Reality TV

Podtalk: George Ellzey Jr. on His ‘Bosom’ and ‘Cottage Grove’ Shorts

George Ellzey

CHICAGO – The film festival season for Autumn 2023 is gearing up, and a local Chicago filmmaker has two of his short films in the mix. Writer/director George Ellzey Jr., has his family relationship films “Bosom” and “Cottage Grove” currently on the circuit. “Bosom” will screen on September 27th at the upcoming (click link) Charlotte Film Festival and “Cottage Grove” will be at the Wichita, Kansas, Tall Grass Film Festival on October 6th.

Podtalk: Producer Stephanie Buxbaum on Her Adventures in Reality & Doc Series Television

Stephanie Buxbaum 3

CHICAGO – In the history of “Reality TV” there has been periods of up-and-down popularity, shows that have been around seemingly forever (“Big Brother,” “Amazing Race”) and spinoffs to new styles like “documentary series” as networks like the National Geographic Channel emerged. In all those permutations, producer Stephanie Buxbaum has experienced it all, and has the career and stories to prove it.

TV Review: ABC Takes Reality TV Down Dark Road with ‘Whodunnit?’

Whodunnit?

CHICAGO – If you’re old enough, you may remember when murder mystery parties became a trend. Game stores would sell boxes designed to get people to gather friends and essentially host their own version of the movie “Clue.” One guest was the murderer, the other party goers had to solve the crime. Well, it took longer than expected but reality TV has officially run out of ideas and have decided to turn those murder mystery parties into a weekly series.

TV Review: Unique Personalities Dominate ‘Small Town Security’

CHICAGO – Joan Koplan is one of the more unique reality TV characters of the last few years because she seems refreshingly aware of own personality quirks. We’ve seen dozens of these larger-than-life personalities over the years but Koplan is memorable and genuine enough that AMC has essentially built their newest reality show around her, “Small Town Security,” premiering after the return of “Breaking Bad.”

TV News: USA Welcomes Real Characters with Reality TV Initiative

USA Logo - White

CHICAGOUSA Network, most known for it’s WWE programming and a bunch of really good character focused comedy-drama’s you’ve wanted to get around to watching (but haven’t), announced several new reality TV programs it plans to bring to the network in 2012.

TV Review: ABC’s ‘Take the Money and Run’ Gets Too Goofy

CHICAGO – The first ten minutes or so of ABC’s new reality competition series “Take the Money and Run” is relatively promising and entertaining. Then it all gets very, very silly.

TV Review: HBO’s ‘Cinema Verite’ With Diane Lane, Tim Robbins

CHICAGO – How did we get here? How did the reality TV craze start? Some would have you believe that it is a modern trend and its popularity in the ’00s and ’10s has certainly been striking, but it’s much older than that.

TV Review: ABC’s ‘Secret Millionaire’ Highlights Great People While Manipulating Viewers

Secret Millionaire

CHICAGO – What has happened to Sunday nights? Perhaps the most bizarre modern trend in television is the desire for a good cry at the end of the weekend. People watch hard-working men and women finally get their due on “Undercover Boss” or shed a tear at the reshaped lives of “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.” The latest entry in this manipulative sub-genre is ABC’s “Secret Millionaire,” a program that certainly highlights deserving people but does so in a way that doesn’t quite work.

TV Review: ‘America’s Next Top Model’ Has Run Out of New Ideas

CHICAGO – Fourteen cycles into “America’s Next Top Model,” it is now clear that this sometimes-engaging program has lost all hope of rekindling what once made it entertaining. Perhaps realizing that they haven’t cast that many interesting models in the last few years, the producers have turned to torture, trying to make them intriguing by abusing them. It’s not that clever a plan.

TV Review: ‘Shedding For the Wedding’ Turns Weight Loss Into Torture

CHICAGO – As mash-ups take off in the music world, it was only a matter of time before reality TV joined the party, taking two concepts that worked on their own and smashing them together in a fit of childlike glee. What do you get when you cross “The Biggest Loser” and “Bridezillas”?

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