Nipping and Tucking at a Career in Reality TV
If you ever wondered what kind of impact the reality TV boom of the early ‘00s would have on the creative community, look no further than the story of Rachel Lorber (Video Production, '00). Not so long ago, wide-eyed art school grads flocked to LA with high hopes of landing a gig on a sitcom, weekly drama or (just maybe) a “movie-of-the-week,” only to find themselves mired in the seamy world of local access and infomercials.
Taking a different tack, Lorber went from logging tapes of college debauchery (on MTV’s “Sorority Life”) to plotting pulse-pounding tales of plastic surgery. As Associate Producer and Story Editor for E!’s “Dr. 90210,” Lorber is responsible for helping shape the dramatic arc of a reality series even as the stories themselves are being filmed.
Lorber explains, “We take the raw footage that is shot, along with all interviews and OTFs (On-the-Fly), and make a story out of it! We see the various story lines that are forming, that may create a nice arc for the season, and we work around those themes. We have themes for every episode and overall themes that we have for the season.”
Whereas scripted television relies upon the wit of professional writers and the stage presence of trained actors, reality TV lives and dies by the unpredictable, illuminating and occasionally infuriating whims of actual people – things an extra bottle of Evian in a dressing room may not be able to smooth over. What types of challenges has Lorber tackled thus far?
“Probably any challenge you could think of,” she says. “People can forget to sign releases and change their mind at the last minute. A patient could not work out, the story doesn't play out as dramatically as we hope, a storyline could fade out halfway through and we have to come up with something to finish out the season.
“For a show about doctors and surgery, there isn’t much we can make up or change. The editors will change what they need to make the story flow better, [but] story points can easily be missed and you can't go back and reshoot surgery!”
If the idea of turning someone’s life into a soap opera is appealing to you but you’re not sure you can handle the rigors of the operating room – or “The Amazing Race,” another show Lorber is veteran of – fear not. Says Lorber: “Every show is run slightly different, but they all run on the same basic reality format. It's easy to go from one show to another. The story can be a completely different concept, but every show has loggers, tape dubbers, assistant editors, story departments, editors and on up to Executive Producers!”
Perhaps the teenager in line next to you at Best Buy with his first camcorder in hand isn’t hoping to be the next Steven Spielberg after all...