Big Time Audition
Encyclopedia
Big Time Audition is the hour-long made-for-television pilot movie of the Nickelodeon
television series, Big Time Rush
. It is the debut film of the series film franchise. It stars Kendall Schmidt
, James Maslow
, Carlos Pena Jr., Logan Henderson
, and Stephen Kramer Glickman
. It aired as a sneak preview on November 28, 2009 at 8:30 p.m. ET, following the iCarly
special, iMove Out. It is an hour-long special with the length of two regular episodes put together. The movie focuses on how four ordinary teenage friends from Minnesota
get a chance to become the next chart-topping boy band
, while going on an epic journey of a lifetime.
and Minnesota
.
players from Minnesota
being chased down by the girl's field hockey team. Earlier, 15-year-old Kendall Knight (Kendall Schmidt
) had suggested that they pull a prank on the girl's hockey team: turn on the sprinkler valve to spray them all. 14-year-old Carlos Garcia (Carlos Pena Jr.) attempts to pull the prank but was not strong enough. Eventually 15-year-old James Diamond (James Maslow
) agrees to help Kendall and Carlos. 15-year-old Logan Mitchell (Logan Henderson
) helps as well, which makes the four boys powerful enough to get the prank done. The angry girls chase the boys into a dead-end alley and beat them up.
Meanwhile, hit record producer, Gustavo Rocque (Stephen Kramer Glickman
) is holding local auditions at the movie theater in Minnesota, looking for his new hit popstar. While nursing their wounds with ice-packs on the couch, the four boys learn about Gustavo's auditions and try to get a hold of their respective moms to get driven there before five o'clock. When that is unsuccessful, the guys get their old neighbor to lend them her car. They have Logan, the only one with a learner's permit, drive them to the audition, taking their neighbor along. The guys run up to the talent agent, Kelly, just in time before the clock hits five. Kelly forces everybody to audition. During their auditions, Logan beatboxes, Carlos farts and James sings, but a fight starts between Kendall and Gustavo when he says that James has no talent. Gustavo tells James that his singing didn't make him fall off his chair. This leads to a fight with two security guards, with James jumping on top of them from the stage and Carlos joining in. Soon, Logan and Kendall join in as well, along with their old neighbor, who hits the security guards with her cane.
Mrs. Knight (Challen Cates
) is shocked when she opens the door to find that the police have brought the boys home. She demands an explanation and the boys tell her what has happened. Mrs. Knight lets them off the hook. Kendall's younger sister, Katie (Ciara Bravo
), asks the boys to sing the 'The Giant Turd Song' for her. The boys sing the song until Gustavo comes to the door and asks if Kendall wants to be his new hit pop-star, surprising all four boys. Kendall is asked if he wants to fly to L.A. with Gustavo and make some demos
but Kendall doesn't accept the offer because he thinks it isn't worth leaving his friends behind in Minnesota.
The next day, Kendall is bugged by the guys to accept the offer. Kendall proclaims that it isn't worth it without his best friends. Finally, they convince him to call Gustavo. Gustavo shows up, telling Kendall he will make him a star. Kendall makes a deal: He will go along with Gustavo to L.A. and record demos if Gustavo takes all four of the boys along with him. Gustavo, at first laughs at the idea, but quickly agrees and the next day, they all fly out to L.A.
The guys ride in a limousine to Palm Woods, a hotel for aspiring performing artists, and meet lots of different people like Guitar Dude, the Jennifers, Lightning the Wonder Dog, and Nicole Scherzinger
! They have a great time discovering everything around them and living the life. Despite claiming that they won't let Hollywood change them, only to be acting like celebs only ten minute later. They also attempt to impress the Jennifers, only to get smoothies thrown in their faces.
Meanwhile, Griffin, the eccentric CEO of Roque Records is angry at Gustavo for bringing back all four of the boys, as he believes that the boy band genre is dead, but gives Gustavo until Friday to show him what they can do.
Gustavo puts the boys through his "Boy Band Boot Camp" telling them that all great boy bands need great dance moves, a great look, and a great song.
Gustavo hires a dance instructor who has worked with various celeberites to teach them dance moves. However they mearly goof off and drive him to quit.
Gustavo's management team then attempts to find them the right look, only to dress them in ridiculous outfits. (that James likes)
Finally he gives them the sheet music for their first song, Girl Time. Kendall insults it, prompting Gustavo to show them his wall of platinum records, 28 of them that have girl in the title. Kendall makes fun of Gustavo for having girl in all his titles causing Gusatvo to scream so loud that he causes a 3.1 scale earthquake.
After calming down, he takes them into a sound booth to start recording, only for them to start hitting each other with pillows and fruit water. Gustavo finally has had enough.
