McDonald's Storytelling Contest 2016 @ McDonald's Juru, Penang

Thanks to the invitation from McDonald's Malaysia, I got the chance to be one of the judges for the live audition of McDonald's Storytelling Contest at McDonald's Juru, Penang. All of a sudden, the memories of the storytelling competition that I used to participate back in primary school are all coming back to me. 

McDonald's Storytelling Contest 2016

There were two sessions in a day, but I was being assigned for the afternoon session only. By the time I arrived at McDonald's Juru, most of the contestants were already there. To be honest, I think I was nervous than the contestants as I do not know how it would turns out to be.    

The emcee, Kevin went thru with me all the judging criteria and how the whole audition process goes. As usual, it was pretty straight forward for the judging criteria, body language, stage presence, story line, props, costumes and so on.  

The event started with Kevin explaining the rules and regulations of the audition as well as introducing the judges to the parents and contestants. It was my pleasure to judge along side with Dr Nor Hasliza, lecturer from USM and also Ms Nur Adila Rosli, teacher from PCGHS. They were there to judge for the whole day!  

In the meanwhile, parents helped their kids to get ready for one last time before they leave the audition room. As you can see, the parents put in so much effort in helping their kids to win. Some were put on with heavy make-up and costumes, while some also came with their self-made props to better illustrate their story.  

Out of hundreds of online submissions of their 60 seconds video of storytelling, only a small number were being selected to attend the live auditions. There were a total of 10 contestants selected for live audition in my session. They were given 5 minutes to tell their story but most of them were able to complete in time. Time keeper would also reminds the contestants when there's a minute left. 

Personally, I think they are really talented especially given that they are only kids that aged between 6 to 9 years old. Some of the kids seems nervous and a little stage fright in the beginning, but once they start their story they were like turned into another different person! Game face ON!

After the auditions, it was the showtime for the CHO, Chief of Happiness Offier - Ronald McDonald to entertain the kids. Since it was a storytelling contest, Ronald tells the story and asked for the kids to play along. And yes, he's the CHO for a reason, which is to bring happiness to the kids. Judging from the joyful expression on the face of every kids, surely Ronald did a great job. 

After the showtime by Ronald, it was time for the presentation of souvenir and token of appreciation. The event ended with a group photo with all the contestants, Ronald and also the top management of McDonalds. As this was just the audition for northern region, the selected contestants for Grand Final will be contacted once all the other auditions, nationwide, are done.  

Visit I Blog My Way Facebook Page for the rest of the photos.

Overall, I think it is a great event and a good exposure for the kids to experience. It is also a good opportunity for the parents to spend more time with their kids as well. I had a great time being a judge there and it was really fun to see the storytelling by the kids. They brought happiness to everyone there.