FIRST on "The Fosters" - Monday Nights on FreeForm 8e/5p Starting Tonight!

[FIRSTonTV]

FIRST Robotics Community-

Starting tonight 4 episodes of "The Fosters" that target STEAM education will begin to air. The FIRST Robotics community had a great role in these shows and it’s very exciting to see our beloved cause displayed in the media, as we take on Dean’s challenge to change our culture!

You can watch The Fosters on FreeForm at 8pm EST / 5pm PST on Mondays!

Here is a sneak peak of tonights episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8sjG0k2OWJc&feature=youtu.be

#TSIMFD #makeitLOUD

[Pauline Tasci]

This was really fun to work on! Make sure to check it out!

[smitikshah]

It's pretty awesome seeing STEM represented on mainstream television. Happy to see our reach widening.

[Theflyingtank]

Im just hoping that FIRST is represented as is and does not get butchered by them.

[Liam Fay]

Im just hoping that FIRST is represented as is and does not get butchered by them.

To my knowledge, there are a lot of FIRSTers involved in this project with the Fosters. I have faith that it will execute well.

[FIRSTonTV]

FIRST Robotics Community-

Tonight is the second episode, we hope everyone enjoyed the first.
We promise there will be a lot more awesome FIRST things to see in the next 3!


You can watch The Fosters on FreeForm at 8pm EST / 5pm PST on Mondays!

#TSIMFD #makeitLOUD

[Pauline Tasci]

"swerve drive won't go over anything on this field, have you seen those defenses"- The Fosters Robotics Team

lol this is great

[FIRSTonTV]

FIRST Community-

Here is the official press release for Episode 8 where FRC is heavily featured.

Including a photo where the main characters are competing at a FIRST Robotics Southern California Regional, you might even see some familiar banners in the back!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1iYHtqGQKFMqnTi9X3-ecSSl8AKiuSD4c40uMD9KG5yk/edit?usp=sharing

As well, we can officially release 2 photos of the main characters working on their robot.

http://imgur.com/a/aZ4zK
http://imgur.com/a/2ggAZ

FRC Team 207 played the Anchor Beach Robot!

Be sure to tune into episode 8 on August 15! You will even see some familiar faces and robots from around our community!

Thanks.

[jvriezen]

FIRST Community-

Here is the official press release for Episode 8 where FRC is heavily featured.

Including a photo where the main characters are competing at a FIRST Robotics Southern California Regional, you might even see some familiar banners in the back!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1iYHtqGQKFMqnTi9X3-ecSSl8AKiuSD4c40uMD9KG5yk/edit?usp=sharing

As well, we can officially release 2 photos of the main characters working on their robot.

http://imgur.com/a/aZ4zK
http://imgur.com/a/2ggAZ

FRC Team 207 played the Anchor Beach Robot!

Be sure to tune into episode 8 on August 15! You will even see some familiar faces and robots from around our community!

Thanks.

Sadly, no safety glasses.

[FIRSTonTV]

FIRST Robotics Community-

Tonight is the third episode, we hope everyone enjoyed the first two.
Stay tuned for next week's episode, featuring tons of familiar fun FRC content!!


You can watch The Fosters on FreeForm at 8pm EST / 5pm PST on Mondays!

#TSIMFD #makeitLOUD

[FIRSTonTV]

FIRST Robotics Community-

Here is a sneak peak of the next and last episode. Most of the extras were actual team members and volunteers of FRC in Southern California! See who you can spot! You might even recognize the MC's voice as a familiar sound at competitions and championship!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_dc4fJO5tA

Make sure to watch, this episode will feature a lot of familiar story lines that your teams might have faced during competition!

The big show where FRC is HEAVILY featured will air this Monday on FreeForm at 8pm EST / 5pm PST!

Spread the news!

#TSIMFD #makeitLOUD

[ASD20]

FIRST Robotics Community-

Here is a sneak peak of the next and last episode. Most of the extras were actual team members and volunteers of FRC in Southern California! See who you can spot! You might even recognize the MC's voice as a familiar sound at competitions and championship!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_dc4fJO5tA

Make sure to watch, this episode will feature a lot of familiar story lines that your teams might have faced during competition!

The big show where FRC is HEAVILY featured will air this Monday on FreeForm at 8pm EST / 5pm PST!

Spread the news!

#TSIMFD #makeitLOUD

Wow. Just wow. Never did I think the mentor built robot debate would make it on to a tv show.

[AdamHeard]

FIRST Robotics Community-

Here is a sneak peak of the next and last episode. Most of the extras were actual team members and volunteers of FRC in Southern California! See who you can spot! You might even recognize the MC's voice as a familiar sound at competitions and championship!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_dc4fJO5tA

Make sure to watch, this episode will feature a lot of familiar story lines that your teams might have faced during competition!

The big show where FRC is HEAVILY featured will air this Monday on FreeForm at 8pm EST / 5pm PST!

Spread the news!

#TSIMFD #makeitLOUD

Were FIRST teams involved at all in the writing and storyline? The storyline pushed in this teaser is pretty embarrassing for FIRST.

[FRANKlybored]

Were FIRST teams involved at all in the writing and storyline? The storyline pushed in this teaser is pretty embarrassing for FIRST.

What makes it so embarrassing, Adam?

[notmattlythgoe]

Were FIRST teams involved at all in the writing and storyline? The storyline pushed in this teaser is pretty embarrassing for FIRST.

The episode is based on mentor built robots...
http://www.reactiongifs.com/r/rofl.gif

[AdamHeard]

What makes it so embarrassing, Adam?

Disparaging teams for having engineering mentors... which is one of the core concepts of the program.

[FRANKlybored]

Disparaging teams for having engineering mentors... which is one of the core concepts of the program.

So I take it that you've seen this episode in it's entirety and have identified this plot point as "The storyline"?

[bobbysq]

>mentor built robots
>southern california
>NASA

I really hope this is a coincidence

[AdamHeard]

So I take it that you've seen this episode in it's entirety and have identified this plot point as "The storyline"?

Were FIRST teams involved at all in the writing and storyline? The storyline pushed in this teaser is pretty embarrassing for FIRST.


I'm commenting on the storyline from the trailer/teaser... All I can go on. And that trailer pretty clearly criticizes teams for engineering mentors.

[Alyssa]

There is also an episode where a student takes drugs because she's tired from build...not totally the right message in my opinion....

I'm honestly surprised FIRST signed off on this.

[FRANKlybored]

I'm commenting on the storyline from the trailer/teaser... All I can go one. And that trailer pretty clearly criticizes teams for engineering mentors.

I happen to think that having FIRST featured, not as "engineering programming" but as a casual plot point in a modern teen drama is, by definition, culture changing and not "embarrassing to FIRST" in any regard.

Teasers are meant to be controversial plot points to grab the attention of audiences, condemning the programming on three lines of script seems harsh and counter-productive - calling the programming and all of the effort that went into it "an embarrassment to FIRST" is perhaps more of just an embarrassment to yourself.

[AdamHeard]

I happen to think that having FIRST featured, not as "engineering programming" but as a casual plot point in a modern teen drama is, by definition, culture changing and not "embarrassing to FIRST" in any regard.

Teasers are meant to be controversial plot points to grab the attention of audiences, condemning the programming on three lines of script seems harsh and counter-productive - calling the programming and all of the effort that went into it "an embarrassment to FIRST" is perhaps more of just an embarrassment to yourself.


I'm not condemning the entire episode, I'm saying the storyline pushed in the teaser is embarrassing to FIRST. This is obviously just my opinion.

Embarrassing myself is nothing new, business as usual if that's how it turns out here.

[Pauline Tasci]

There is also an episode where a student takes drugs because she's tired from build...not totally the right message in my opinion....

I'm honestly surprised FIRST signed off on this.

To clarify your claim, the character who you're talking about, Mariana, had episodes involving drug use prior to the robotics story line itself. It grew under the real life stress of build season.

While I don't agree with drug use, that was who the character was and how she was pre established on the show.

Teenagers in that show's world deal with that stuff, it wasn't soley because she was doing robots, other characters had similar story lines in other regards.
If you watched the episode you would know the issue was resolved with her robotics peers SUPPORTING her and telling her she was too smart for substance abuse.

Again, I don't agree with drug use nor do I support it, BUT all the facts should be layed out and not taken out of context.

Remember this show IS NOT a FIRST documentary.

[Thad House]

I completely agree with Adam. I was actually kind of angry when I saw the trailer the first time. It's highly embarrassing to the program we all have worked so hard on, and to make the general public think mentors are an issue is DEFINITELY not something FIRST should condone.

[Ali Ahmed]

This thread is getting as dramatic as the show.

I would like everyone to keep in mind that this is a television show. To be more specific, it's a teenage drama. Dramatic licenses were taken and the producers end up having the final say, no matter if FIRST signs off or not.

[ctt956]

Are the episodes available to watch online somewhere? I haven't been around to watch them live and I don't think I'll be able to catch the next one.

[Billfred]

There is also an episode where a student takes drugs because she's tired from build...not totally the right message in my opinion....

I'm honestly surprised FIRST signed off on this.

