The late, great Ernie Kovacs quipped that television is a medium because “it is neither rare nor well done.”
With the proliferation of reality TV series, Kovacs’ observation sadly rings even more true today, which agency CHI & Partners, New York, saw as an insight from which to conceptually drive its campaign for PBS station WNET, Channel Thirteen in NY. The campaign rolled out in May with a series of fake reality TV posters in subways all over NYC. And last month came the follow-up with TV promos for a series of different, all-new fake reality shows. The three spots respectively promote Clam Kings, Long Island Landscapers and Meet the Tanners. What’s disconcerting is that all three seem plausible given what passes for entertainment in a dumbed-down television landscape.
This week’s “Best Work” entry is the spot “Meet the Tanners,” which introduces us to a family obsessed with laying around the pool and getting a tan. “I think the ability to tan is just something that you’re, like, born with,” brags a teen gal. She and other family members then extol the virtues of sun worship.
Finally, a dose of much-needed reality hits the screen in the form of an on-screen message:”The fact that you thought this was a real show says a lot about the state of TV.” A follow-up super simply urges us to “support quality programming at thirteen.org.” Then the parting hash tag #TVGONEWRONG appears.
Proper shading Paul Riccio of Sandwick Media directed all three fake reality TV show promos. For “Meet the Tanners,” perhaps the biggest challenge, he said, “was getting the shade of the tans right for everyone. We didn’t want to go too far like ‘Tan Mom’ which is just weird. We did tests and the makeup application was critical. We were concerned that the people look tanned without being too off-putting.”
A figurative sense of shading was also necessary. “Re-creating reality TV is a lot harder than you think. If you don’t do it right, it stinks,” noted Riccio. “People can smell it from a mile away. While what we were doing had to be entertaining and funny, it had to have its feet firmly based in reality so we could misdirect the audience. Casting was essential.”
On the casting front, Riccio used mostly performers from the world of improvisation. “We told them they’re a family that tans way too much and they got it right away,” recalled Riccio. “I said they could be as outlandish and out there as they wanted as long as they’re saying things in an earnest, deadpan way. That’s the path we led everyone down and they were spot on.”
Riccio also credited editors Gavin Cutler and Mike Rizzo of Mackenzie Cutler. (Cutler cut the spots “Clam Kings” and “Long Island Landscapers” while Rizzo edited “Meet the Tanners” with Cutler overseeing the project.) “There’s a language to these kinds of promos and shows,” observed Riccio. “It’s a certain language that people are familiar with–jump cuts and what not, speed changes to help create that artificial sense of drama. Gavin and Mike cut this work perfectly.”
