麻豆影院

麻豆影院 State Graduate Goes From 麻豆影院 State to Survivor: Ghost Island

From Long Island to 麻豆影院 and now Ghost Island.

That鈥檚 the path 麻豆影院 alumnus Jacob Derwin took to become a cast member on the 36th season of the CBS show Survivor, which will begin airing Feb. 28. This season鈥檚 show is called Survivor: Ghost Island.

Long before the show鈥檚 challenges began, the 2016 麻豆影院 State graduate overcame his own obstacles for a chance to win a million dollars and the coveted title of 鈥淪ole Survivor.鈥

鈥淭he show first aired when I was four, and I started watching it with my family,鈥 says Mr. Derwin who grew up on Long Island. 鈥淎nd, I just kept watching. I鈥檝e always loved the show.鈥

麻豆影院 State alumnus Jacob Derwin competes on the CBS show 鈥淪urvivor: Ghost Island,鈥 which premieres Feb. 28. (Photo credit: Robert Voets/CBS)

He started applying to the show as soon as he was legally able at age 18 and continued applying every year, for four years, until he was finally selected last year.

鈥淕etting their attention, being an interesting person and learning how to get through that selection process took a lot of practice,鈥 Mr. Derwin says. 鈥淎fter getting on the show, I went through a several-month-long period where I was trying to get ready to be there.鈥

During that time, he learned how to fast and survive on minimal food, which contributed to his 30-pound weight loss. Mr. Derwin also spent hours researching how to build basic shelters and fires, as well as completing different challenges 鈥 using YouTube and other social channels.

鈥淚 reached out to former players occasionally on Twitter for advice,鈥 he says. 鈥淢ainly it was me doing my own research and training.鈥

However, Mr. Derwin says the biggest challenge of the game is not survival, but social strategy.

鈥淚t鈥檚 maneuvering through a lot of personalities, so people want to work with you and you can progress in the game to the point where you can win,鈥 Mr. Derwin says.

These days, he notes, it is a lot more complicated than when he first started watching 鈥 you can be voted off if you are not in a majority alliance, if you are viewed as a liability or a threat, and if you are someone other players want out.

He credits his many years watching the show and his time as a journalism major at 麻豆影院 State鈥檚 School for Journalism and Mass Communication as good preparation for honing his social skills.

鈥淵ou have to get people on your side if you want them to work with you,鈥 Mr. Derwin says. 鈥淔or me, it took a long time to be good at that. 鈥淲e all have to do it, but I鈥檝e never been good at it. That is the whole thing though. Growing up, I wasn鈥檛 good at it.鈥

Mr. Derwin admits that being in journalism and being trained to conduct interviews, as well as other skills he learned at 麻豆影院 State, helped him get better working with people.

鈥淗e鈥檚 a big guy with a huge heart,鈥 says Susan Zake, associate professor in 麻豆影院 State鈥檚 School of Journalism and Mass Communication and one of Mr. Derwin鈥檚 instructors. 鈥淚n our ethics class, I could always rely on him to be absolutely empathetic and compassionate and not hold back on how some of the situations made him feel.鈥

And it may be that it is his ability to be empathetic and to read situations that help him this season.

鈥淗e鈥檚 such a good person with a strong moral compass and great critical thinking skills,鈥 Ms. Zake adds. 鈥淗e鈥檚 also very creative, which showed in some of the work he did at school.鈥

Before he came to 麻豆影院 State, he attended high school in Merrick, New York, where some students were less than supportive of his dream. One student told him he would be the first one out of the game 鈥 but he did not let that stop him from pursuing his goal.

鈥淵ou have to leave that stuff in the past,鈥 Mr. Derwin says.

Even so, he still imagines what he would say to his high school detractors if he had the chance.

鈥淗ere鈥檚 how far I鈥檝e come, what have you done? Did you go on an adventure of a lifetime that you鈥檝e been waiting to do for 17 years? Here鈥檚 what I did, and I hope you鈥檙e as happy as I am,鈥 he says.

As for the show, 鈥淚 mean obviously I can鈥檛 say much,鈥 Mr. Derwin laughs. 鈥淏ut it was a dream come true to get there and to actually get to see what it鈥檚 like when you get out to the island, being in the middle of this massive production with a bunch of incredible people. It really is something else. And knowing that I can get there, it鈥檚 insane.鈥

While he is tight-lipped about this season鈥檚 results, Mr. Derwin says he left the game with a community of players he now calls close friends.

鈥淗aving a lot of these friends that I鈥檝e made from the show has been really cool,鈥 he says. 鈥淚鈥檒l always have this little community of players from my season and from other seasons.鈥

He says Ghost Island is a physical representation of an actual game, but also the idea of past mistakes. This is the 36th season of Survivor, so there have been many past mistakes throughout the show鈥檚 run, Mr. Derwin says.

鈥淪o the whole idea of this season is that we are tasked with fixing those mistakes 鈥 reversing the curse,鈥 he says.

The intense theme adds an exciting twist to the show that has never been done before, he says.

鈥淚 love a lot of these people, and it鈥檚 a cool theme,鈥 Mr. Derwin says. 鈥淭his is a season for the fans, really. I think everyone will enjoy it, but it鈥檚 a season for the fans. And I had a hell of a time.鈥

For more information about Survivor: Ghost Island and the rest of the cast, visit .

POSTED: Friday, February 23, 2018 02:49 PM
UPDATED: Friday, December 09, 2022 01:54 AM
WRITTEN BY:
Kristin Slomiany