FIRST has made it clear in their messaging that the show is TV-14 (shoot, even WWE is PG...) and not everything in the program reflects their values. I have no inside baseball here, but knowing the requirements FIRST lays down to get one of their fields in a high school gymnasium for a weekend (let alone using their IP on a for-profit TV production), surely they got a chance to review the storyline and were okay with the direction.

I'm not condemning the entire episode, I'm saying the storyline pushed in the teaser is embarrassing to FIRST. This is obviously just my opinion.

Embarrassing myself is nothing new, business as usual if that's how it turns out here.
I didn't hear anything factually wrong in the teaser, and I did hear things I hear at events (and usually muttered in the same tones). It does create a storyline digested easily by people outside the tent, so I'll spot them some leeway here. And watch closely on Monday.

Are the episodes available to watch online somewhere? I haven't been around to watch them live and I don't think I'll be able to catch the next one.

Freeform has an app, though you'll have to sign in with your TV provider login to watch.

[Cory]

Dramatic licenses were taken and the producers end up having the final say, no matter if FIRST signs off or not.

That's not true at all. They would not have been allowed to say "FIRST Robotics" or use their logo, or the field, or anything else that is intellectual property of FIRST without FIRST giving them approval.

[Ali Ahmed]

That's not true at all. They would not have been allowed to say "FIRST Robotics" or use their logo, or the field, or anything else that is intellectual property of FIRST without FIRST giving them approval.

You're right. I worded that wrong. I should've been a little more clear. The producers do have final say and if FIRST didn't give their approval they could have come up with a fake robotics competition instead.

[frcguy]

I completely agree with Adam. I was actually kind of angry when I saw the trailer the first time. It's highly embarrassing to the program we all have worked so hard on, and to make the general public think mentors are an issue is DEFINITELY not something FIRST should condone.



These were my first thoughts as well. When people see this they're going to think this might actually be how FIRST and FRC is. This just further perpetuates incorrect stereotypes about our community and program to a wide audience.

Additionally, their description of the "mentor led" team seemed to reference some real life teams, which in my opinion is inappropriate and unacceptable.

[Michael Corsetto]

Easy everyone, there's no way this storyline is based in reality, those polo's aren't even blue!

:p

[frcguy]

Easy everyone, there's no way this storyline is based in reality, those polo's aren't even blue!



:p


Yeah, their win streak was 4, not 9! :p

[Sperkowsky]

Seems pretty real to me. When was the last time you were at an event and did not seen a team do exactly what they did.

I am just laughing at the irony of them talking about Gracious Professionalism and then judging a team for having an engineer mentor.

[WinterPoet]

No matter how you feel about how the show reflects FIRST, you gotta admit, it's exciting to have a TV reference people can ask about that isn't flippin' Battle Bots!

[Liu346]

Just catching up on it but already love a quick steam stem note.

[Siri]

Teasers are meant to be controversial plot points to grab the attention of audiences, condemning the programming on three lines of script seems harsh and counter-productive...While this is certainly true and no doubt what they're doing, it's important to remember that TV-aired teasers reach a far, far large audience than episodes themselves. Assuming ABC Family (EDIT) Freeform is airing this or similar ads during any number of other shows, a teaser 'storyline' can easily get an order of magnitude more viewer eyeballs than the actual storyline. (Albeit with markedly less internalization.) I don't at all blame/condemn the producers for their choice there, but from a FIRST perspective it's absolutely legitimate to examine the picture that a teaser alone paints of us. Recruitment efforts could well benefit from the knowledge that there are many, many potential high school roboteers out there who're encountering just teaser perspective without whatever elaboration comes in the episode.

[tjf]

Though I don't find FIRST to be represented as purely as some of know it here, the saying "no press is bad press" comes to mind. As pointed out earlier, the character in question had previously existing habitual problems and her friends and classmates were helping with them.

Onto the representation of Mentor vs Student built, I think it's an important point, as petty as it may seem, to mention it in the show. The accusations of "Mentor Built" have been flying since before I was born, and it's as much a insult as it is an in-joke of the community.

Finally, the idea that FIRST has finally hit the mainstream media is very important. Honda also had FRC bots in one of their recent commercials (linked below) exhibiting their car. The Fosters characters, though begrudgingly, talk about Gracious Professionalism and Coopertition, treating them like buzzwords. Hopefully, in time, viewers of the TV show, as well as members of our own community, realize that GP & coopertition aren't buzzwords as much as they are a philosophy.

Besides, how else can we compete with VEX in the prime-time television slot? :p (I kid, but still. Messages must be spread.)
[1] - https://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=149956

[Rangel(kf7fdb)]

Maybe the team the show focuses on will end up being on the same alliance as the team with a lot of engineers and realize they had the wrong idea of them?

[Chak]

Oh look, CD is mildly outraged again.:p

Now the question is: what, if anything, can CD do about this?

[tjf]

Oh look, CD is mildly outraged again.:p

Now the question is: what, if anything, can CD do about this?

Literally nothing,whether we could agree or not. Episodes are filmed and sent :p All CD can do is as it always does, be that what you interpret.

[Siri]

Oh look, CD is mildly outraged again.:p

Now the question is: what, if anything, can CD do about this?Be prepared to proactively address it with interested students and other potential stakeholders. I don't think anyone envisions changing the content of a television show; it's just that understanding the view some potential recruits will get from the trailer/episode can be important in making any press actually good press. This is certainly a reasonable standard of action.

[Jon K.]

http://www.firstinspires.org/robotics/frc/blog/FIRST-on-The-Fosters

FIRST did have substantial knowledge of the story for this episode as confirmed in this Frank's Blog. I honestly think it will be more of a non-issue than most here are trying to make it out to be, and is still representative of our community as a whole (as very well proven by the arguments made in this thread.) Frank even admits that this will cause discussion in the community, but clearly it could not have been damaging to FIRST in the end as people such as Blair will make an appearance in the episode.

[Gregor]

While this is certainly true and no doubt what they're doing, it's important to remember that TV-aired teasers reach a far, far large audience than episodes themselves. Assuming ABC Family (EDIT) Freeform is airing this or similar ads during any number of other shows, a teaser 'storyline' can easily get an order of magnitude more viewer eyeballs than the actual storyline. (Albeit with markedly less internalization.) I don't at all blame/condemn the producers for their choice there, but from a FIRST perspective it's absolutely legitimate to examine the picture that a teaser alone paints of us. Recruitment efforts could well benefit from the knowledge that there are many, many potential high school roboteers out there who're encountering just teaser perspective without whatever elaboration comes in the episode.

I was going to reserve judgement of this until the actual episode, but you bring up a good point.

Very disappointed in the way FIRST is being portrayed.

[Koko Ed]

Why do people think a fictional representation of FIRST has to be perfect? People are not perfect and are prone to mistakes. Theyact on their instincts and not always on the golden rule. To assume that they are obligated to have people be complete saints in order to represent a group is arrogant to be honest.

[seg9585]

Although I was a little personally offended that they regarded having an aerospace engineer as a coach was a "bad" thing, I will hold my judgement until I see the full episode.

I was a bit more frustrated at the earlier episodes in which the students and teacher threw around the terms "Omni Wheels" and "Swerve Drive" when clearly referring to and demonstrating Mecanum Drive. Yes, I know the general public won't know the difference but there's an attention to detail in scriptwriting that's obviously missing here. If you're going to technobabble, at least be somewhat accurate!

[Monochron]

Disparaging teams for having engineering mentors... which is one of the core concepts of the program.

I'm guessing that over the course of the episode the team will come to realize that "teams who have mentors that are engineers" still have students that are very knowledgeable and receive a great experience. They could even cheesily realize that 'gracious professionalism' requires that they respect another team's way of doing things. Nice and sappy.

I don't think that they will acknowledge that it is core to the program to have engineering mentors though (because they need a rival / enemy for the plot), and that kind of sucks. If they end the storyline by planning to increase their mentor base and recruit engineers, then I will be really impressed.

[ctt956]

Easy everyone, there's no way this storyline is based in reality, those polo's aren't even blue!

:p

Good point. It's probably not supposed to be that realistic, and it has to fit with the rest of the show. After all, this is not a show about FIRST; it's a show about other things that happened to feature FIRST.

Seems pretty real to me. When was the last time you were at an event and did not seen a team do exactly what they did.

I am just laughing at the irony of them talking about Gracious Professionalism and then judging a team for having an engineer mentor.

QFT!

The reason they put the mentor-built debate in was because they attended a regional and possibly read CD. And what did they hear/read? Student-built vs. mentor-built robot controversy. And they thought, "That could be entertaining on a TV show!" The reason it's on the show is because it happens in FIRST in real life. Though I won't judge too much until I see the whole thing.

...

I was a bit more frustrated at the earlier episodes in which the students and teacher threw around the terms "Omni Wheels" and "Swerve Drive" when clearly referring to and demonstrating Mecanum Drive. Yes, I know the general public won't know the difference but there's an attention to detail in scriptwriting that's obviously missing here. If you're going to technobabble, at least be somewhat accurate!

