Talk vs Game

In my last blog, I outlined a possible structure with several undecided elements. While details of certain scenes can be developed during the script writing process, the part I wanted to nail down as soon as possible was the type of show Eric watches. Initially, I thought it'd be a no brainer for the show to be a very overstimulating Game Show, but then in doing research of Bob Barker and hosts in general, I was exposed to the idea of Talk Shows. It got me thinking more about how I wanted to use the character of the Host and how Eric would "interact" with him within the film.

I want to show the host as indifferent to Eric, at least at the beginning when showing Eric's hyper fixation with just some show. By the end of the film, it'd be shown that the Host actually dislikes Eric, so having the two talk in indirect conversations would highlight the one-sidedness of their relationship. Shaun of the Dead uses a similar technique in which clips from shows are taken out of context and stringed together to form a coherent sentence for the viewer. While in that film its done for comedic effect and done by switching channels, my film would remain on one channel as bits of dialogue are taken out of context to sound like a normal conversation with Eric. The biggest issue with this is providing a reason for the Host to be talking.

TV Scene from Shaun of the Dead (2004)

After watching a few episodes of The Price is Right, while Barker is charismatic and has conversations with contestants, those conversations are usually brief or far and in-between; a lot of the spoken parts of those shows are allotted to contestants, commentary, or for the Host to explain caveats of a certain game. Not to mention, Game Shows are practically very difficult, especially with a little to nothing budget. Many of these sets are grandiose and extravagant, with many moving parts and many people and extras involved. While I only want to show what's on the TV by filming a literal TV screen, and I might be able to get away with a lack of detail in the set due to compression and distortions, I still want to make sure the original footage looks good. More recently there has been to shift for virtual sets and there are prebuilt 3D models I could use to make a set, compositing those shots I feel would be very time consuming. And because of my lighting niche, I'd want to make sure lighting is consistent with both the real base footage and the virtual sets.

With those obstacles in mind, I then thought about Talk Shows. When l was researching about Bob Barker I came across this video, where the Late Night Host, Stephen Colbert gives his opinion on what makes a solid host to a show which got me thinking about the role of the host in a Talk Show. Most shows follow the format of opening monologue, featured guests, and then a live performance, so there's plenty of time for the Host to express their personality. The longer exchanges that come with interviews would also give a reason for the Host to speak allowing Eric to have "conversations" with him. Unlike Game Shows, Talk Shows tend to include other high status celebrities rather than regular people, meaning that people's admiration for Talk Show Hosts mostly come from the live studio audience. 

Also practically speaking Talk Shows would be easier than Game Shows to set up, with only an area for a monologue and a space to conduct the interviews. Not the mention I wouldn't need an array of actors. Still though, I have no really budget or a studio space I can turn into a Talk Show, so I have to come up with ways to make the show more professional than what it seems. In terms of the interview set, I'd probably stray away from including wide shots and stick shot/reverse-shots. And for monologues, I really don't have to go all out for it, I mostly would just have to focus on creating two sets that have similar aesthetics or colors to create a sense of unity among the sets.

So with all this information said, I think given the needs of the story and my practical limitations, I will be sticking with a host from a Talk Show. Later this week will begin to flesh out scenarios on the Talk Show as well as rewatch The King of Comedy for addition research. Until then, bye bye!