Quote:
Originally Posted by rhetorical
They also told those "smaller guys" involved that they were like Survivor where no one got paid. Flat out lie, which I pointed out on a web board.
You might have been astute enough to get some product placement, but they disallowed or cut it out for most. They hedged on the distribution which they implied was world wide.
I don't like to see our tax dollars paying for media scam artists (imho....disclaimer). They lied to just about everyone that they were making documentary television, when in fact they were making another tv series. They also stirred up a lot of shit for the entertainment value it produced. No documentary producer would do this.
I still say there was never the quid pro quo they implied. If you got it, cudos. Those who had stars in their eyes got the shaft.
I was in the tv business for many years and I have seen how bozos operate. It embarrassed me.
|
They sold it to me as a "docu-soap". They weren't coming off as "serious" documentary filmmakers but as using the reality concept as a series for entertainment goals. They tried to be "documentary" as much as possible and from what I saw got it mostly on the fly. Only once did they ask me to explain something to someone for the benefit of the camera and their narrative, and actually used it.
Also, at least during the production phase, they never implied to me anything about world distribution - they were quite open about just getting the Canadian and hoping the concept would sell to an American company. (Then again I did ask lots of questions and screened them like any company that wants to cover us just to make sure their agenda isn't to demonize us...)
Anyhow, we're still getting calls from people who saw us (or who claim their brother or teenage son saw us) on TV and would like to know a little more. Might not have paid off in spades, but it paid off, and adds a little to the overall PR strategy.