They did WHAT? :yikes: Come on, people, do your homework! Is it really that hard to find out what the differences are between omni wheels (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omni_wheel), mecanum wheels (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mecanum_wheel), swerve drive, and mecanum drive (http://www.simbotics.org/resources/mobility/drivetrain-selection)?

[ATannahill]

Although I was a little personally offended that they regarded having an aerospace engineer as a coach was a "bad" thing, I will hold my judgement until I see the full episode.

I was a bit more frustrated at the earlier episodes in which the students and teacher threw around the terms "Omni Wheels" and "Swerve Drive" when clearly referring to and demonstrating Mecanum Drive. Yes, I know the general public won't know the difference but there's an attention to detail in scriptwriting that's obviously missing here. If you're going to technobabble, at least be somewhat accurate!

But no one on the show would be able to pronounce mecanum right.

[s_forbes]

It's neat to see FIRST on TV, and actually be called FIRST! Hopefully it will get some kids interested, and they might join a robotics team that they wouldn't have otherwise.

Keep in mind that it's a TV show, and it's made to entertain general audiences and not nerdy robot people like us. After building robots and working on the set of Spare Parts, I give lots of movies/shows a pass when they miss details or have exaggerated plot points. It's art and needs to be engaging, so it's not going to reflect reality 100% accurately.

[Mr V]

I'm guessing that over the course of the episode the team will come to realize that "teams who have mentors that are engineers" still have students that are very knowledgeable and receive a great experience. They could even cheesily realize that 'gracious professionalism' requires that they respect another team's way of doing things. Nice and sappy.

I don't think that they will acknowledge that it is core to the program to have engineering mentors though (because they need a rival / enemy for the plot), and that kind of sucks. If they end the storyline by planning to increase their mentor base and recruit engineers, then I will be really impressed.

Actually I don't see them having the time to spend to make that point. Where I see the story line ending is with the "mentor built" team getting defeated by a rag-tag alliance that includes our hero or at least our hero coming very close to winning. It is a teen drama and that usually includes a good triumphing over evil just when you think all hope is lost.

[Monochron]

Actually I don't see them having the time to spend to make that point. Where I see the story line ending is with the "mentor built" team getting defeated by a rag-tag alliance that includes our hero or at least our hero coming very close to winning. It is a teen drama and that usually includes a good triumphing over evil just when you think all hope is lost.

I'll admit, I haven't seen the show before but it strikes me as the standard family-oriented teen show that always includes a heart warming moment of understanding or growth. A "maybe our enemies aren't so different for us" moment would do the job well. They certainly might end up beating the mentor team. If they really go the direction of having that team legitimately entirely mentor-built then that is going to be really embarrassing.

[Sperkowsky]

I'll admit, I haven't seen the show before but it strikes me as the standard family-oriented teen show that always includes a heart warming moment of understanding or growth. A "maybe our enemies aren't so different for us" moment would do the job well. They certainly might end up beating the mentor team. If they really go the direction of having that team legitimately entirely mentor-built then that is going to be really embarrassing.
Based on what I've seen of the show I feel like it would be perfectly normal if the robot set on fire and someone lost an arm with a Sawzall.

[BotDesigner]

I don't think everyone here is understanding the difference between a documentary and a TV Drama. The stereotypical movie or TV drama about sports involve the hero/heroine's underdog team beating out the "unfairly advantaged" team that has won the whatever level championship for the past whatever amount of years (the general exceptions are plots that follow some misunderstood hero/heroine trying to get onto the sports team, but this is about one of the rarest issues a student could have in FRC considering how desperate many teams are to get students:D). I guess the producers decided that the easiest way to create the other team's "unfair advantage" (as well as using something that, like it or not, is a real controversy in FRC) was to use the Mentor built controversy. No matter how inaccurate it may be it is a easy way to imply the "unfair advantage" to the audience.

If it was a documentary on the other hand, such a portrayal would be unacceptable. While the movie or drama is just a source of entertainment the documentary's responsibility to portray truth shouldn't allow a serious portrayal of the controversy.

I do agree that it would be best if the episode does end up showing that the team's original understanding of the "mentor built" team ends up being inaccurate.

[AdamHeard]

If the storyline is what the trailer conveys, and was written in by the show that's one thing. I understand TV shows will add drama, etc... Nature of the beast.

However if someone that's on a team or works for FIRST pushed that storyline to the producers that would be pretty disappointing.

[FIRSTonTV]

Another sneak peak was just released!
Here is the link the Emma Dumont article as well there is a sneak peak clip at the end!

http://cartermatt.com/217037/fosters-exclusive-emma-dumont-sasha-mariana-first-robotics-competition/

Quick link to the clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j63v_X0Kq24

All students you see in this show are actually robotics students along with some mentors and volunteers playing key roles!

Friendly reminder this show is NOT a FIRST Documentary but rather a celebration of STEM and showing people who would not otherwise be exposed that they can build cool robots like these in a real competition!

[Pauline Tasci]

http://cartermatt.com/217037/fosters-exclusive-emma-dumont-sasha-mariana-first-robotics-competition/

Quick link to the clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j63v_X0Kq24

All students you see in this show are actually robotics students along with some mentors and volunteers playing key roles!



Is this where I get to say "Mama I made it on TV?"
Repping that Code Orange uniform in the promo picture!

[bkahl]

Easy everyone, there's no way this storyline is based in reality, those polo's aren't even blue!

:p

But I think I saw black coveralls?

[s_forbes]

(...)
However if someone that's on a team or works for FIRST pushed that storyline to the producers that would be pretty disappointing.

I don't think that's likely to be the case... the producers and directors usually have a clear cut direction that they plan to take. The 'experts' and 'robot consultants' help add some realism to the story and make it believable, but they won't have much of an affect on the storyline. They pay writers for that.

[Pauline Tasci]

I don't think that's likely to be the case... the producers and directors usually have a clear cut direction that they plan to take. The 'experts' and 'robot consultants' help add some realism to the story and make it believable, but they won't have much of an affect on the storyline. They pay writers for that.

Absolutely correct. The FIRST robotics adviser on this series was there to add suggestions, create more realism, bring in teams, and create an environment similar to that of a competition.

Ultimately, the shows writers were writing the script based off of where they wanted the show to go and everything was handed to FIRST when their brand was being used for sign off.

I'd love to go into more detail about the shows inception and creation post Monday's episode, if there is interest.

But for now, I want to thank all the students, mentors, and volunteers for working 3 LONG days of filming. So much went into this small episode from just the several FRC teams point of view!

I also want to thank the amazing cast, crew, and extras of The Fosters for being very supportive and patient with us! They truly did a lot to make the the FIRST-ers feel right in place and many of the extras wanted to learn more about the program!

Hope you all enjoy Monday's episode!

Remember to keep your comments respectful :)

Thanks!

[Monochron]

Aside from all the drama going on, I would love to know what went into building their team's robot. It's pretty gorgeous. Looks like it would even perform well.

[David Brinza]

Aside from all the drama going on, I would love to know what went into building their team's robot. It's pretty gorgeous. Looks like it would even perform well.

Hint:

https://i.imgur.com/y1QXM8Sh.jpg

[Botwoon]

Shout out to myself for forgetting to take off the gopro mount

[rsisk]

I think I spotted these teams and people in the last preview that was posted. Who did I miss?

4 Team Element
980 Thunderbots
3476 Code Orange
Eileen Kahn
George Chen
702 Bagel Bytes
Blair
4201

[Jeremy Germita]

I think I spotted these teams and people in the last preview that was posted. Who did I miss?

4 Team Element
980 Thunderbots
3476 Code Orange
Eileen Kahn
George Chen
702 Bagel Bytes
Blair
4201

In this album (https://www.facebook.com/TheFostersTV/photos/?tab=album&album_id=668707519948055), you can see Hall of Fame team 597 as well as team 1836!

[CMBrandon]

Cooler Master is proud that so many of its sponsored teams are involved with this. It is great to see FIRST and robotics on television.

[rsisk]

Interesting team number, 3702. Would have been a rookie year of 2011. There is a team 3701 and 3703, but no 3702 according to McLeod's AllTeamEver spreadsheet. Wonder why the one team gap in the team numbers.

[EricH]

Interesting team number, 3702. Would have been a rookie year of 2011. There is a team 3701 and 3703, but no 3702 according to McLeod's AllTeamEver spreadsheet. Wonder why the one team gap in the team numbers.
Possibly a would-be rookie 2011XXXX that never finished registration (never paid?) and never competed because of that. Pesky placeholder numbers. I've seen that sort of thing in several places.

Smart move to use a team number that was never used in reality for the show--I'd guess that FIRST suggested that one, but I'm probably wrong.

[marcusbernstein]

In this album (https://www.facebook.com/TheFostersTV/photos/?tab=album&album_id=668707519948055), you can see Hall of Fame team 597 as well as team 1836!

Yep, Team 1836 is there repping those classic red team shirts. Unfortunately, I could not be there because of age rules and work, but I heard that it was an amazing experience for everyone involved and am really happy that FIRST was represented on mainstream TV!

