Name: Nicholas Ong Kok Weng
Class: TD01
Admin No: 1807482C
Assignment 1
DIPLOMA IN DIGITAL FILM AND TELEVISION
AY2018/19 Semester 1 – Apr 2018
Overview of Non-Fiction (DMV2664)
Assignment 1: Research Paper
Student Name Nicholas Ong Kok Weng
Admission No. 1807482C
Date of Submission 11 November 2019
Overview Of Non-Fiction – Popular Factual
Name: Nicholas Ong Kok Weng
Class: TD01
Admin No: 1807482C
Assignment 1
The classification of Reality Television is used commonly to
describe a range of Popular Factual Programming. There are various
styles and techniques relating to reality television, such as
surveillance footage, hand-held camera, purportedly unscripted real-
life situations. They inform, teach, or give out some vital
information. They are often starring unknown individuals rather than
someone who is considered a celebrity or professional actors.
Sometimes these programs have prizes or rewards, for example, Big
Brother and Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here are both examples of reward
Reality program. Other programmes of reality television would be
hidden camera shows, talent-search shows, high-concept game shows,
home improvement shows, and court shows featuring real-life cases.
Documentaries, television news, sports television, talk shows, and
traditional game shows are generally not classified as reality
television. Reality television doesn't have much camera work as it
films what is happening and does not get recorded more than once.
Television formats portraying ordinary people in unscripted
situations are almost as old as the television medium itself, which
began in the late 1940s. One of history's most popular reality
television programs emerged in the late 40's. Where Producer-host
Allen Funt brought his popular radio show "Candid Microphone" into
the lives of millions of people as "Candid Camera." In which
unsuspecting people were confronted with hilarious, uncommon
situations reacting to pranks and were filmed with hidden cameras,
first aired in August 1948 and Reality Television was born. Today,
the old prank-styled reality programming still exists.
An example would be America's Funniest Home Videos, MTV's Punk'd,
and James Corden's "Carpool Karaoke." Contest-styled reality
programs such as "The Miss America Pageant," first aired in the
1950s, are a favorite among people and continue to be one of the
more popular themes even today. Other reality programs would be
talent-based programs. Some examples of these that were early
favorites are Star Search and Little Big Shots. Contest-based
Name: Nicholas Ong Kok Weng
Class: TD01
Admin No: 1807482C
Assignment 1
reality television has been a tried and true format for
entertainment throughout the years and continues to be so with more
and more reality shows offering prizes to mediocre competitors. One
of the most popular reality-based television shows in history,
continually pulling in high ratings among both reality-based and
fictional television programs, is American Idol. This competition
reality styled programs have been successful for modern reality
television ever since the 50s and continue to flourish even until
today.
In the '70s, shows touched on a dull and emotional side of people's
lives gained popularity, with programs like "An American Family,"
which showed the breakup of a family due to separation and divorce
of the parents. This reality-style format is comparable to the
reality tv that we see today where they try to go behind the scenes
of a prevailing situation or of something that might appease and
interest the audiences. During the same period, relationship styled
reality programs were introduced and attracted the audience to other
people's lives, loves lives, and the drama of dating among peers.
Programs produced then were, "The Dating Game," "Newly Weds," and
other relationship style reality programming. The fundamentals
behind these formats, gained a lot of ground during the '70s and
'80s as they brought shows like MTV's "Real World" and "COPS," where
these two shows are considered seniors in the history of reality
television. These two shows have a vast difference and represent the
two categories of reality TV. But even with the two very different
in tone and style, they have since become unbelievably popular.
Today in the modern context, the world is fascinated with watching
the lives of everyday people interacting with each other, and this
fuelled the interest in reality television. Shows such as Dr. 90210,
Sun Set Tan, Emergency Vet, Deadliest Catch, School Swap: Korean
Style, American Casino, and many more where professionals are being
followed by cameras, documenting them as they work. This style of
reality television is one of the most popular as people continue to
Name: Nicholas Ong Kok Weng
Class: TD01
Admin No: 1807482C
Assignment 1
be fascinated with what goes on behind the scenes as it is a sort of
entertainment for them.
Reality television only came to light in the late 1990s and early
2000s due to the successes of the series Survivor, Idols, and Big
Brother, all of which became global franchises. Since then, the
number of reality television programs has increased incredibly
compared to what was being watched in years past, and the number of
views has grown as the content of reality television interests them.
Since the birth of television, people are fascinated with seeing
everyday people laugh, cry, struggle, work, and find their way – all
to the delight of the viewer. In summary, we can see that the
history of reality television has engraved a name for itself and has
an excellent reputation for many of today's most popular television
shows.
In the most recent years, reality television programming can be seen
concentrating on following celebs instead of ordinary people.
