Category Archives: Reality TV

Behind the Scenes, Brazil, Celebrity, Entertainment, Event Producer, International Creative Talents, Producer, Reality TV, Uncategorized

BRAZIL’S RODRIGO BRANCO BECOMES A STAR BY SUPPORTING THE FAME OF OTHERS

November 2, 2016 Lorraine Wilder Leave a comment

For all of those who proclaim television to be a detriment to one’s life, please kindly consider Rodrigo Branco. This Executive Producer/Communications Director/Social Media expert has built a life out of his work in TV. His roots in TV can be traced back to his youth, a situation that his own children are experiencing. Branco has become one of the most successful executives in his field in all of Brazil. His status is earned with years of working his way up the ladder in TV production. Having become internationally recognized for his work on multiple domestic and international productions, he most recently has turned his attention to the TV community in the US and the opportunities it affords. It’s quite a story, a young boy in Brazil who follows his dream and effects millions around the world. It proves that hard work is rewarded and there is a chance for everyone to pursue their goals no matter how unbelievable they might seem.

As a young boy in Sao Paulo, Rodrigo used to live with his grandmother while his mother (a ballet dancer) was often out on tour, working to pursue her own artistic endeavors. This situation created two prominent factors in Rodrigo’s future. First, the understanding that following a creative dream is valid and secondly, TV was a fixture of life. Branco’s grandmother was a TV fanatic to say the least. When his mother took Rodrigo with her to a TV station for a taping, the two worlds collided. As a 10-year-old, he was amazed by the environment as well as the fact that they would tape three episodes in one day. The sudden realization that every production was not live, yet seemed to be so when viewed on TV, was like discovering the secret to a magic trick. Years later, Branco would begin his own TV career on the Marcia show. This show is one of the most popular talk shows ever on Brazilian TV. Rodrigo was with the show for more than a decade and explains, “The Márcia show was my high school, college and university! I started as a trainee and eventually became the executive producer. It was the hardest, and at the same time, the most positive show I have done in my career. According to VOGUE BRASIL, Márcia is the Brazilian Oprah. I’m proud that our ratings proved that we were number 1 every day. There is no secret to achieving this; I used to work 16 hours a day from my start as a trainee and all the way up to being EP.”

Many people sacrifice their personal life to be a part of TV production, especially those who are highly successful. Branco did the opposite and made his life and career intertwined. He met his wife when he was a trainee on Marcia and has become a father while working on the show. As the EP of the show, he worked most closely with the show’s star and namesake. He notes, “Working 16 hours a day, 6 days a week; Marcia became my second mother. We spent Christmas, New Year’s Eve…all the good times and bad times together. She has the most brilliant career in Brazil and she decided to share it with me. I think this interaction is what made our work so successful!” Rodrigo’s work in particular was recognized early in his career. In 2002, he was awarded the Premio Jovem Brasileiro [Young Brazilian Award] for his work with the Marcia show (he received this award again in 2011 for his work on the Miss Universe Pageant) …at the early age of twenty years old. Branco also received the Communication Merit Award, granted by Academia Brasileira de Ciencias, Artes, Historia e Literatura (Science, Art, History and Literature Brazilian Academy) which he refers to as the greatest honor of his professional career. Marcia is known for her show being about people, their families, and struggle. She wanted an individual steering that show who was doing it for more than the money; a person who was truly passionate about the work. Marcia recognized these traits in her early interactions with Branco. She declares, ““I met Rodrigo in his first day as a trainee in TV Bandeirantes. I immediately knew he was special. A few months later, I told him he would be the executive producer of my show and in only 3 years it became true. We had a great and fruitful partnership. He is incredibly talented!”