[FIRSTonTV]

Another clip!!

https://www.yahoo.com/tv/fosters-sneak-peek-losing-isn-000000745.html

[dcarr]

Another clip!!

https://www.yahoo.com/tv/fosters-sneak-peek-losing-isn-000000745.html

Pretty sure those bumper numbers are not to spec

[frcguy]

Another clip!!

https://www.yahoo.com/tv/fosters-sneak-peek-losing-isn-000000745.html

No one is wearing safety glasses...

::ouch::

[EricH]

Pretty sure those bumper numbers are not to spec
Sadly, though, they're more legible than half the bumper numbers I've seen over the years... If the spec was "visible from a distance", they'd pass!


@FIRSTonTV, that little discussion about the robot weight is FAR too typical! Can't say I've been in those myself, but as an inspector I've had to tell someone they were overweight. Though I will say that for half a pound most teams would reach for a drill instead of removing parts.

[dcarr]

Jokes aside, the attention to detail is quite impressive

[frcguy]

@FIRSTonTV, that little discussion about the robot weight is FAR too typical! Can't say I've been in those myself, but as an inspector I've had to tell someone they were overweight. Though I will say that for half a pound most teams would reach for a drill instead of removing parts.

Just a random observation: 207's (or 3702 as it is portrayed in the show) bot already has pretty aggressive lightening/pocketing on the superstructure (and I assume the rest of the robot), so removing a non-functional component may have been necessary. Just a thought.

[EricH]

Just a random observation: 207's (or 3702 as it is portrayed in the show) bot already has pretty aggressive lightening/pocketing on the superstructure (and I assume the rest of the robot), so removing a non-functional component may have been necessary. Just a thought.
I know. (And trust me, the hanger was functional during the actual season. On the other hand, I'm not entirely sure when it became functional.)

But there are a few places that don't have holes yet, just a matter of whether they can be reached easily with a drill bit. That's the "experienced cheese-holer" talking.:rolleyes:

[itsjustjon]

I just wanted to say thank you to all the teams who volunteered their time and their robots on the Fosters! You guys went out of your way to make robotics and engineering a known high-school program by showing it to millions of Americans on prime-time TV.

Okay, so a few details here and there might be out of place, but the message and truth of the story being told is still very accurate: High-schoolers can build a robot as a team, learn a lot of cool concepts, compete with their machine, and play to win a competition.

As far as I'm concerned, many more people would be interested in joining FIRST by watching what the Fosters produced than by watching some footage from a regional or a documentary. We aren't all engineering or analytical types, and that's definitely not the type of which this TV show's audience is composed.

If NASCAR was only 'How It's Made: Stock Cars' combined with a breakdown of 'official' NASCAR jargon, few people would watch, too.

[Pauline Tasci]

Hey all,
The big show is tomorrow on Freeform at 5pm PST/ 8pm EST!

I got an official OK to release some pictures from the 3 days of filming.
Here they are!

http://imgur.com/gallery/F2sDG

Thanks!

[Ed Law]

Watched the 8/8 episode. Pretty cool!

[FIRSTonTV]

OK CD,

Tonight is the final episode, where we get to see the Anchor Beach Anchor Bytes compete at the "Southern California Regional"!

If you haven't seen the sneak peaks, you can check them out here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_dc4fJO5tA
https://www.yahoo.com/tv/fosters-sneak-peek-losing-isn-000000745.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j63v_X0Kq24

Tune in at 8pm/5pmPST!
http://i.imgur.com/NwwaL0T.png

[Ryan Dognaux]

So... fears confirmed right? That episode absolutely painted engineering mentors in the worst light possible. Specifically a Boeing engineer / Boeing sponsored team. As a Boeing mentor, that was fun to see, I guess (not really.)

Things I thought the episode did well -

- Showed what an FRC competition is and what a typical match looks like.

- Showed the difficulty teams go through to pass inspection and even had the team dead for an entire match - pretty realistic.

- Showcasing an all girl drive team and the empowerment that can hold. I thought that was pretty cool.

Things that didn't go so well -

- The antagonist mentor guy. If I were thinking of starting an FRC team and watched that episode, I might not now because of how that character was portrayed. What a jerk! I really hope that's not how FIRST or anyone involved with this show sees mentors who help teams - specifically some of the most competitive teams.

- The drive team stopping and hugging every time they scored a boulder. The match is still going! Why did you stop?!

- While the all-girl piece was cool, I didn't think "$@#$@#$@#$@#$@#es Get Things Done" was the most inspiring motto. But maybe that's just me?

All in all, a lot of potential but I think more could have been done to show what gracious professionalism is really like in FIRST. Time and time again we see teams call their own time outs during the finals to let teams fix their robots - and it would have been so cool to see something of that nature occur on the show. But it didn't. Big opportunity missed there.

[Liu346]

I will also agree that the mentor who was portrayed as the main antagonist did not act in a way that was any different than he should have. From a students perspective being behind that glass that is really how high intensity matches are. Yes i do believe he did over step his boundary when talking to the mom about taking their team home but that was merely an over exaggeration in order to make him the villain.

[first3234]

it looked like FIRST made some adjustments to fms and the audience display fms is suppose to show qual 1 of x number of qual matches but i guess for the purposes of the show they adjusted it

[Ali Ahmed]

Now that the episode has finally aired, I would like to give my thanks for all that were involved. So many people made a big effort to get this done and I am very grateful to them. We had a blast filming. I always love just chatting with fellow FIRSTers and this provided a pretty great opportunity to do that.

Even better was being able to explain FIRST to the crew and extras. They were very interested and asked questions about the robots and what we do and why we do it. They had us run some "matches" for B-roll and it was pretty funny seeing how into it they got. They would cheer any time a robot made a high goal. Or wince when a robot took a Defense particularly hard. They were also extremely patient with us in setting up and trying to get the robots to do the same thing take after take.

All-in-all, it was a great time and I was glad to be a part of it.

[frcguy]

Just got done watching the episode.

I'm pretty disappointed about the way the lead mentor is portrayed. I've never come across someone who behaves that way, and all of the mentors I know from "powerhouse" teams are excellent mentors, teachers, and just all around good people. I'm additionally a bit upset about the lead mentor being from Boeing, because that kind of falsely represents their employees. I also did a double take when the alliance used profanity in their name and cheers, and I presume (as I've never seen that happen at a competition) that it wouldn't be tolerated in real life.

All in all, minus the things above and the conflicts between the students I thought they did an OK job of showing FRC and FIRST. They certainly captured the wide range of emotions present an an event.

[Tyler Olds]

FUN will be having a special post show tomorrow (Tuesday) with Pauline Tasci to talk about the episodes and her experience with them. Bring your Q&A for Pauline to address.

Show starts at 8:30PM EST and I would expect the post show to start around 9:30PMish EST

Live: www.twitch.tv/firstupdatesnow
Archived (we will split this into it's own posting) www.youtube.com/firstupdatesnow

[Sperkowsky]

Just got done watching the episode.

I'm pretty disappointed about the way the lead mentor is portrayed. I've never come across someone who behaves that way, and all of the mentors I know from "powerhouse" teams are excellent mentors, teachers, and just all around good people. I'm additionally a bit upset about the lead mentor being from Boeing, because that kind of falsely represents their employees. I also did a double take when the alliance used profanity in their name and cheers, and I presume (as I've never seen that happen at a competition) that it wouldn't be tolerated in real life.

All in all, minus the things above and the conflicts between the students I thought they did an OK job of showing FRC and FIRST. They certainly captured the wide range of emotions present an an event.

Basically how I felt. I was really annoyed about the gracious professionalism comments. How bout you just be gracious and professional instead of throwing the buzz word around.

Off topic but assuming Boeing didn't allow those comments to be said couldn't those sorta comments be ground for a lawsuit?

[tjf]

Though the idea that Anchor Beach would *ever* take their hands off the controller during a match is hilarious, it was overall a decent episode.

They touch on the importance of listening to mentors, though the interaction with the "299" mentor left a bad taste in my mouth. The fact they called out a specific organization is truly a shame, as they could have done without it and still gotten the point across... To have the "powerhouse mentors", those who often sink in just as much time as any other mentor as somehow "lower" than another mentor is appalling.

In my own opinion, the powerhouse teams aren't "mentor lead" as this episode tends to imply, but rather a group of students crazy enough to listen to their mentors and go above and beyond. It takes a small (and growing) army to run a FRC team. Skilled mentors are important for the 4 year turnover.

Overall, they covered part of the program as a whole, though obviously not to my (or a significant part of Chief's) satisfaction. Their treatment of GP and Coopertition like nothing more than buzzwords are... (though I can't lay claim to this) mildly offensive to those who actively practice it. However, the idea that FIRST made it into mainstream media at all is a miracle. Hopefully FIRST HQ can keep up their PR work and spread the word in ways we wouldn't otherwise see. It's sometimes easy to forget that as big as a community as we are, our voices don't travel far outside the echo chamber.

[jaredhk]

Team 1836 is there repping those classic red team shirts.

Funny story: those are actually not our classic red shirts. Our red shirts had a different logo and lettering (as sort of seen here (https://photos.smugmug.com/1836/2014/Israel/i-2p37MXt/0/L/2014-03-03%2013.38.43-L.jpg)).

