I’ve just had a phonecall from friends of friends asking if me and my other half will do a short interview in front of a TV crew explaining why we work as a happy couple..

there’s good money in it if the footage is useable..

would you do it..?

Go for it.

And breath in. 😀

You have nothing to lose but your dignity.

Make sure you have the right to see the clip as it will be shown to air and have the right to stop it going out if you don’t like their editing

Not another Lovers Guide video is it?

Yeah, why not. Being in front of a camera isn’t that scary 🙂

how much money?

Embarrassing bodies?

I saw a couple I knew appearing on an omg-look-at-these-freaks obsessive collector show. Apparently she collected My Little Ponies by the truckload. And I know for a fact that was far far less weird and freaky than some of the other stuff she got up to…

Do it, i would naked too 😉

Just remember that TV is all in the editing….

ooh, a new series of jeremy kyle?

close family friends appeared on a show about sex, showed off their dungeon and stuff but considering how completely normal they appear in real life the editing made them look like freaks…

asked to pose holding hands and looking into each others eyes for the camera, edited and shot to make them look really weird.

equally you could end up doing the rounds on chat shows dishing out relationship advice and become squillionaires!

i’d just make it clear that until you’ve seen your section you will not sign and agree for it to be shown with you in it 🙂

Meh. It’s no biggie…..

Are you appearing with the wife or the girlfriend? Does the other have a telly?

Worry if the cameraman goes bact to the car to get his strawberry filter…

Short interview for money, Its not my lot coming round then!!

FWIW I turned it down.. even after a few beers it still seemed like a bad idea..

I’m no fun any more..

I’ve done it; agreed thinking I’d be advising the presenter for him to talk on camera. wrong!!

Did about half an hour on camera of which 5-10 minutes made the screen.

Thankfully got good feedback (was a bit worried!) but I’m uber-aware just how easy it is to say something that you’d regret later.

Was good fun and the crew were ace. Not sure I’d make a habit of it!

I just saw 2 of my happily married customers on one of those matchmaker dating advertisments, telling how happy they are.
Happy, oh yes, got quite a bit of money for that.

In answer to your question, yes.

Make sure you have the right to see the clip as it will be shown to air and have the right to stop it going out if you don’t like their editing

in your dreams – that’ll never, ever happen

the editing made them look like freaks

almost always.

The people who make and commission television, are for the large part, not nice people. Thats not to say their not happy friendly loving people, they often are. But they’re mostly people who’ll say or do anything to get a job in tv, and professionally they’ll have set their morals and self respect aside a long time ago.

“Factual television” is incredibly synthetic. Whatever you might have to say or portray, the program makers have already decided what their story is long before they’ve spoken to you. And they’ll have decided what kind of person they want to interview. So in the edit they’ll effectively, retrospectively, put their words in your mouth, constructing a sentence word by word if they have to. They’ll also turn you in to a ‘type’ that they want to represent in their story, because their idea will be based on types of people, not any person in particular, so they’ll turn you into the type they want to portray. Program makers spend far, far more time in the edit than they ever do with a camera in their hands. 3 or 4 days of shooting can result in 6 to 8 solid weeks of editting.

Next time you are watching any interview on a documentary or bit of ‘factual entertainment’. While the interviewee is talking you’ll get occasional cut-aways to other footage, or reverse angles – the presenter or interview nodding attentively (these are always filmed separately by the way – theres only ever one camera in the room). But…. the job of that cut away is to hide edits in what the interviewee is saying. This needn’t be a dishonest act – as most people umm and ahh, trip over their words and ramble and the edit can simply tighten that up and give the interview more pace and eloquence. But what you’ll discover is that the words will be your own but the sentences wholly the creation of the program makers. And you won’t like it.

Me – last month

Can’t wait to see what “spin” they put on it 😉

Did they only find 2 people in the whole of the uk, who had a good word to say for the condem government.

If so nobody will watch you.

‘Alcoholic sets fire to mountain’

More spindrift than spin shirley?

Our goverment, ribbed for her pleasure.

Not another Lovers Guide video is it?

Funny you should mention that because I had a meeting with Wendy and Tony (one of the couples) at their home in the early 90’s. Wendy was absolutely stunning – her outfit alone had ours jaws dropping from the moment she opened the door. And her tales of what went on under the covers were hilarious, e.g. minty alka-seltzer BJs and such like.

Anyway, bringing this back on topic … my mate who set up the meeting was later invited onto a mid 90’s late night show to share his own sexual encounters. No idea how or why it came about, but he was **** hilarious, and certainly gained another level of notoriety among us. Admittedly not the kind of serious stuff that Yunki may well be divulging, but was none-the-less a good reminder of good times.