Besides giving Branco a literal family as well as a professional family, TV has also given him the ability to travel the world. Experiencing locations such as; Israel, Paris, Spain, Argentina, Mexico, and all the states of Brazil, have helped Rodrigo to understand how different and yet how incredibly similar the people of the world can be. In particular, his US visits have motivated him. Branco communicates, “The TV Industry in the United States is the most professional and competitive in the entire world. There is no space for amateurs there. I have hopes of working there because it would challenge me to be the best in the US. The resources and the technology in the US are the example to the world. If a professional wants to learn how to do their job better, they need to stay close to the best! Marcia was discovered by an American Director who taught her how to do TV. Nobody does TV and Entertainment better than Americans. I could see this with my own eyes at the Latin Grammys, Miss Universe, and from studying American Shows and formats. I’ve had an extraordinary career but I am only 33 years old and I want to be better and bigger. The only way to do that is to learn from the best. My passion is t work with talent and communication not only in TV, but with social media and other formats as well.” When contemplating Rodrigo Branco’s life, it is impossible to septate his story from the inclusion of television. When discussing it, Rodrigo himself comments, “My life was built inside a TV. My childhood was spending time with my grandmother, bonding over shows and their topics. I saw my mother performing on TV and she took me ‘inside’ television for a perspective that not many people witness. I have made many of my closest friends through my work in TV, as well as meeting the woman who became my wife. Now my children understand TV because they see their father using it to provide for them as well as understanding, as my mother showed me, that you can be creative, challenged, and rewarded with that pursuit. They realize, as I do, that I am able to make the magic that we see on the screen.”

Behind the Scenes, Film and TV Crew Interviews, Producer, Reality TV, Television, UK

BEING NAKED CAN TEACH YOU MORE ABOUT YOUR SELF VALUE THAN JUST YOUR PHYSICAL ATTRACTIVENESS

September 27, 2016 Lorraine Wilder Leave a comment

One of the most popular and highly rated dating shows on TV in the UK right now is Naked Attraction. Just as the name states, contestants are viewed and selected in a state of complete undress. Most of us worry about being judged with our clothes off in a dimly lit room in front of our significant other, the thought of doing so in front of other people we don’t know AND on camera is unthinkable. This show would not even be thinkable without the involvement of one of UK reality TV’s most successful Associate Producers known as the master of casting, Grivas Kopti. The UK is extremely diverse and it is precisely this reason that the production chose Kopti. Grivas has been recognized for his work in the areas of LGBT representation, gender equality, multiculturalism, and celebrity culture. As a millennial who grew up with social media and the internet, Grivas and many of his generation are not encumbered by the prejudices and social constraints of previous generations. Say what you will about those of Kopti’s age but, global social interaction has made them aware of the joy and struggles that all people share, resulting in a graceful acceptance of the differences that challenge us all, hopefully creating a sense of unity. The outgoing nature Grivas possesses, as well as his stringent work ethic has made him a sought after commodity in Reality TV. The list of successful shows that have made use of Kopti’s talents are too numerous to name them all but include; Celebs Go Dating, Unbelievable, Words of Churchill, Mandela: The Prison Years, and Stripped and Stranded.

Naked Attraction is one of the most popular programs on TV of 2016 thus far with its recent ratings spiking upwards of 2 million viewers per episode. Reality TV relies on the viewer’s investment in the cast with shows of this type. Naked Attraction relies on Grivas to find the compelling people and their stories to provide the interest that keeps viewers coming back. The title alone will cause a certain portion of the population to tune in but it won’t keep them there or bring them back. Kopti’s role is part detective and part therapist. Kopti is adamant that Naked Attraction is only interested in casting individuals who are themselves motivated to be on the show. There are times when participants change their minds or their family and friends convince them that it isn’t such a good idea for them to be involved; Grivas supports this idea, often encouraging them to go away and consider whether it is truly the right choice for them. This Associate Producer doesn’t envision the show as salacious but rather as a way to achieve greater self-discovery and catharsis. Kopti describes, “I saw the contributors go on a journey, which was inspiring. They learned so much about themselves. Many learned to truly appreciate their body and what made it unique. Being complimented on your shapely thighs that you always thought were fat is so lovely and precious. As you can imagine, a lot of people’s vulnerabilities and insecurities were revealed, which I think is a beautiful thing. You can’t really let down your guard and be capable of truly loving yourself and others if you don’t make yourself vulnerable. No stone was left unturned. We discussed it all – preferences, past sexual escapades and fetishes. People were extremely honest.”