Freeform actually asked for our shirt design so that they could reprint it on another color for aesthetic reasons. That way they also avoid sponsors which helps them.

[smitikshah]

No matter how you feel about how the show reflects FIRST, you gotta admit, it's exciting to have a TV reference people can ask about that isn't flippin' Battle Bots!

I agree- unfortunately, though, looks like some people didn't take it the way I would have hoped " I've never been to a robotics competition, but according to this show, it's two parts BattleBots, one part Medieval Times."

- http://www.vulture.com/2016/08/fosters-recap-season-4-episode-8.html

[tjf]

I agree- unfortunately, though, looks like some people didn't take it the way I would have hoped " I've never been to a robotics competition, but according to this show, it's two parts BattleBots, one part Medieval Times."

- http://www.vulture.com/2016/08/fosters-recap-season-4-episode-8.html

That's unfortunate, though to be fair, the show didn't exactly capture the idea of "the game changes every year". Imagine how tedious and highly optimized FRC would get if we had the same game every year!

At least 1/3rd wasn't the other thing...

[Pauline Tasci]

Off topic but assuming Boeing didn't allow those comments to be said couldn't those sorta comments be ground for a lawsuit?

Boeing allowed use for their name in this scene.

[sanddrag]

Am I the only one who feels like I just watched a Lifetime movie?

[David Brinza]

Am I the only one who feels like I just watched a Lifetime movie?Perhaps more like teenage drama TV?
If there isn't enough bad behavior coupled with super-charged emotional outbursts in the show, their target audience quickly loses interest.
I never expect this to be a glowing documentary about FRC, so I wasn't at all disappointed in the show.
On the very positive side, the show did portray the challenge and excitement in FRC, maybe that will intrigue some HS viewers enough to join a team!

[Ryan Dognaux]

Am I the only one who feels like I just watched a Lifetime movie?

It's a similar feeling to watching any show on Freeform, but you nailed it.

https://vimeo.com/179005395 Still laughing at this Boeing mentor jab.

[Libby K]

It's a similar feeling to watching any show on Freeform, but you nailed it.

https://vimeo.com/179005395 Still laughing at this Boeing mentor jab.

I didn't watch the entire episode (yet - I've got work to get done today), but that clip alone feels disgusting.

The worst part is this "awful mentor" was right. Consistency is key and wasting your time on something too complex and over their ability level will lose teams that consistency. Seems like the show writers (and whoever the 'FIRST advisor' was) took their own bias into the show.

I'm disappointed FIRST used this opportunity to essentially color any newcomers this might bring to the organization, against teams with involved mentors, or even just against teams who have a winning streak. What does that say about our community?

FIRST's own mission statement mentions 'mentor-based programs'. Demonizing mentors, or teams who utilize them to the best of their ability, probably wasn't the way to go here.

Editing to add: I just watched the 'master cut' of all the FRC storyline content. It was a nice cover of FIRST - and it did well, as Ryan mentioned, for showcasing what events look and feel like. I understand where the underdog story works, but I still stand by that demonizing the other team (the 'powerhouse') went a little too far. The use of language/tension/ungracious attitudes seems like a facet of their show, so it felt a little weird to see that with FIRST logos all around. I'm not the biggest fan of the all-girls' motto (b*tches get stuff done), but that's a very separate rant for another time. Ryan's pros-and-cons a few lines up are spot on, in my book! Not much more to add.

[AllenGregoryIV]

the weird coach from the favored team, who is way too invested in a high-school robotics competition - Maggie Fremont of Vulture

There was so much to dislike about the portrayal of FRC in this show but I think this quote demonstrates the worst of it. If people new to FRC are coming away with the idea that adult mentors shouldn't be passionate about FRC, clearly this has failed to do its job. Passionate mentors are reason the vast majority of teams of survive. We have students stand and clap at every event for the efforts of dedicated mentors and to have them discarded so easily by a TV show that has gotten so much support from HQ is extremely upsetting.

Countless times in this show I was hoping a mentor, key volunteer, or anyone would actually mentor these students and provide for some kind of character growth but you're left just feeling worse at each and every interaction. The people that are supposed to be teaching these students right from wrong are instead cheering profitably from the stands (I'm not above using harsh language but clearly there is a time and place and this isn't it). This show is not the behavior we should be promoting from team members or from our society. I understand it's just a TV show but that doesn't mean we should sacrifice our core values just for the publicity.

If this is the culture change that HQ thinks we need I dont want any part of it. This doesn't represent the FRC I know and love, and I regret promoting the program before watching how they would depict FRC.

[s_forbes]

Perhaps more like teenage drama TV?
If there isn't enough bad behavior coupled with super-charged emotional outbursts in the show, their target audience quickly loses interest.
I never expect this to be a glowing documentary about FRC, so I wasn't at all disappointed in the show.
On the very positive side, the show did portray the challenge and excitement in FRC, maybe that will intrigue some HS viewers enough to join a team!

Yep, that's my take on it. It's a family drama that's using FRC as a premise for the episode, it's not a TV spot about FIRST. Drama first, robots second. Maybe squeeze in some FIRST ideals if there's time.

Even so, I'm kind of amazed at how accurately the competition was portrayed. The teams that helped work the robotics atmosphere into the show did a good job. It's also a pretty good testament to how entertaining the games FIRST releases are, seeing that they didn't have a need to dress up the competition much.

Also, keep in mind that people googling "Fosters FIRST robotics" will see this thread as one of the top hits, so maybe don't stomp all over the show they like with your tall horses. :)

[bkahl]

Also, keep in mind that people googling "Fosters FIRST robotics" will see this thread as one of the top hits, so maybe don't stomp all over the show they like with your tall horses. :)

Maybe don't stomp all over our mentors, our mission, a platinum sponsor, and display the opposite of gracious professionalism next to FIRST's name like they did on the Hollywood high horse?

[wilsonmw04]

according to this recap: http://www.vulture.com/2016/08/fosters-recap-season-4-episode-8.html , FRC isn't done with the Fosters just yet. I hope we will see more growth and depth from the characters as time goes by.

On a slightly different note: I don't think the Cobra Kai damaged martial arts in 1984. In fact, the Karate Kid sparked interest the martial arts for a generation. Relax a bit.

They weren't insulting anyone or any team in their dramatized TV portrayal of a FRC event. Gotta read the disclaimers :D
The story, all names, characters, and incidents portrayed in this production are fictitious. No identification with actual persons, places, buildings, and products is intended or should be inferred.

[wilsonmw04]

- Maggie Fremont of Vulture

If people new to FRC are coming away with the idea that adult mentors shouldn't be passionate about FRC, clearly this has failed to do its job.

But isn't that what outsiders think about ANYTHING they aren't personally interested and excited about? For example, when I was at GENCON last week, I had my first run in with cosplay. Why would anyone get so passionate about a costume? I don't get it, but I don't have to! It's what they enjoy. So, more power to them.
It's the same with FIRST. There are many rookie parents and students who don't get my passion and interest in robotics. Heck, my principal doesn't even get it. Most of them begin to understand after they attend their first event. You have to admit, from the outside looking in, we are an odd group of people.

[Pauline Tasci]

Maybe don't stomp all over our mentors, our mission, a platinum sponsor, and display the opposite of gracious professionalism next to FIRST's name like they did on the Hollywood high horse?

I understand your anger, but all over might just be a tad harsh.

They did show the main mentor of Anchor bots in a good light and the importance of having an encouraging mentor on your team. He supported his team and his students, and that's what a mentor also does. So maybe not all over but certainly understand the engineer mentor comments.

A platinum sponsor wasn't "stomped all over" and the scene was much more about the individual mentors on team palomar than on the company as a whole.
People are not solely defined by the companies they work for, but rather their own personality. With that said, I understand the disgust behind the use of that phrase being read as "engineering mentors are bad" and its unfortunate the community is upset. And although this program is BUILT on hardworking engineering mentors, I don't think that idealism was as lost in the show as many are making it out to be.

Gracious Professionalism- I thought they upheld that value fine. They stressed the competition was about cooperating, working together, and learning more. The entire story line with "Baby Got Bots" and collaborating to make one mechanism work, and although I understand the "we need to beat Palomar mentality" is not the typical definition of a gracious professional, it honestly is true to events.

Everyone wants to beat the best, competitiveness is in all of us.

I understand everyone's lively comments about the show.

But I encourage everyone to get out and read comments from people who just watch the show and are not FIRST participants. The comments are amazing.
I've read great ones like "wait this is real? Sign me up" and "Those robots were so cool! "

One of my favorite parts they did with our story line is they did not make everyone a typical nerd, and did not point out only geniuses can do this. I really think they captured that anyone can do this and that robotics is competitive and fun. It is truly a sport of the mind! I love that the characters were so intense about competition because that's how a lot of us are!



The show averages about 1 million viewers per episode of people who would of not been exposed to FIRST otherwise! And although the episode is not the cookie cutter depiction of FIRST, I do think they got a lot of aspects right and that alone makes me proud and excited this is on TV.

With that said, god I hated the "$@#$@#$@#$@#$@#es get things done." Devaluing the hard work by calling the women $@#$@#$@#$@#$@#es is not okay in any world .

