[omnibus]

Maybe it's the photographer/videographer in me but I'd really like to see a behind the scenes show about producing "Survivor", "Man vs. Wild" and some other reality based shows.

The key question I have about survivor is how do they keep their teeth clean? We can figure out how they go to the bathroom. And what about feminine hygiene?

In Man vs Wild I was watching a recent show in the Costa Rican Jungle. The host Bear Grylls was way up in a tree above the jungle canopy yet there was an extreme closeup of his face. Did a cameraman climb a neighboring tree? Or was Bear holding the camera himself and risking holding the tree with one hand.

When I was in my late teens and early twenties I often bought magic tricks from a seller in a subway concourse in NYC just to find out the secret.

 

[Ruth]

No, there won't ever be a behind the scenes Survivor show. They don't want the audience to see how artificial it all is. But I do know some of the answers to your questions:

They are provided with some basic supplies including sunscreen, feminine hygene products, and condoms. (The list of contents of the supply box was leaked on one of the early seasons.)

As for the teeth, I don't know for sure, but on the show I've seen scenes of people trying to clean their teeth by rubbing them with leaves. So I think they just do the best they can and hope to win a bathroom products reward.

 

[DevdogAZ]

I'm pretty sure that on "Survivor," they allow them to fudge a little on those types of things, otherwise the ladies would all have hairy armpits, etc.

However, I'd love to see a behind-the-scenes show as well. Something that shows the production staff setting up and testing the challenges, something the shows the producers discussing the next challenges, how much Jeff Probst knows about the goings on before he gets to tribal council, what do the contestants do with all their free time, how much time is taken up by the individual confessionals each day, etc.

 

[modnar]

I'm pretty sure that on "Survivor," they allow them to fudge a little on those types of things, otherwise the ladies would all have hairy armpits, etc.

I don't know if they fudge on the hygiene stuff too much; I've seen several of the women on Survivor with hairy armpits.

 

[Idearat]

I don't think the producers want to spoil the mystique of Survivor by revealing all the secrets. I'm sure they don't want to create a tutorial for would-be competitors. But, one day the show will have run it's course and the only remaining revenue stream will be late-late night showings and DVD box sets. At that point I wouldn't be surprise if some "lost" footage made it's way on a bonus disc.

 

[sketcher]

I have frequently seen the contestants rubbing their teeth with small twigs to keep them clean. I think I noticed it most while they were in Africa. Brandon seemed to be doing it constantly.

 

[Sadara]

I have no doubt there are some things that are provided to the contestants, like femine products for the ladies. But, I don't think they are given anything special for their teeth. I've seen on several different seasons people trying hard to use whatever they could to keep their teeth clean.

 

[Tulsawatcher]

Before the start of the last season, I happened to catch quite by accident a behind the scenes show on the TV Guide channel - before this I didn't know that there were actually real shows on that channel.

Anyway, this showed the way they had the camp set up for all the support staff - camera crews, etc, and how they tried out the games beforehand using some of the staff people. It was very interesting; I hope to be able to catch it or something like it again. I'm fascinated by how they make those shows too.

 

[MikeMar]

Here you go! Just as I picture it

 

[Indiana627]

How dirty would your teeth get when you're not eating a lot?

 

[loubol]

I thought I saw one a few years back on A&E. They showed flyover shots of the crew living area that held like 400 people. They also showed how the crew is used to test the challenges prior to contestants. It didn't answer any of the questions that are posed above but it gave some insight to the production elements of the show.

 

[jeff125va]

There must really be a lot that we don't see. Each episode spans about 3 "real-time" days and lasts about 45 minutes w/o commercials. That means we see about 15 minutes per day. Considering how much of that is taken up by the challenges and confessionals, we probably see a very tiny portion of their "free" time.

 

[jerobi]

They are provided with some basic supplies including sunscreen, feminine hygene products, and condoms. (The list of contents of the supply box was leaked on one of the early seasons.)

I can't recall the source (Richard Hatch's book?), but I know that someone on one of the earlier seasons figured out that you could take apart a tampon and expand the material inside to use as toilet paper. It sure beat using leaves, so a few contestants did it. When they were caught, the crew removed all of the tampons from their kit as punishment. Eventually they reached an agreement that the units would only be used for their intended purpose.

 

[sieglinde]

Various tribes of people throughout history and the present don't use toothbrushes and manage to keep their teeth clean.

 

[JETarpon]

Various tribes of people throughout history and the present don't use toothbrushes and manage to keep their teeth clean.

Like the British.

Well, maybe that's a bad example.

 

[bareyb]

They had a behind the scenes show about the Cameramen & crew that filmed "The Deadliest Catch" series and it was fascinating. It's amazing how tough the conditions were on the camera crew. It's worth a look if you are into that stuff (and it sounds like you are). "Dirty Jobs" had a behind the scenes special too IIRC.

 

[NoThru22]

There must really be a lot that we don't see. Each episode spans about 3 "real-time" days and lasts about 45 minutes w/o commercials. That means we see about 15 minutes per day. Considering how much of that is taken up by the challenges and confessionals, we probably see a very tiny portion of their "free" time.

Was it me, or did this previous season show much less of their non-challenge time than any of the seasons before it? It seemed like a small bumper of time then challenge, then another little bumper, then challenge, then scramble for votes, then tribal. It was like the challenges and tribal were 90% of the show.