As the leading associate casting producer, Grivas was in charge of managing the contributors. This can be a tall order when you are tasked with making someone feel comfortable being both naked and on camera. Grivas has always been able to communicate well with individuals unknown to him. Being able to discern who would handle the experience well without becoming overwhelmed or intimidated was key to Kopti’s role in Naked Attraction. He describes the characteristics he was looking for, stating, “Likeability is they first thing I look for. You want the audience to warm to them and subsequently root for them. Two attributes that serve contributors well during filming as well as after are confidence and charisma. Someone who can be strong enough to appear on television with their clothes off and handle anything they might read about themselves on social media afterwards. People aren’t always so kind online. Just as important is intelligence. The whole show works well and is engaging because our contributors can maintain a conversation with our presenter, articulating their thoughts and reasoning behind their selection process as they are selecting who they’re choosing to go on a date with. Ultimately, each main contributor will lead half of the show which is a broadcast 30 minutes. They need to have a strong character and conviction.” With a viewership of 1.4 million on its premiere episode (up 82% on the slot average) and consecutive increases, the show has been an instant success for Studio Lambert. The show’s Executive Producer Mike Cotton (Emmy nominee for Undercover Boss) confirms, “I am positive that our enormous success is due to our collaboration with Mr. Kopti, as it is his leading role that brought us much of the success that we have. His unique talent to be able to cast contributors and contestants for the program showcased his truly unparalleled ability as an associate casting producer.”

While some viewers or even critics may point to a voyeuristic factor that brings a viewing audience to Naked Attraction, Kopti has much more high minded goals for contributors and the TV public. Grivas declares, “We are bombarded with messages daily by mainstream media on how we should look and what and who we should find beautiful. In a subtle way, we wanted to call BS on that and tell the truth, inspiring our considerably big influential audience of the 16-35 age bracket. Not one size or color fits all and beauty can be many things. Couples in interracial relationships still report facing prejudice, which is shocking and something we wanted to address. Why is this still happening? Is some of this generation expressing intolerance taught by their elders? A lot of questions were raised but ultimately, the magic in this show is that we can talk about it honestly and respectfully. I’m very proud that we were able to represent those labeled as disabled. I think we communicated quite effectively that being classed disabled doesn’t render you any less sexy or capable of a fulfilling, loving relationship. We had a good few disabled contributors, visibility is key. Above all, they were fantastic characters with a lot to offer – regardless of their circumstances. One of the underappreciated strengths of my generation is that it is very hard to shock us. Naked Attraction isn’t just about the naked part. Every individual has a story to tell; things they have overcome and personal triumphs they want to celebrate, that’s the real message of our show.”

Brazil, Celebrity, Entertainment, Film, Music, Producer, Reality TV, Television

Producing Greatness is the Reality for Brazil’s Daniel Ariano

May 31, 2016 Lorraine Wilder Leave a comment

Producer Daniel Ariano was a force behind Brazil’s “O Aprendiz.”

It is pressure-packed, inspiring, impromptu and thrilling all at once. Daniel Ariano described it as a job where everything can and will happen.

“To be a producer for reality TV,” he said, “you have to be aware that everything is possible. I have to be ready to face an unexpected challenge every day. You have to be calm, easy going and most of all, you have to love it.”

It’s that passion and formula for success that Ariano has subscribed to, which has made him one of Brazil’s foremost film and TV producers. Specializing in the reality genre, Ariano has produced for hit shows such as Brazil’s “Ídolos,” “O Aprendiz” and “TUF Brasil,” which are his home country’s equivalents to the states’ “American Idol,” “The Apprentice” and “The Ultimate Fighter.”

