It's Got A Good Beat And I Can Laugh At It
I was just watching The TV Set (on my TV set--I was also one of the few people who saw it in theatres a couple years ago). It's about the development of a TV show, and how the creator has to sell out every step of the way.
One scene shows the network testing the pilot in front of a regular group of people. As they watch, they have dials to register how much they like or dislike what they're watching. I was once in this situation. I was walking around New York many years ago and was asked to participate in some testing. Even then, it seemed ridiculous to me. The idea that you can tell if something is or isn't working moment to moment is silly. It's like saying "I didn't enjoy that joke at all until the punchline." Or "I liked the roller coaster during the thrilling moments, but all that other stuff in between wasn't nearly as exciting."
Show biz has always been about trial and error, but let's not pretend we can measure entertainment with any sort of precision.
posted by LAGuy @ 12:12 AM
1 Comments:
My daughter and I did the same thing a few weeks ago in Las Vegas. We evaluated a British game show they are thinking of transplanting to the audience. Turning the dial made no sense - it simply reflected whether something was happening or not on the screen. After a while, I found myself using it to reflect whether I liked or disliked the contestant on the screen, which isn't really relevant to whether the show was entertaining.
Of course, they had us fill out a questionnaire at the end, and I let them know I for one wouldn't watch this show regardless of who was host or who the contestants were.
Post a Comment
<< Home