He tells Carlos that he can't sing, Logan that he can't sing or dance, James that he reminds him of Matthew Mcconaughey (which he can't stand), and that Kendall acts like he doesn't even want to be here and that he'd rather quit producing then commit pop suicide with them.
Upset at their careers over before they even began the four get into a fight, which Katie stops by pushing them into a pool. They make up and sing the turd song, which causes the other palm woods residents to cheer.
Kendall finally realizes that he does enjoy singing and being with his friends. He tells the others that they are four hockey players from Minnesota and they can either dump the puck or rush the puck big time. They unanimously agree to big time rush.
They go back to Gustavo and agree to do things his way on the condition that they get to sing a song other than girl time. Gustavo wants to hear a better idea and they state that they want to sing Big Time Rush, a song about four hockey players from Minnesota who have an amazing opportunity and are going to take their best shot. Kelly likes it and Gustavo relucently admits that he does as well.
Come Friday they perform Big Time Rush in front of Griffin who likes it and allows them to stay for three months to produce their demos.
Gustavo tells them that they are staying, but the next three months will be even harder than the last three days and that Carlos still can't sing, Logan can't dance, and he still doesn't like James. Kendall says that they will work on it. Gustavo says that now they can celebrate which they do and Big Time Rush is born.
The screen then fades to "And the musical journey begins.."
Nickelodeon (TV channel)
Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...
television series, Big Time Rush
Big Time Rush
Big Time Rush is a Nickelodeon television series created by Scott Fellows about the Hollywood misadventures of four hockey players from Minnesota—Kendall, Logan, James, and Carlos, after they are selected to form a boy band. The series premiered with an hour-long pilot episode, "Big Time...
. It is the debut film of the series film franchise. It stars Kendall Schmidt
Kendall Schmidt
Kendall Francis Schmidt is an American actor and singer-songwriter; he is best known for playing Kendall Knight in Big Time Rush and has played small roles on different TV shows such as ER, Without a Trace, Phil of the Future, Ghost Whisperer, and Frasier...
, James Maslow
James Maslow
James David Maslow is an American actor, singer, and dancer. He is best known for playing the role of James Diamond on Nickelodeon's Big Time Rush and is a member of the boy music group with the same name.-Early life:...
, Carlos Pena Jr., Logan Henderson
Logan Henderson
Logan Phillip Henderson is an American actor, dancer, rapper and singer-songwriter. He is best known for his starring role as Logan Mitchell on the Nickelodeon series, Big Time Rush, as well as being a member of the Big Time Rush band itself.-Early life:Henderson was born and raised in North...
, and Stephen Kramer Glickman
Stephen Kramer Glickman
Stephen Kramer Glickman is a Canadian born American actor, fashion designer and stand-up comedian.-Career:Stephen Kramer Glickman is starring as a main role named "Gustavo Rocque" on the Nickelodeon television series, Big Time Rush...
. It aired as a sneak preview on November 28, 2009 at 8:30 p.m. ET, following the iCarly
ICarly
iCarly is an American sitcom that focuses on a girl named Carly Shay who creates her own web show called iCarly with her best friends Sam and Freddie. The series was created by Dan Schneider, who also serves as executive producer. It stars Miranda Cosgrove as Carly, Jennette McCurdy as Sam, Nathan...
special, iMove Out. It is an hour-long special with the length of two regular episodes put together. The movie focuses on how four ordinary teenage friends from Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
get a chance to become the next chart-topping boy band
Boy band
A boy band is loosely defined as a popular music act consisting of only male singers. The members are expected to dance as well as sing, usually giving highly choreographed performances. More often than not, boy band members do not play musical instruments, either in recording sessions or on...
, while going on an epic journey of a lifetime.
Production
Filming began in early 2009, but was not announced until October 2009. It aired on November 28, 2009 as a follow-up sneak preview to the official premiere on January 18, 2010. The movie was filmed in Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
and Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
.
Plot
The movie begins with four teenage, high-school, hockeyHockey
Hockey is a family of sports in which two teams play against each other by trying to maneuver a ball or a puck into the opponent's goal using a hockey stick.-Etymology:...
players from Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
being chased down by the girl's field hockey team. Earlier, 15-year-old Kendall Knight (Kendall Schmidt
Kendall Schmidt
Kendall Francis Schmidt is an American actor and singer-songwriter; he is best known for playing Kendall Knight in Big Time Rush and has played small roles on different TV shows such as ER, Without a Trace, Phil of the Future, Ghost Whisperer, and Frasier...