Through it, he’s developed and refined the tools of a seasoned producer – leadership, enterprise, communication, management, problem solving and creativity. Ariano has taken on leadership roles as a producer that demand high-ranking responsibility, shifting challenges and his close collaboration with top talent who went on to compete in front of national TV audiences.

Ariano’s rise to producing prominence began with his initial inspiration and love of media. While growing up, his friends had dreams of becoming lawyers, doctors and engineers. But it was Ariano’s love of music and movies that guided his heart toward a career in film and TV.

Influenced by legends such as Woody Allen, George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Ron Howard and Jerry Bruckheimer, Ariano said, “All of those and more did something that made me watch and think, ‘I want to do that.’ I want to do something people will admire and watch.”

From there, it was a matter of taking the idea of what he wanted to become and putting it into action. While attending high school, Ariano, of São Paulo, worked as a music teacher. When he assimilated into college, he worked for Jovem Pan, the biggest radio station in Brazil.

His mind was still set on TV though, and the foot-in-the-door opportunity materialized. Ariano was invited to do some camera operator work and parlayed the experience into a production assistant position on the São Paulo-based “Amaury Jr. Show,” a talk show covering celebs and luxury. After learning TV production from the inside for a half a year, another opportunity arose.

“I received an invitation that changed my life,” Ariano said. “It was to be a part of the “Ídolos” production crew, my first reality show and it was a music one. After that, I knew I wanted to produce for the rest of my life! I fell in love with the storytelling and the big productions.”

Ariano began producing for “Ídolos” Season 4 in 2009. The show, created by the 14-time Emmy nominee Simon Fuller, is headquartered in São Paulo and distributed by Rede Record. Pop singer-songwriter Saulo Roston won Season Four and signed with Warner Music Brasil.

“I had the responsibility to deliver to the show and all the outside shoots with quality and with the proper storytelling,” said Ariano. “The big challenge was the winner was there in the middle of the crowd. And we had to have him since the start of the process.”

The contestants being vetted were voluminous, many with marked talent and merit for the televised competition. Ariano estimated he’d listened to thousands of hopeful voices positioning for musical glory on “Ídolos.”

“I’ve seen so much talent, so much really good singers and really good people with amazing histories,” he said. “The Idols have to have talent. This is the most important thing we look for – talent. But the story behind the talent is something that brings the Idol closer to the audience. Brazil is an enormous country filled with talented people. I just wish all of the good ones could make it.”

Ariano returned to produce “Ídolos” Season 5 in 2011, and Season 7, the show’s final run, in 2012. He also produced in 2012 “Ídolos Kids” Season 1, which followed the same premise, but searched for talented kid contestants.

In 2010, one year after Ariano’s inception into “Ídolos,” he expanded his producing career and joined the show, “O Aprendiz,” for Season 7. In the hour-long Brazilian apparent to the Donald Trump-hosted “The Apprentice,” contestants compete for employment contracts with leading companies such as the WPP Group or for investments. The show was created by five-time Emmy winner Mark Burnett, longtime producer of “Survivor” and “Shark Tank.” It was hosted by Roberto Justus.

“The Apprentice” was the most challenging job I ever had,” Ariano said.

Turkey.3.png — During filming for “O Aprendiz” in Turkey, producer Daniel Ariano (left) studies the scene setup.

Ariano worked in producing “O Aprendiz” for Seasons 7, 8, 9 and 10. Contestants ranged from college students to entrepreneurs and celebrities. The production traversed Brazil-wide and traveled to shoot in Orlando, Washington, D.C., South Africa, Italy, Turkey and Colombia. With it came droves of producing duties for Ariano.

“When you give the contestants a task, and time to do it, you never know where will they go and what will they do and it’s up to you to be ready to face everything,” he said. “Working on the show taught me everything is possible. It opened my eyes to the infinity. There is no limit. What we see on TV is just the tip of the iceberg. The production is the entire Arctic.”