[Michael Corsetto]

Seems like the show writers (and whoever the 'FIRST advisor' was) took their own bias into the show.

Not to go all tin-foil-hat on this, but I agree.

Could the show just as easily had your typical "elite team" without demonizing involved mentors? How would the show writers even know about this specific topic of supposed "mentor-built robots"?

This specific aspect of the story line unnecessarily reinforces a viewpoint many members of our own community still hold; specifically that involved mentors do not belong in FRC. From my perspective, whoever the "FIRST advisor" was, that person (or group of peoples) made it a point to inject their viewpoint (which is contrary to FIRST's mission statement) into the show.

Kudos to all the teams and volunteers that made this show a success. It's clear this was a lot of work, and your involvement is something to be proud of!

-Mike

[Cothron Theiss]

Editing to add: I just watched the 'master cut' of all the FRC storyline content. It was a nice cover of FIRST -

Any way for those of us not able to watch or record the show to view this master cut? From the small clips I've seen, I have mixed feelings about this whole spectacle, but I'd like to watch the FRC-related portions and make my own decision.

[wilsonmw04]

Any way for those of us not able to watch or record the show to view this master cut? From the small clips I've seen, I have mixed feelings about this whole spectacle, but I'd like to watch the FRC-related portions and make my own decision.

Here ya go.
https://vimeo.com/179003515

[techtiger1]

Did anyone else find the bit about the 120.5 lb robot funny. Maybe it 's because my team is always so close on weight. I also could be wrong but at one point I was told by a regional inspector there is a .5 lb tolerance because of the accuracy of the scales. This could have been because at this event the scale was known to be off by a certain amount.

[Billfred]

Any way for those of us not able to watch or record the show to view this master cut? From the small clips I've seen, I have mixed feelings about this whole spectacle, but I'd like to watch the FRC-related portions and make my own decision.

The episode is available on Freeform's app, if you have a pay-TV subscription to log in with.

[Chris is me]

Did anyone else find the bit about the 120.5 lb robot funny. Maybe it 's because my team is always so close on weight. I also could be wrong but at one point I was told by a regional inspector there is a .5 lb tolerance because of the accuracy of the scales. This could have been because at this event the scale was known to be off by a certain amount.

Never experienced this kind of tolerance. If you're over by .1 lbs you have to go under. Weight is probably the most rigid constraint in FRC, even with the variance in scales.

[bobbysq]

according to this recap: http://www.vulture.com/2016/08/fosters-recap-season-4-episode-8.html , FRC isn't done with the Fosters just yet. I hope we will see more growth and depth from the characters as time goes by.



I can't wait for the CMP episode where they discover that basically every semi-decent team there has an engineering mentor, maybe even two.

[Basel A]

Here ya go.
https://vimeo.com/179003515

Having read this thread without watching the episode, I figured this controversy was, you know, justified. It's not. A whole lot here can be written off to teenage drama. Other than that, ungracious behaviour was mostly called out. Maybe there's no teams like them, but we've all met a coach like the Palomar (sp?) guy*. The team's coach was mentor-ly ("Didn't we talk about that?" to the swerve/mecanum/omni drive). The crude language was used for excitement purposes, not unlike the will.i.am line. Not sure what people are getting so worked up about.

*If you haven't, there's a decent chance it's you

[Koko Ed]

Having read this thread without watching the episode, I figured this controversy was, you know, justified. It's not. A whole lot here can be written off to teenage drama. Other than that, ungracious behaviour was mostly called out. Maybe there's no teams like them, but we've all met a coach like the Palomar (sp?) guy*. The team's coach was mentor-ly ("Didn't we talk about that?" to the swerve/mecanum/omni drive). The crude language was used for excitement purposes, not unlike the will.i.am line. Not sure what people are getting so worked up about.

*If you haven't, there's a decent chance it's you

Dude, it's CD in the Summertime. They need something to get some excitement going around here.

[Ryan Dognaux]

Anyone else notice the random 2 or 3 seconds from Einstein? Came out of nowhere.

http://i.imgur.com/N6t2b9z.png

[wilsonmw04]

Having read this thread without watching the episode, I figured this controversy was, you know, justified. It's not. A whole lot here can be written off to teenage drama. Other than that, ungracious behaviour was mostly called out. Maybe there's no teams like them, but we've all met a coach like the Palomar (sp?) guy*. The team's coach was mentor-ly ("Didn't we talk about that?" to the swerve/mecanum/omni drive). The crude language was used for excitement purposes, not unlike the will.i.am line. Not sure what people are getting so worked up about.

*If you haven't, there's a decent chance it's you

Exactly.

Dude, it's CD in the Summertime. They need something to get some excitement going around here.

+1

[D.Allred]

Anyone else notice the random 2 or 3 seconds from Einstein? Came out of nowhere.

http://i.imgur.com/N6t2b9z.png

Yep. That was sneaky.

Loved the "cheese hole" reference.

Is there a list of real FRC teams involved?

[David Brinza]

Could the show just as easily had your typical "elite team" without demonizing involved mentors? How would the show writers even know about this specific topic of supposed "mentor-built robots"?
Yes, the show could have used an elite team without an evil mentor, but that would have eroded their story-line about an underdog (i.e. "under-mentored") team overcoming insurmountable odds. Writers sometimes go to extremes in developing characters to emphasize their story. I doubt the intent was to make a statement about the "involved mentor" vs "student operated" team paradigm.

I know the writers were at the Los Angeles regional observing teams in the pits, watching matches and talking with volunteers, students, mentors, etc. I'm sure they were looking for the context of the event (it is, after all, a VERY unique environment). I'm sure they (like any uninformed observer) saw the disparity among the teams. The "haves and have nots" aspect of FRC does not go unnoticed by team members and spectators. We'd like to think ALL elite teams assist teams with less resources, unfortunately that doesn't always happen at competitions.

I wouldn't put too much on the FIRST advisor about the story-line and script. The producers, director and writers really are responsible for their product, which they craft for their viewership. I'm sure the FIRST advisor did not advocate the "b*itches get things done" line, but there it was! I'm sure the FIRST advisor was trying hard just to avoid gross degradation of the program.

BTW, the director didn't get why the FIRST members in the stands would not "boo" loudly when the pinning occurred without the referees making the call. (In spite of the FIRST advisor saying spectators just don't behave like that in FRC). Maybe the culture of FIRST was a bit too foreign for the director??

[jvriezen]

Just watched the story arc on Vimeo. A couple of observations:

Nice that they had a female ref, although she was criticized (indirectly, since she was the only ref highlighted) for missing the call.

I noticed that Blair does not get credit on IMDB for his speaking part, which was much more than the ref or inspector.

While the mentor was a fair ways 'over the top' it was good that they didn't dwell on the team 'hating' on him, after their mentor told them to forget about him. In the real world we sometimes encounter such people and often that is the right response-- so that aspect was done well.

How many FRC'ers (especially students) will reach out to the Foster's fan discussion boards to inform and help those who had their FIRST exposure to FRC better understand the program and the fact that they can get involved-- with links to 'real' FIRST Stronghold matches !

[Michael Corsetto]

Yes, the show could have used an elite team without an evil mentor, but that would have eroded their story-line about an underdog (i.e. "under-mentored") team overcoming insurmountable odds. Writers sometimes go to extremes in developing characters to emphasize their story. I doubt the intent was to make a statement about the "involved mentor" vs "student operated" team paradigm.

I know the writers were at the Los Angeles regional observing teams in the pits, watching matches and talking with volunteers, students, mentors, etc. I'm sure they were looking for the context of the event (it is, after all, a VERY unique environment). I'm sure they (like any uninformed observer) saw the disparity among the teams. The "haves and have nots" aspect of FRC does not go unnoticed by team members and spectators. We'd like to think ALL elite teams assist teams with less resources, unfortunately that doesn't always happen at competitions.

I wouldn't put too much on the FIRST advisor about the story-line and script. The producers, director and writers really are responsible for their product, which they craft for their viewership. I'm sure the FIRST advisor did not advocate the "b*itches get things done" line, but there it was! I'm sure the FIRST advisor was trying hard just to avoid gross degradation of the program.

BTW, the director didn't get why the FIRST members in the stands would not "boo" loudly when the pinning occurred without the referees making the call. (In spite of the FIRST advisor saying spectators just don't behave like that in FRC). Maybe the culture of FIRST was a bit too foreign for the director??

Thanks for the context Dave, much appreciated. Sounds like the writers got to observe a lot of FRC, that is great!

Loved your story about the "boo-ing". This is definitely a great aspect of our community! However, I have witnessed one or two instances of "boo-ing" at local FRC events, I'd bet the people boo-ing have the same impression of mentor involvement as the Fosters presented :(

Thanks,

-Mike

[pwnageNick]

Was looking around to find some online forums or something about the show to see what people were saying. This is what I found on this forum, located here (http://forums.previously.tv/topic/46519-s04e08-girl-code/#comment-2490651).

"I did not really care about the whole robotics thing. I hope the mention of another competition means the show's not dropping Mariana taking Jesus' pills."

"I wasn't into it either, have no idea how true to life it was. I did like Mariana's strategy paying off, but it felt a little tropey with the insufferable teacher from Palomar."