) had suggested that they pull a prank on the girl's hockey team: turn on the sprinkler valve to spray them all. 14-year-old Carlos Garcia (Carlos Pena Jr.) attempts to pull the prank but was not strong enough. Eventually 15-year-old James Diamond (James Maslow
James Maslow
James David Maslow is an American actor, singer, and dancer. He is best known for playing the role of James Diamond on Nickelodeon's Big Time Rush and is a member of the boy music group with the same name.-Early life:...
) agrees to help Kendall and Carlos. 15-year-old Logan Mitchell (Logan Henderson
Logan Henderson
Logan Phillip Henderson is an American actor, dancer, rapper and singer-songwriter. He is best known for his starring role as Logan Mitchell on the Nickelodeon series, Big Time Rush, as well as being a member of the Big Time Rush band itself.-Early life:Henderson was born and raised in North...
) helps as well, which makes the four boys powerful enough to get the prank done. The angry girls chase the boys into a dead-end alley and beat them up.
Meanwhile, hit record producer, Gustavo Rocque (Stephen Kramer Glickman
Stephen Kramer Glickman
Stephen Kramer Glickman is a Canadian born American actor, fashion designer and stand-up comedian.-Career:Stephen Kramer Glickman is starring as a main role named "Gustavo Rocque" on the Nickelodeon television series, Big Time Rush...
) is holding local auditions at the movie theater in Minnesota, looking for his new hit popstar. While nursing their wounds with ice-packs on the couch, the four boys learn about Gustavo's auditions and try to get a hold of their respective moms to get driven there before five o'clock. When that is unsuccessful, the guys get their old neighbor to lend them her car. They have Logan, the only one with a learner's permit, drive them to the audition, taking their neighbor along. The guys run up to the talent agent, Kelly, just in time before the clock hits five. Kelly forces everybody to audition. During their auditions, Logan beatboxes, Carlos farts and James sings, but a fight starts between Kendall and Gustavo when he says that James has no talent. Gustavo tells James that his singing didn't make him fall off his chair. This leads to a fight with two security guards, with James jumping on top of them from the stage and Carlos joining in. Soon, Logan and Kendall join in as well, along with their old neighbor, who hits the security guards with her cane.
Mrs. Knight (Challen Cates
Challen Cates
Challen Cates is an American independent film producer and actress best known for portraying Mrs. Knight on the TV series, Big Time Rush....
) is shocked when she opens the door to find that the police have brought the boys home. She demands an explanation and the boys tell her what has happened. Mrs. Knight lets them off the hook. Kendall's younger sister, Katie (Ciara Bravo
Ciara Bravo
Ciara Quinn Bravo is an American actress, voice artist, singer, and comedienne. She is best known for her role as Katie Knight on Big Time Rush....
), asks the boys to sing the 'The Giant Turd Song' for her. The boys sing the song until Gustavo comes to the door and asks if Kendall wants to be his new hit pop-star, surprising all four boys. Kendall is asked if he wants to fly to L.A. with Gustavo and make some demos
Demos
Demos may refer to:* Demos, a rhetorical term for the population of an ancient Greek state** Deme or Demoi, the term for an ancient subdivision of Attica, Greece...
but Kendall doesn't accept the offer because he thinks it isn't worth leaving his friends behind in Minnesota.
The next day, Kendall is bugged by the guys to accept the offer. Kendall proclaims that it isn't worth it without his best friends. Finally, they convince him to call Gustavo. Gustavo shows up, telling Kendall he will make him a star. Kendall makes a deal: He will go along with Gustavo to L.A. and record demos if Gustavo takes all four of the boys along with him. Gustavo, at first laughs at the idea, but quickly agrees and the next day, they all fly out to L.A.
The guys ride in a limousine to Palm Woods, a hotel for aspiring performing artists, and meet lots of different people like Guitar Dude, the Jennifers, Lightning the Wonder Dog, and Nicole Scherzinger
Nicole Scherzinger
Nicole Prescovia Elikolani Valiente Scherzinger is an American singer-songwriter, dancer, record producer, model, and actress. Scherzinger is perhaps best known for being the lead vocalist of the Pussycat Dolls....
! They have a great time discovering everything around them and living the life. Despite claiming that they won't let Hollywood change them, only to be acting like celebs only ten minute later. They also attempt to impress the Jennifers, only to get smoothies thrown in their faces.
Meanwhile, Griffin, the eccentric CEO of Roque Records is angry at Gustavo for bringing back all four of the boys, as he believes that the boy band genre is dead, but gives Gustavo until Friday to show him what they can do.
Gustavo puts the boys through his "Boy Band Boot Camp" telling them that all great boy bands need great dance moves, a great look, and a great song.