Also in 2010, Ariano would produce for a season of the Brazilian version of “Artzooka,” a Gemini Award-winning kids TV show that was produced in Toronto, Canada. The series guided parents, teachers and daycare providers how to create art projects using recycled materials. It was broadcast in Brazil on Discovery Kids and featured Ariano producing in a rare role.

Daniel Granieri and Me on studio — Producer Daniel Ariano (right) worked closely with host Daniel Granieri to deliver “Artzooka.”

“I loved to do it because it got me into working with a Canadian crew,” Ariano said. “I do believe that this was a unique opportunity in life, that just a few people got the chance to do. I was the only Brazilian producer for the show, so I had a really big responsibility to make it great.”

“Artzooka” host Daniel Granieri said of Ariano, “Without him, “Artzooka” wouldn’t be able to happen. He was vital to the project. He has a look in his eyes all the time, like, he is thinking further, like he is always producing! He is an easy guy to work with and to deal with. He is very professional and very intelligent. You have to have someone like him in your production crew, if not just him. There’s a few people in the world who has an ability to deal with production like him!”

Ariano has served as producer for other shows such as Latin America’s “The Amazing Race,” HBO Brasil and for the Season 2 of “TUF Brasil” (The Ultimate Fighter Brazil), which was distributed by Rede Globo. The latter producing taught Ariano much about the globally popular UFC world, while also showing him a different side of the fighting-based programming.

“It’s talented fighters, focused on their dream and working hard to do it,” he said. “This was different than any other reality TV. It is about how do you control your body and how do you make it do the extraordinary. I loved the experience and it made me admire even more this world of art that is UFC.”

Continuing his producing prowess, Ariano is attached to work on the forthcoming debut season of “X-Factor Brasil,” and he is attached to produce writer-director Albert Dabah’s “Extra Innings,” a coming of age feature baseball drama film set in 1960s Brooklyn.

“He can do everything. I got a nickname for him: “Superman,” Dabah said. “Besides having a good eye for production and being very organized, when the time comes, he is up to everything! He can be an addition in every department. It’s hard to find someone like him, and I’m glad I found him.”

Of “Extra Innings,” Ariano said, “I’m hoping that the movie can open eyes of people about real problems of life that is there around us, in our family, in our lives, and we don’t realize it or we pretend it doesn’t exist. I think the screenwriting is perfect. I know it’s going to be a big hit.”

For more information on “Extra Innings,” visit: http://www.extrainningsmovie.com/

Check out Daniel Ariano on IMDb: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm8028896/

Editor, Film, Film Editors, Reality TV, Uncategorized

Canadian Editing Magician David Guthrie

February 26, 2016 Scott Prewitt Leave a comment

20141105_164014 — Canadian editor David Guthrie

Whether it’s a film, television series or commercial, the amount of time and labor that goes into a production is astronomical. There’s writing, funding, planning, casting, costuming, filming, scoring, post-production, marketing and finally distribution, and it takes a massive and cohesive team to pull it all off. Every production is like a massive machine, and at the heart of it all is the editor.

A skilled editor will work closely with the director to achieve the perfect cuts, and nobody is more skilled than Toronto native David Guthrie. As an editor, Guthrie is responsible for setting the rhythm of the end product, in a sense giving a cadence – a heartbeat – to the final arrangement that will be presented to the audience.

Before working on high-profile and award-winning productions such as “Jiro Dreams of Sushi,” “Cold Water Captains” and “Room and Bored,” Guthrie took his first steps into film editing when he was a musician. It was while creating music videos for his band that he discovered the power that video and audio can have when edited together perfectly.

“I love the challenge of crafting a story from seemingly unrelated footage, finding a story thread. I love when you find the perfect shot that helps tell that story, or the right piece of music that just works,” Guthrie said, describing the rewarding feeling of his work. “I love that feeling, it’s a rush… Because then you know how to pace the scene correctly and how the audience will feel.”

