside the walls of LVS, but long the school has had to struggle against the external impression that the drummer they march to is an undesirable one. The movie I‘m Gonna Win is indirectly, a tasteful rebuttal to some of those misconâ€" ceptions, but more important, it is the capsulization of the school‘s atmosphere, essentially seen through the eyes of the two stars, grade 12 student Don Noble of Waterloo and Kitchener grade 9 student Frances Crawford. It is designed, according to LVS English teacher Al Davis, the director of the docuâ€"drama, to not only offer academic and technical explanations of the various proâ€" grams at the school, but also to capture a "feeling about‘"‘ the school‘s atmosphere. During the movie the two students talk about failures and successes, limitations and capabilities, disappointments and dreams, interests and aspirations, learning to understand themselves and others, about growing up, getting jobs â€" essentially, about the problems and concerns faced by high school students in general. _ Two years ago, the National Film Board did a 28â€" minute color film on Kitchenerâ€"Waâ€" terloo collegiate, entitled KCI â€" !}eypnd the Three R‘s, as a reflection of "what‘s happening today," with creative thinking and programs and so on. But that film, according to KCI viceâ€"principal Cam Conrad, while wellâ€"received, was done independent of KCI input. The fate of the Laurel production rests with LVS staff and students, working in coâ€"operation with the Waterloo County Board of Education learnâ€" ing resources. _ ‘"There‘s been quite a lot of excitement about the film both with staff and students,"‘ reported Laurel principal Ken Moir Monâ€" day. "Al Davis has a m deal of expertise in the area and has n a great deal of interest in the project, as have other staff and students." butâ€"betben cb n4 ouch h 4 np n tA e on A M e e A 6 ) @ We thought about a straight documentaâ€" ry ... but that‘s rather boring, not interestâ€" ing enough, but by combining the two, we felt we could deliver the information we wanted,"" said Davis, quick to praise figures such as teachers Martyn Harvey, Gerry Engels and activities director Ian Ferguson for their help, as well as staff and students in general. ‘"Having a story line, a plot line, it adds a dramatic effect to help maintain interest, the film will include a lot of ‘high energy‘ stuff in addition to the curriculum. ‘"We want the viewer to be able to identify with the students in the film, sympathize with them, empathize with them, feel with them so the viewer actually becomes involved in the movie himself. We‘ve tried to keep it an upbeat, fastâ€"paced producâ€" tion." After a meticulous selection process to establish the students for the leading roles in I‘m Gonna Win, (in which students‘ habits and reactions were observed by Davis), Noble and Crawford were chosen for the roles. Noble and another student, Sylvie Marois, were asked by Davis to write as much as they could about themselves, their experiences at the school, and in effect those responses helped generate the majorâ€" ity of the dramatic plotline. Filming of classroom activities was set up according to the wishes of the teachers involved, and many scenes of such happenings as dances, class conduct, extraâ€"curricular activities and so on were filmed to balance the docuâ€"drama script. The intent, naturally, is to portray Laurel not only as a school which offers an academic and technical education in the traditional sense, but also which offers an atmosphere of concern for the unique problems, interests and capabilities of each and every student. "It‘s been a lot of fun, sure has been different, I‘ve never done something like this before," said the wellâ€"spoken Noble, who suffered little stage fright throughout the proceedings since he is lead vocalist in the band Ivory Steel and has faced crowds and centre focus before. "I‘d like to get into films as a career, though in Canada, it‘s hard to get known in the business."‘ For example, while a scene in the movie cuts to a school dance and the title track by the musical group Foreigner, Noble talks of growing up from a not particularly successâ€" ful childhood to the present day, where the meeting of specific needs at the school has allowed him to develop not only skills but selfâ€"confidence and selfâ€"esteem as well. For Crawford, in her first year at the school, stage fright was a natural initial reaction, but she soon got used to the camâ€" era. ‘‘"We‘ve been doing the film about three months now," she said. "It‘s fun, 1 get bugged about it a lot from my friends about being the big star, that sort of stuff. But I‘ve really enjoyed doing it." Doug Gerrard, a consultant with the Board of Education learning resources who helped film the docuâ€"drama, was highlyâ€" gorlsplimemary of both Noble and Crawâ€" ord. ‘"Aren‘t they just super, just great actors," said Gerrard after a classroom scene. ‘"‘They do everything so naturally." Probably because they, like a lot of other people at Laurel Vocational School, have a particular quality that rates right up there with the best of them. The ability to be themselves. And to be proud of it. "¢ ‘¥‘e‘n‘s‘ h ., * The new lightweight suits for warm weather fashion are in our store now â€" and you can save $50 to $100 on each suit! Two and three piece suits in stayâ€"crisp styles, fresh new colours. Now priced from only $195 to $495 Come try them on in our spacious new store â€" featuring a skylight so you can see your suit‘s true colours in a natural light. Discover our new concept in a men‘s fashion store â€" and discover our big spring and summer suit savings‘ A good guideline when a friend loses a loved one is to express your sympathy at the funeral or visitation. If for some reason you didn‘t get the chance to do that then, express your feelings at the first opportunity. After that, make it clear that you‘re willing to listen to your friend if he or she wants to talk. Some bereaved persons report that friends avoid them, or else they go to the other extreme and talk about the death constantly. Neither of these is appropriate. Resuming old conversational topics while allowing the person to bring up their feelings about the death is the best way to be helpful. Death is a part of life, it should not be overly dwelled on or avoided. 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