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“It’s Been Brutal”: Reality TV Producers Lament Conditions as Networks Remain Frugal During Strikes (www.hollywoodreporter.com)
submitted 3 years ago by to c/moviesandtv@lemmy.film
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Many thought the halt of scripted programming would lead to a reality boom, but even as fall schedules rely heavily on unscripted, workers still grapple with diminished job opportunities, long hours and a lack of union support: "We get starved out all the time."

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[–] 9 points 3 years ago (1 child)

I'm sorry I have zero sympathy for reality TV producers. Have you met them they're terrible

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  • [–] 1 point 3 years ago*

    I met one of the producers on jersey shore Miami outside of a widespread panic show one time. He seemed nice enough. He was sucking down balloons and offered to share so that was nice of him. He didn't seem to love his job though, and jersey shore seems to be something of an outlier in that the subjects were hungry for, and relished the attention.

    ETA: also shameless

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    • [–] 6 points 3 years ago

    as fall schedules rely heavily on unscripted

    Unscripted?! Since when? "Scripted, with improvisation" or "pseudo-documentary" is more accurate.

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    [–] 6 points 3 years ago (1 child)

    “ We get starved out all the time."

    Could it be that you’re feeding on the misfortune of others, and there’s a limited appetite for this?

    Aside from Discovery, of course.

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  • [–] 5 points 3 years ago (1 child)

    Seriously, they're literally the problem, networks turned to reality TV because it was cheap and to get around the last writers strike and the one before that.

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  • [–] 2 points 3 years ago

    I sometimes wonder if the need to turn the "news" division into another "entertainment" group led to this. Most "reality television" boils down to a camera on the scene, with some faceless person asking "So, how do you feel about that?".

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    • [–] 4 points 3 years ago

    Sounds like they need a union.

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    [–] 1 point 3 years ago (3 children)

    This makes me wonder if shows like Deadliest Catch or Property Brothers actually "jazz up" the show with some light scripting the way shows like The Real World famously did. 🤔

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  • [–] 1 point 3 years ago

    I have family that works in visual effects and have worked on a lot of reality shows. To say shoes are scripted is putting it ridiculously mildly. Entire episode runs are planned out, meticulously. Almost nothing is left to chance/genuine.

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