After realizing his passion for film editing, he began working at the Toronto-based Rhombus Media production company. There, he quickly worked his way up and learned his trade from the company’s highly-experienced team of editors. After getting his feet wet in the editing world at Rhombus, he landed a role as an editor on the feature film “Billy Bishop Goes to War,” which screened at TIFF and CBC.

Before long he had proven to be such a natural that he was trusted with the enormous responsibility of working on David Gelb’s incredbley ambitious projects, one of which was the feature documentary “Jiro Dreams of Sushi.”

Centered on the man often called the best sushi chef in the world, “Jiro Dreams of Sushi” initially sets out to document Jiro Ono’s daily routine running his world-renowned restaurant in Tokyo. However, the film ultimately tells two much deeper stories about the human condition. One of these is the story of a man who spends his entire life pursuing perfection, constantly coming closer but never reaching the unattainable goal. The other story centers on Jiro’s son and future heir to the restaurant, who works under his father and has spent his entire life in the shadow of a giant, knowing that no matter what he does neither he nor anybody else can fill his father’s shoes.

The film was widely praised by critics and festival-goers. “Jiro Dreams of Sushi” won the 2012 Denver Film Critics Society Award for Best Documentary Film, the Detroit Film Critic Society Award for Best

Documentary, and was nominated for 11 other awards internationally. A global success, “Jiro Dreams of Sushi” was an incredibly valuable and rewarding experience for Guthrie. The countless hours he spent working on the film paid off, and shortly after the film’s success Guthrie found he had established a reputation for himself as one of the most reliable and talented editors in the industry.

After leaving the “assistant” prefix behind, Guthrie’s first project as a full-fledged editor was the first season of the Canadian reality series “Cold Water Captains.” The action-packed series follows three fishing boats in the dangerous waters off the coast of Newfoundland. Guthrie had to pore through hundreds of hours of footage to decide which of it would be turned into the final TV-ready series. After carefully selecting which scenes would make it into the show, he then had to painstakingly cut and arrange it into a compelling and cohesive story to be told over the course of the season’s 10 episodes.

“This show is a monster when it comes to post production… The amount of footage can be overwhelming. That is the biggest challenge of the show by far – trying to cut compelling scenes out of hours of monotonous footage,” Guthrie said, describing the intense process of not only determining which scenes to use, but also of maintaining organization of the scenes and their place in the series. “That was a challenge too, trying to keep track of where I was in each story and how each scene developed the overall story arc.”

Guthrie’s hard work once again paid off when the first season of “Cold Water Captains” was nominated for the prestigious 2015 Canadian Screen Award for Best Factual Series. Guthrie called the nomination a “rewarding” experience after all the hours he and his team spent creating the series. Following the success of the first season, he again worked as an editor for the second season, and in the third season of “Cold Water Captains” Guthrie’s skill and dedication earned him a promotion to a lead editor position.

“I was one of the lead editors on the show and responsible for bringing episodes to delivery to the network,” Guthrie said of the new position. “It is a lot of fun getting to polish the scenes and really make them come alive.”

In addition to his work as an editor Guthrie has also written and directed two projects for television. The first, “Room and Bored,” was a TV movie which Guthrie not only wrote, directed and edited, but also acted in. “Room and Bored” was a hit with both critics and audiences, and was named an Official Selection at the 2013 New York Television Festival. The second and more recent of the two is “Beck and Call,” a pilot which Guthrie calls his favorite project to date. “Beck and Call” follows the hilarious ups and downs of two talent agents as they struggle to make it big in New York.

“Along with editing [“Beck and Call”], I am writing and directing it as well,” Guthrie said. “It has been so much fun working with really talented people, and just making stuff that we want to make… And I love working in the comedy world.”

Few people have a track record that can compare to David Guthrie’s when it comes to producing consistently stellar work while balancing so many irons in the fire. His experience and talent as a writer and director give him a comprehensive understanding of every element of the production process, and serve to strengthen Guthrie’s exceptional talent as an editor. Audiences on the hunt for the next great feature film, narrative documentary or cinematic triumph should be sure to keep Guthrie’s name in mind.