"I don't love the robotics thing either, but I do like that they gave this storyline to Mariana (and Jesus, I guess!)."

"I don't get how it was okay for the teacher at the other school to be basically doing the work and standing behind the line during the competition. I can buy that the school has a lot of extra "coaches" that help build the robot, but why was he more involved during the competition itself? And why couldn't the Anchor Beach coach not complain about it?"

" I hope I never see another robot competition on this show or anywhere else!"

"I also was bored with the Robotics competition. I think the problem was I had no idea what was going on. They should have made it clear either this episode or over the course of the time they were working on it, exactly what the robot was meant to do. I had no investment because I couldn't tell if they were winning or losing at any given moment. Mariana rocked it with her quick thinking, but I still don't understand how the robot was pinned for longer than 5 seconds yet the referee just ignored it?"

This is every quote I could find that had the robotics competition mentioned. Interesting to see some of the feedback from people not already aware of FRC or FIRST.

[tjf]

I still don't understand how the robot was pinned for longer than 5 seconds yet the referee just ignored it?"

Honestly, that speaks volumes about the competition regardless of whether you watch it actively. That line alone could have been straight off of a CD thread.

It was a bit disheartening though that so many people dislike it... I mean, I can understand it, but part of it was the "teen drama", part of it was "ugh, robots". It was an interesting matchup to begin with between Freeform and FIRST.

[NShep98]

How many FRC'ers (especially students) will reach out to the Foster's fan discussion boards to inform and help those who had their FIRST exposure to FRC better understand the program and the fact that they can get involved-- with links to 'real' FIRST Stronghold matches !

I think I like this comment the best out of this whole thread, because this is the part where we, as the FIRST community, get to react and do something in response to integration in mainstream media. Obviously there are inaccuracies and aspects people are less than happy with. That's what happens when you condense an entire weekend's worth of activity into 20 minutes of teenage tv drama. Is that all though? Could they have done better at portraying FIRST while still making a good story for viewers? My guess is probably. FIRST is complicated and tv producers are human. Worst case scenario, honestly, is that we get people coming into this program that believe that the contents of this episode are all FIRST has to offer. The good news is we can still teach them otherwise.

That being said, props to everyone involved for being so dedicated and getting as much right as they did.

[nerdrock101]

Was looking around to find some online forums or something about the show to see what people were saying. This is what I found on this forum, located here (http://forums.previously.tv/topic/46519-s04e08-girl-code/#comment-2490651).

snip

This is every quote I could find that had the robotics competition mentioned. Interesting to see some of the feedback from people not already aware of FRC or FIRST.

The IMDB message boards were not much better:

"Boring as hell! ... I really hope that they will abandon this storyline now that the competition is over and focus on more interesting things."

"Agreed. This week's whole episode was a snore fest."

(http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2262532/board/thread/260500886)
Regarding the word "coopertate":

"Lol nice blooper"

"it was said that way on purpose."

"Either way it's stupid." (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2262532/board/thread/260500902)

Honestly, that one stung the most. This should be what we are most upset about, not misrepresentation.

[wilsonmw04]

Come on guys. Are you really taking a few negative comments on the Internet to heart? These comments represents just as much of the general viewership as CD represents the general FRC community.

[Koko Ed]

The IMDB message boards were not much better:

"Boring as hell! ... I really hope that they will abandon this storyline now that the competition is over and focus on more interesting things."

"Agreed. This week's whole episode was a snore fest."

(http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2262532/board/thread/260500886)
Regarding the word "coopertate":

"Lol nice blooper"

"it was said that way on purpose."

"Either way it's stupid." (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2262532/board/thread/260500902)

Honestly, that one stung the most. This should be what we are most upset about, not misrepresentation.

IMDB messageboards are as much a cesspool as Youtube. Either their full of stalkers or trolls who think they know more about movies than anyone else. Don't sweat their opinions.

[wajirock]

Come on guys. Are you really taking a few negative comments on the Internet to heart? These comments represents just as much of the general viewership as CD represents the general FRC community.

It's just extremely disheartening to see that the general public still views STEM based activities as something outlandish.

[Rangel(kf7fdb)]

It's almost like FRC isn't a spectator sport and they had to add controversy and drama to make it at least somewhat interesting to the average viewer who probably doesn't give a crap about GP, coopertition, or even robots for that matter.

Now I'm not saying they made the best choices of how to add drama but even with what they added, it seems people thought it was a snore.

[Koko Ed]

It's just extremely disheartening to see that the general public still views STEM based activities as something outlandish.

FIRST aint for everyone. A lot of the kids who are in FIRST quit because they find it a boring grind. Oh well.I'm gonna take the time to focus on the kids who decided to stay. Make a difference in their lives so they, in turn, can be inspired to grow up to take the reins of the program and lead the next generation to greatness instead of agonizing about the ones who don't get it.

[Ringo5tarr]

Well, you have to admit. If you're looking for drama, an FRC team IS the place to be!

[Koko Ed]

Well, you have to admit. If you're looking for drama, an FRC team IS the place to be!
You hang around FIRST long enough you hear stories that make what happened on The Fosters pale in comparison.

[nerdrock101]

IMDB messageboards are as much a cesspool as Youtube. Either their full of stalkers or trolls who think they know more about movies than anyone else. Don't sweat their opinions.

I know what you mean, but every person (even internet trolls!) is a possible FIRST supporter. Perhaps I'm too optimistic. Someday... :)

[ahartnet]

Honestly, that speaks volumes about the competition regardless of whether you watch it actively. That line alone could have been straight off of a CD thread.

It was a bit disheartening though that so many people dislike it... I mean, I can understand it, but part of it was the "teen drama", part of it was "ugh, robots". It was an interesting matchup to begin with between Freeform and FIRST.

For a different thread talking about the episode, reddit has a subreddit for the fosters. Looks like there are some FIRSTers 'spreading the good word' to people with open ears: https://www.reddit.com/r/TheFosters/comments/4xxapc/slug/d6j7opo

[Sperkowsky]

For a different thread talking about the episode, reddit has a subreddit for the fosters. Looks like there are some FIRSTers 'spreading the good word' to people with open ears: https://www.reddit.com/r/TheFosters/comments/4xxapc/slug/d6j7opo
Id hardly call this quote good "You see in the show how there were teams who won a bunch of years and had a team of engineers with them. Unfortunately that's true. The highschools they go to are the ones with super high test scores and a good handful of cash to spare. And usually those kids parents have like Harvard engineering degrees and they mainly build the robots for the kids."

If anything it makes the whole thing worse.

[ahartnet]

Id hardly call this quote good "You see in the show how there were teams who won a bunch of years and had a team of engineers with them. Unfortunately that's true. The highschools they go to are the ones with super high test scores and a good handful of cash to spare. And usually those kids parents have like Harvard engineering degrees and they mainly build the robots for the kids."

If anything it makes the whole thing worse.

I'll agree that that's not the *best* light, but since the following response is:
Wow, the event sounds like a ton of fun, and the whole process as well. - I'll put it in the positive bucket.

[itsjustjon]

Now, everyone, say it with me: "It's just a TV show and FRC is just a robotics program. My life is a lot bigger than both of those things."

Once you say this, I swear most of the arguments here would fade into oblivion.

[Knufire]

Once you say this, I swear most of the arguments here on CD would fade into oblivion.

FTFY

[AllenGregoryIV]

Now, everyone, say it with me: "It's just a TV show and FRC is just a robotics program. My life is a lot bigger than both of those things."

Once you say this, I swear most of the arguments here would fade into oblivion.

That's fine if you believe that, but I signed up for something a lot bigger than just a robotics program. There is a reason the Chairman's award is our highest honor, culture change is our goal and how we introduce our selves to large portions of the culture is a rather key part of eventually changing the culture. We shouldn't just accept the status quo for the sake of more eye balls.

[itsjustjon]

That's fine if you believe that, but I signed up for something a lot bigger than just a robotics program. There is a reason the Chairman's award is our highest honor, culture change is our goal and how we introduce our selves to large portions of the culture is a rather key part of eventually changing the culture. We shouldn't just accept the status quo for the sake of more eye balls.

Note that I said 'arguments' will disappear, not beliefs in the program. I'm sure all of the goals you mentioned about culture change and Chairman's aren't attained by arguing on ChiefDelphi either.

The teams in this show definitely changed more culture by reaching out to literally millions of Americans across the continent, and that's something almost every other person here has forgotten to realize.

That's something many of us arguing here on CD have yet to do, so again, congrats to the teams who participated in the show.

[Alex Cormier]

Anyone else notice the random 2 or 3 seconds from Einstein? Came out of nowhere.

http://i.imgur.com/N6t2b9z.png

hehe.

If you going to talk about defense and all, you should show a clip of the best d bot out there.


haha. ok maybe a little bias. :p

[Liam Fay]

Id hardly call this quote good "You see in the show how there were teams who won a bunch of years and had a team of engineers with them. Unfortunately that's true. The highschools they go to are the ones with super high test scores and a good handful of cash to spare. And usually those kids parents have like Harvard engineering degrees and they mainly build the robots for the kids."