I’ve not been a real insider, and the TV production people I know actually are nice people, but I’d definitely second what maccruiskeen had from my experience. No way will you ever get editorial control over what they show – you’ll always have to sign a disclaimer first allowing them all of that before they’ll do any filming. Meanwhile it is all in the edit. I’ve been on TV quite a few times, being shown competing, edited together with interviews done before and afterwards. As I mentioned I’ve got to know the crews doing this filming and they really are decent people, but you still know that anything you say in the interviews will be edited and overlaid on the “live” footage whenever you make a mistake, making you look as stupid as possible. It got to the point I probably didn’t interview all that well I was watching my words that much!

No way would I do an interview for a normal TV programme unless I was extremely sure it was something completely innocent and wouldn’t be all twisted in the edit.

there’s good money in it if the footage is useable..

Only if you are HD ready. 😉

The people who make and commission television, are for the large part, not nice people. Thats not to say their not happy friendly loving people, they often are. But they’re mostly people who’ll say or do anything to get a job in tv, and professionally they’ll have set their morals and self respect aside a long time ago.

Rubbish

“Factual television” is incredibly synthetic. Whatever you might have to say or portray, the program makers have already decided what their story is long before they’ve spoken to you. And they’ll have decided what kind of person they want to interview. So in the edit they’ll effectively, retrospectively, put their words in your mouth, constructing a sentence word by word if they have to.

Total Rubbish

They’ll also turn you in to a ‘type’ that they want to represent in their story, because their idea will be based on types of people, not any person in particular, so they’ll turn you into the type they want to portray. Program makers spend far, far more time in the edit than they ever do with a camera in their hands. 3 or 4 days of shooting can result in 6 to 8 solid weeks of editting.

Editing will take longer than filming..

Next time you are watching any interview on a documentary or bit of ‘factual entertainment’. While the interviewee is talking you’ll get occasional cut-aways to other footage, or reverse angles – the presenter or interview nodding attentively (these are always filmed separately by the way – theres only ever one camera in the room).

Mainly Rubbish. Depends on who is being interveiwed, quite often there are two cameras

But…. the job of that cut away is to hide edits in what the interviewee is saying. This needn’t be a dishonest act – as most people umm and ahh, trip over their words and ramble and the edit can simply tighten that up and give the interview more pace and eloquence. But what you’ll discover is that the words will be your own but the sentences wholly the creation of the program makers. And you won’t like it.

Cut aways are used to cover edits, but creating sentences out of your words like cutting words out a book…. rubbish

The people who make and commission television, are for the large part, not nice people. Thats not to say their not happy friendly loving people, they often are. But they’re mostly people who’ll say or do anything to get a job in tv, and professionally they’ll have set their morals and self respect aside a long time ago.

My experience of TV people has been just like any industry. There are some unpleasant types out there who are just out to get what they want whatever the cost. People who don’t take no for an answer and do all kinds of underhand things. Thankfully these are easy to spot a mile away and its just a case of using common sense..

On the other hand there are some very very super people out there who are a pleasure to deal with and want to do the best for you and make some great TV at the same time.
Use your noggin, ask some questions before the filming and if you get a bad feeling then walk away…

TM (pathetic claim to fame = 8 minutes of live tv on Richard and Judy in 2000-something)

Well STWers turn out yet again to have fascinating jobs in the real world.. I must say I am very intererested in how the media works from a psychological point of view. After all we’re assaulted by someone pulling strings deep inside our brains for many hours a day.

And they say Media Studies is a useless subject…

Anyway, to the OP – if you don’t have a reputation to consider then what the hell? Anyone close enough to you to worry about what they think can have the truth explained to them; anyone else, who cares?

you know what.. I refused to do it mainly out of a fear of being represented too accurately.. I was harbouring a bit of trepidation about being portrayed to the nation as a bit of a divvy..

At no point did it cross my mind that the evil TV folk would manipulate us or mis-use the footage.. that would have made the whole idea a bit less daunting if anything..

I wish that I had enough spark and wit to have completely fabricated a character to play to camera just for giggles.. but I’m a bit under the weather at the mo..

ho hum.. perhaps this particular 15 minutes of fame isn’t the right time slot..

I wouldn’t do it either. I’ve no desire to appear on TV and don’t need the money.

Kev

OH well. There’s always this years X Factor auditions.

I’ve been on Prank Patrol (CBBC) three times and had a roooiiiight laugh doing it. Didn’t bother asking for money, I did it for the love of media.

Still had to sign a model release each time.

I was on Jeremy Kyle last week.

He told me to get a job and put something on the end of it.

I took heed of his advice and have never looked back.

I was in a car related documentary a few years ago. Still makes me cringe now.

Although I was stopped in B&Q once and asked if it was me in this documentary.