Producer, Reality TV, Television

The Wizard Behind the Scenes: Reality TV Producer Tone Innset

June 22, 2015 Scott Prewitt Leave a comment

In the world of reality television, producer Tone Innset is the wizard behind the scenes. Responsible for some of the hottest competitive and documentary series in her native Norway, Innset regularly oversees crews and cast of more than 100 people and ensures that everything goes off without a hitch. With a huge range of projects under her belt, and more on the way, Innset raises the bar for producers following in her footsteps in the industry.

As the producer of Unge Modre, the Norwegian counterpart to Teen Mom, Innset shows an exceptional talent for capturing the most honest, human moments of the show’s subjects on the screen.

Unge Modre is a compelling display of both her business savvy and creative vision. Her approach to working with the stars of the intimate docuseries is one of compassion, carefully treating each of the young mothers with compassion while still managing to give viewers the truth about what is often a very difficult subject matter.

“When you are making a series like Unge Modre, it’s important to be aware of and remember that you are dealing with teenagers and very young adults, and their kids and families, and take that into account,” she said.

Using a closely-guarded set of insider secrets to coax the stars into giving the most earnest interviews and relatable on-camera interactions, she has helped make Unge Modre into the dramatic and moving pieces of television that it is today.

“I like to ask questions they don’t get asked everyday in order to dig a little bit further into their lives. Then I listen and ask new questions based on what they’ve just said,” explained Innset. “Usually, the person you are interviewing will show some real feelings and tell you what they really mean.”

Much more than a world-class, detail-oriented producer, Innset is a people-person who knows the importance of being sensitive to the needs and circumstances of those people her work documents. She makes gripping television by using more than just her technical skill and business-savvy, but by knowing her subjects and recognizing that they are human beings with strengths, vulnerabilities, and stories that reach out and resonate with audiences. She describes herself as a “people-junkie,” and admits that, “producing reality TV is more a lifestyle than a job.” That passion shows in her enormous volume of work.

“You get to meet so many different kinds of people, see many different places, and hear so many different stories,” she said. “I love to meet new people and get to know them. I think unscripted reality is awesome. I mean you never know what you are going to get on tape. You don’t know what it’s going to be like until you finish editing, and that excites me.”

Innset’s people skills also make her an essential player in the casting process, which is probably the most crucial factor in determining the success of a documentary series. Through a rigorous array of methods, she finds and narrows down a huge pool of candidates and potential cast members, until a final group is ready for eager viewers to follow their figurative journey.

In the case of Charterfeber, that journey is actually quite literal. Following a group of Norwegians as they escape the frigid north and travel to an idyllic Spanish island, the show allows viewers to escape the daily grind and live vicariously through the eclectic cast of characters. As the producer for seasons eight, Innset was tasked with overseeing the casting of the show, which required a lot of networking, hours of planning and research, and many, many phone calls.

“When you have done casting for a while you get connections, and a network you can contact when you’re looking for people to do a new season or a new series,” said Innset, who knows just how important that network is to the success of a production.

“It might be you have a person you know that’s been in a series you produced earlier, so you call them and ask if they know someone [relevant]. Then they might give you some names, and then you call them up and do your research on them.”

That process, one of her many techniques, is long, intensive and very hands-on, but has yielded excellent results and made her a standout figure among her peers in the world of reality television. , With her heart, soul and utter dedication invested in every element of production, the quality of her work shines in every episode of every one of her series. Innset, who’s on call all day, every day, says she loves each second of the hectic job she refers to as her calling.

“People like to watch docuseries and reality shows because they like to peek into others’ lives,” said the unwaveringly passionate Innset. “We get a sneak peek into how other people choose to live their lives, and see people that live very different from how you do.”

Her latest production, Norges Grillmester, recently aired during a primetime slot on TV2, Norway’s biggest commercial television station. Innset’s latest season of Unge Modre is also set to premiere this fall on SBS Discovery’s FEM, and will be syndicated internationally.