If anything it makes the whole thing worse.

In a response to that comment, another redditor said:

"Wow, the event sounds like a ton of fun, and the whole process as well. Computer science is something I hope to pursue in the future so seeing all these cool programs for the robots and what you described is just awesome. I wish my school had a robotics team."

[Sperkowsky]

In a response to that comment, another redditor said:

"Wow, the event sounds like a ton of fun, and the whole process as well. Computer science is something I hope to pursue in the future so seeing all these cool programs for the robots and what you described is just awesome. I wish my school had a robotics team."
Great so that single person was OK with it. What about the perspective mentor who read that and went huh this program looks terrible.

[wilsonmw04]

Great so that single person was OK with it. What about the perspective mentor who read that and went huh this program looks terrible.

oh, and the sky is falling as well. watch out!

[troy_dietz]

Anyone else notice the random 2 or 3 seconds from Einstein? Came out of nowhere.

http://i.imgur.com/N6t2b9z.png

But that's not possible. The SoCal regional is what the the Los Angeles regional was called until 2007 when the San Diego Regional came along. If 330 wasn't at the SoCal regional, or an equivalent in this universe (which they have attended every year it existed), how did they get to Einstein? :confused:

One does not simply fail to attend their home regional!

Did 330 win the World Championship in 2015 or the WCA to qualify for champs in this universe? :ahh:

[David Brinza]

It's almost like FRC isn't a spectator sport and they had to add controversy and drama to make it at least somewhat interesting to the average viewer who probably doesn't give a crap about GP, coopertition, or even robots for that matter.

Now I'm not saying they made the best choices of how to add drama but even with what they added, it seems people thought it was a snore.
The show's writers could have had teams sabotaging opponents' robots, bribing the inspector, and punching the referee (and opponents mentors). From what I've seen in a few episodes, that would be totally within the behavior norms for characters in this show.

FIRST could well have been portrayed in a disgustingly horrible light (at least for us).

Except the FIRST advisor to The Fosters would simply not allow that to happen!

[bobbysq]

But that's not possible. The SoCal regional is what the the Los Angeles regional was called until 2007 when the San Diego Regional along. If 330 wasn't at the SoCal regional, or an equivalent in this universe (which they have attended every year it existed), how did they get to Einstein? :confused:

One does not simply fail to attend their home regional.

Did 330 win the World Championship in 2015 or the WCA in this universe? :ahh:

This is the universe where California went to districts, allowing for a generic Southern California regional and causing the event to be 2 days. Since the team registered for regionals late, they could only get into one event. 330 won CSC with 254 and the antagonist team from the show.

Edit: This also caused 330's climber to fail earlier during CSC semifinals, allowing them to fix and improve it during CMP on day 1 and Carver ends up 2-0 against Tesla.

[pwnageNick]

In a response to that comment, another redditor said:

"Wow, the event sounds like a ton of fun, and the whole process as well. Computer science is something I hope to pursue in the future so seeing all these cool programs for the robots and what you described is just awesome. I wish my school had a robotics team."

In all fairness that person had also competed in FLL in the past and was aware of FIRST already.

[Chris is me]

Great so that single person was OK with it. What about the perspective mentor who read that and went huh this program looks terrible.

Great so that single mentor wasn't okay with it. What about the student who read that and thought "wow, that was cool, I wish my school had a team"?

It turns out you can't use single anecdotal examples to prove either side of an argument wrong!

[anfrcguy]

It turns out you can't use single anecdotal examples to prove either side of an argument wrong!

Nobody is trying to prove anything. But when every single response is negative (except for one student who had participated in FLL) that says something about how the The Fosters viewers perceived FIRST, right?

[Taylor]

Nobody is trying to prove anything. But when every single response is negative (except for one student who had participated in FLL) that says something about how the The Fosters viewers perceived FIRST, right?

No, that says something about Internet trolls being trollish.

[anfrcguy]

No, that says something about Internet trolls being trollish.

How are comments like "I did not really care about the whole robotics thing," "I don't love the robotics thing either," and " I hope I never see another robot competition on this show or anywhere else!" trolling? I get that they have an opinion that would be very unpopular on CD, but I just don't understand how posting their honest opinions of the show's content on a forum about the show makes them trolls.

[AdamHeard]

How are comments like "I did not really care about the whole robotics thing," "I don't love the robotics thing either," and " I hope I never see another robot competition on this show or anywhere else!" trolling? I get that they have an opinion that would be very unpopular on CD, but I just don't understand how posting their honest opinions of the show's content on a forum about the show makes them trolls.

I'd wager 99% of the audience doesn't post on the internet about the fosters. I wouldn't confuse a vocal minority with a proper representative sample (same as chief Delphi).

[D.Allred]

Nobody is trying to prove anything. But when every single response is negative (except for one student who had participated in FLL) that says something about how the The Fosters viewers perceived FIRST, right?

For the passionate FIRST community, we want to get our message out about how cool this program is. The Fosters did a decent job. You can tell they did research and were able to grasp some of the themes of competition stress, inspection process, the importance of consistent execution, powerhouse vs. low resource teams, all girl teams, adult vs. student coaches, elimination selection politics, referees, autonomous modes, safety glasses (sort of), and the importance continuous improvement throughout the event. Most of these real tidbits are only known to current participants. (What--- no line dances? Can't be FRC!)

As we know, FIRST and FRC are a bit difficult to grasp in an few minutes of exposure. The good news - FIRST got their logo on a TV program. Exposure is publicity. The Fosters team could have used a fictional robotics competition or science fair to make the same plot points. Also, the viewers still may not connect the dots that FIRST is real.

Now for the flip side view. Before these announcements, I had vaguely heard of Freeform and never a peep about The Fosters. Freeform and similar services are potentially the future of on demand media. I'll never watch The Fosters again. (I'm obviously not the target audience.) Hopefully the show's producers won't lament over this internet comment.

David

[Akash Rastogi]

I think you are all taking the potential influence of a TV show most people have never heard of way too seriously. To echo what Adam said, you are the vocal minority here.

[Pauline Tasci]

If you'd like to watch more about the details behind the filming of The Fosters here is the segment on FUN last night about the show including myself and Jacob Komar.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GPhQbow8-U0

Thanks!

[Siri]

I think you are all taking the potential influence of a TV show most people have never heard of way too seriously. To echo what Adam said, you are the vocal minority here.Without wading into the broader discussion, I figured I'd look this up (http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2016/08/16/monday-cable-ratings-august-15-2016/). The first run of this episode tied for third in its prime time slot among Neilsen's main demographic. It tied Family Guy and American Dad (8PM and 8:30 on TBS) at 0.4, though across all demographics The Fosters had 160,000 more viewers than Family Guy and 189,000 more than American Dad. It lost to "Love & Hip Hip" (VH1) and WWE in this timeslot.

Overall that night it ranked 35th on main demographic's Top 100 (which is all that's published). This comes out at 46th when ranked by total viewership. It is one of only two Freeform shows to make the list and is by far the highest, Big Screen Movie (5PM) ranking 99th and 71st respectively. This also means The Fosters was Freeform's highest-rated show of the day.

Couple of notes:

Neilsen's chief demographic is actually 18-49yo, and I don't know how to find ratings for a more age-appropriate bracket. I don't know much about any of these shows, but I'd guess 18-year-old minimum is hurting The Fosters more than most mentioned.
The Fosters, Family Guy, and American Dad only tie to the decimal reported (0.4). If they're in order, The Fosters is just below this showing of Family Guy but beats American Dad by 4 spots. (Both these shows have showings above and below The Fosters in other timeslots; expect a timeslot correlation though I haven't checked.)
The Top 100 includes a total 9 shows in the 8PM hour with 7 at 8PM and 2 at 8:30. In demo rating order, they are (demo rating/total viewers):

Love & Hip Hop (1.3/2.45M)
WWE (1.0/2.88M)
Family Guy (0.4/724K)
The Fosters (0.4/884K)
American Dad (0.4/655K @ 8:30)
FX Movie (0.3/933K)
Cleveland Show (0.3/763K @ 8:30)
Cupcake Wars (0.3/789K)
Misfit Garage (0.3/859K)



My takeaway is that if you remember classmates talking about Fox Family/ABC Family/Freeform shows when you were in high school, you'd probably have people talking about The Fosters now.

[bduddy]

I'm wondering how many people in this thread have watched any TV drama within the last few years. Or spent time talking to students from teams without significant resources. Neither number seems to be particularly high.

[GeeTwo]

I signed up for something a lot bigger than just a robotics program.

+1 - FIRST is about making the world better by inspiring the next generation of inventors and developers. FRC is a robotics program created to support that mission. While it is not exactly what he meant, and I will capitalize some letters he would not have, it is good here to quote one of my former commanding officers, who himself was quoting from military doctrine:
Mission FIRST. People Always.

Edit: and, as always, read the third sentence under this post.

[BotDesigner]

I'm wondering how many people in this thread have watched any TV drama within the last few years. Or spent time talking to students from teams without significant resources. Neither number seems to be particularly high.

+1

[JamalBendkowski]

Man this is sweet, tremendous coverage of FIRST.