Underneath displays, several codes and conventions that can be seen
included in the different reality television programs are highly
structured and edited, and wide ranges from game shows to "fly on
the wall" programming contract characters and narratives.
My first example is the reality television series, "Runs House,"
which features the family lifestyle of former rapper/hip hop music
pioneer, Run-D.M.C. It documents his daily routine and life with his
children and wife. This is an excellent example because the family
are well known and are all living day to days experiences but being
filmed. Thus, this shows that the people in the series are not
actors nor actresses but real people. The episodes that you watch
are all actual and give fans an understanding of how they live their
lives. These series manifest the code and conventions of reality
television program through the cuts and different shot angles as
there are no reverse shots because it would reveal one of the
cameras or it would have to be filmed again, but it is impossible
because those are things that are happening and cannot be repeated.
Name: Nicholas Ong Kok Weng
Class: TD01
Admin No: 1807482C
Assignment 1
It is quite evident that throughout the series, only two cameras are
being used to film the family's day to day routine, and after doing
so, they edit it to make it seem more attractive, showing the facial
expressions of the family through the closer shots.
Another thing to point out is that the camera work and chances are
straightforward. It is either a long shot, mid-shot, or close up
shot to capture the film's content, ensuring that they don't miss
out on anything. This shows that the program is evidently a real-
life program as the camera operators are working with uncertainty
because they are unsure of what is going to happen next, but with
great editing, they combine the exciting parts into the series. It
shows the main message the program is trying to do, informing the
viewers what the family is up to, as it is informative to mainly the
fans of Rev Run and for those who want to know what is always going
on.
The last example I have of a reality television show is the game
show, "Big Brother" where this is a different definition of a
reality television show compared to the other example as this series
showcases celebrities living under the same room leading their daily
lives whilst task are being thrown at them as they go head to head
to win a cash prize. It uses the same codes and conventions as other
reality television shows; however, it does not use a camera
operator, but CCTV camera's around the house that films 24 hours a
day and then gets edited together to show the viewers the best bits
of the day. This is for entertainment purposes rather than informing
viewers what the celebs are up to. In the series, it also shows that
there is not much camera work as the events are all happening too
fast, and the people are real and are not trying to act.
In comparison, Documentaries and Reality Television has a distinct
difference. Reality television creates a situation, observes it for
the entertainment of the viewer, and it focuses more on the
individual episode's arc while Documentaries presenting facts
through a series of observations and focuses more on the full
product. Reality television is viewed as more artificial, and
Name: Nicholas Ong Kok Weng
Class: TD01
Admin No: 1807482C
Assignment 1
documentaries is a term brought in to imply a more original series
with more truth and integrity. Reality should mean reality, while
documentaries have always been structure of reality but whether that
structure is to inform and present truth authentically or to
entertain. While the two have their difference, they have the same
motive, which is to educate the audience using their different
methods.
Therefore, reality television has a significant impact on the world.
It is not just because they are so relatable and family-friendly to
their own lives, but it is based on the trend and desire to be part
of a specific crowd of people. By watching the shows, individuals
now have a similar interest with a group of people and can now
"click." Also, reality television allows people to have a dream of
gaining fame through media publicity. I believe that reality shows
have become so successful because people nowadays want to fit into
the social norm, and fantasize about becoming a celebrity, living an
exciting lifestyle.
But with all the positive impacts of reality television, there are
also negative impacts. Reality is made basically for Adults, but
with no proper knowledge and understanding, children can be misled
by it.
Children who are left to watch these shows can often be confused and
can take the content as the expected behaviour, especially
themselves and their peers. Even children notice how people plan and
plot against each other to win the prize, and this gives them the
bad habit of learning the wrong things such as acts of violence,
false identifications, lying, cheating, and ditching their own
family and friends. Other negative impacts of audiences would-be
viewers of reality television beauty shows where they are more
likely to seek out harmful tanning, from both tanning beds and sun
exposure. Others can be even influenced to do cosmetic surgery.
In conclusion, with the positive and negative impacts of reality
television, many question if it is just a fad or if it's here to
Name: Nicholas Ong Kok Weng
Class: TD01
Admin No: 1807482C
Assignment 1
say. It's hard to say, but at the current moment, the future for
reality television looks bright. Major networks are picking up shows
for their summer replacements, and more cable networks are turning
to the genre to fill their slots. Examples of future programs would
be "The Bachelor," "America's Next Top Model," "So You Think You Can
Dance," and many more. Just a glance and we can see there will be a
lot of people watching. There is still no answer to whether it will
stay, but only time will tell along various audiences who watch
reality television. However, it's safe to say that no matter what
the future outcome of reality television is, it has made an impact
on the history of popular factual.
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Television
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