Gustavo hires a dance instructor who has worked with various celeberites to teach them dance moves. However they mearly goof off and drive him to quit.
Gustavo's management team then attempts to find them the right look, only to dress them in ridiculous outfits. (that James likes)
Finally he gives them the sheet music for their first song, Girl Time. Kendall insults it, prompting Gustavo to show them his wall of platinum records, 28 of them that have girl in the title. Kendall makes fun of Gustavo for having girl in all his titles causing Gusatvo to scream so loud that he causes a 3.1 scale earthquake.
After calming down, he takes them into a sound booth to start recording, only for them to start hitting each other with pillows and fruit water. Gustavo finally has had enough.
He tells Carlos that he can't sing, Logan that he can't sing or dance, James that he reminds him of Matthew Mcconaughey (which he can't stand), and that Kendall acts like he doesn't even want to be here and that he'd rather quit producing then commit pop suicide with them.
Upset at their careers over before they even began the four get into a fight, which Katie stops by pushing them into a pool. They make up and sing the turd song, which causes the other palm woods residents to cheer.
Kendall finally realizes that he does enjoy singing and being with his friends. He tells the others that they are four hockey players from Minnesota and they can either dump the puck or rush the puck big time. They unanimously agree to big time rush.
They go back to Gustavo and agree to do things his way on the condition that they get to sing a song other than girl time. Gustavo wants to hear a better idea and they state that they want to sing Big Time Rush, a song about four hockey players from Minnesota who have an amazing opportunity and are going to take their best shot. Kelly likes it and Gustavo relucently admits that he does as well.
Come Friday they perform Big Time Rush in front of Griffin who likes it and allows them to stay for three months to produce their demos.
Gustavo tells them that they are staying, but the next three months will be even harder than the last three days and that Carlos still can't sing, Logan can't dance, and he still doesn't like James. Kendall says that they will work on it. Gustavo says that now they can celebrate which they do and Big Time Rush is born.
The screen then fades to "And the musical journey begins.."
Reception
3.650 million viewers tuned into the premiere, giving Big Time Rush some high ratings followed by the official premiere next year in January, getting 7.1 million Total viewers, and in the process, setting a new record for highest-rated live-action series premiere in Nickelodeon history. Also, there was a huge breakout when they premiered it the second time, with 10.6 viewers.Music
Sneak previews of tracks featured in the regular series like "Famous", "City Is Ours", and the track, Big Time Rush, were featured in the special.Cast
- Kendall SchmidtKendall SchmidtKendall Francis Schmidt is an American actor and singer-songwriter; he is best known for playing Kendall Knight in Big Time Rush and has played small roles on different TV shows such as ER, Without a Trace, Phil of the Future, Ghost Whisperer, and Frasier...
as Kendall Knight - Carlos Pena Jr. as Carlos Garcia
- James MaslowJames MaslowJames David Maslow is an American actor, singer, and dancer. He is best known for playing the role of James Diamond on Nickelodeon's Big Time Rush and is a member of the boy music group with the same name.-Early life:...
as James Diamond - Logan HendersonLogan HendersonLogan Phillip Henderson is an American actor, dancer, rapper and singer-songwriter. He is best known for his starring role as Logan Mitchell on the Nickelodeon series, Big Time Rush, as well as being a member of the Big Time Rush band itself.-Early life:Henderson was born and raised in North...
as Hortense "Logan" Mitchell - Stephen Kramer GlickmanStephen Kramer GlickmanStephen Kramer Glickman is a Canadian born American actor, fashion designer and stand-up comedian.-Career:Stephen Kramer Glickman is starring as a main role named "Gustavo Rocque" on the Nickelodeon television series, Big Time Rush...
as Gustavo Rocque - Tanya ChisholmTanya ChisholmTanya Chisholm is an American actress and dancer. She is mostly known for her role as Kelly Wainwright on the Nickelodeon sitcom, Big Time Rush. She is also known for her role as Marcie on the Legally Blonde spin off, Legally Blondes, , acting along side Camilla Rosso and Rebecca Rosso...
as Kelly Wainwright - Challen CatesChallen CatesChallen Cates is an American independent film producer and actress best known for portraying Mrs. Knight on the TV series, Big Time Rush....
as Mrs. Knight - Ciara BravoCiara BravoCiara Quinn Bravo is an American actress, voice artist, singer, and comedienne. She is best known for her role as Katie Knight on Big Time Rush....
as Katie Knight - Matt Riedy as Arthur Griffin
- Erin SandersErin SandersErin Zariah Sanders is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Quinn Pensky on Zoey 101 and Camille on Big Time Rush. She may also be known for portraying Eden Baldwin on The Young and the Restless in 2008....
as Camille Roberts