FOR TELEVISION: A SURREALITY SHOW TO END ALL REALITY SHOWS

INTRODUCTION

This is a Surreality show, stripped and interactive, I created to end all ‘Reality’ shows. Designed to be marketed internationally, the format can also originate on one of several lower levels until, like a virus, it has spread across the world. It is designed to draw in viewers to the point of complete identification with the events, possibly to the point of obsession, certainly to the point where their emotional and social identities are swallowed by the dynamics occurring on screen. It is ideally conceived to involve the viewers personally in a virtual world of unlimited possibilities, histories, irritations and laughs. A celebrity host (not judge or judges!) enhances both the humor and the market share. There is also a tacit element of talent discovery (Discover new stars!) in the most surprising settings.

I have pried open the forth wall which is generally used to lock the contestants into a space separate from the world. A strict format keeps the competition exciting and unpredictable, yet the elimination of the forth wall encourages the participants to depend on their deepest natures to win. Their natures may or may not enchant the viewing public. The contestants will constantly learn more about themselves by being themselves to extremes. The viewing public will constantly learn about themselves -and their neighbors- with each new vote.

This show will be built on the Human Story. It is built on the past and the future, but is driven by its immediacy. Nearly anything can happen. Nearly anything goes. An endless feast for the tabloids, this format in action becomes the true Vox Populi. The program can usurp mass viewer shares in most any country in the world.

-Tristan Winter

Copenhagen

Oct. 25, 2007

BARFLY

c 2007 by Tristan Winter

THE SHOW

Whether on the Municipal, National, or International levels described herein, three extremely different kinds of bars will simultaneously record and broadcast the acts and conversations of their regular customers (those legally cleared to participate) for a twelve-week period. Intercutting between the participating bars is essential for lively comparisons of the activities and milieus. BARFLY should ideally be introduced and weekly summarized by a Celebrity Host, who should also present the prize during a live broadcast. The viewing public will weekly contact a publicized telephone number or web location to cast negative votes against those bar customers they most detest. Those in each bar with the most negative votes will weekly be expelled from that bar and forbidden to return until the end of the show. No contestants from any bar are allowed to enter any of the other contending bars at any time during the run of the program.

At the end of the twelve-week period, those customers -per bar- with the least negative votes will be declared the individual winners, and the one bar with the least total negative votes will be declared the winning bar. The large cash prize is to be divided between the single individual winner and the owner of the winning bar. The single individual winner must be the single surviving contestant of the winning bar. This is because that person helped the winning bar keep its overall negative votes lower than the others, and, as a regular patron of the winning bar, can be, according to the natural format, said to be sponsored by, or owned, by that bar.

The show is ideally conceived to work in as many cities and countries as exist in the world with bars. Indeed, one of the main distinguishing characteristics of BARFLY is its international aim.

The prolongation of profitability is a result of the structure, designed to expand geometrically, until, in the International phase, the heat is on to elect the best barfly, and the best bar, in the world.

Thus, the producers extract the most benefit from the multiplicity of bars in each city, to the multiplicity of bars in each country, to the multiplicity of bars on earth. Once the final phase has been concluded, the producers simply leave the title-holders to their glory for the duration while the program recommences again from the beginning stage, until a new champion emerges to challenge the previous winner.

This cycle can be repeated over and over, recommencing from whichever phase is best suited to any given country, and building to the challenge of the International championship on a regular basis.

STRUCTURING

In the Municipal phase, producers or sponsors who have purchased territorial rights to BARFLY should scour their territory to identify three bars, not necessarily well known (see: Summary), of three very different milieus. Ideally this would encompass a very trendy bar, a middle-class or professional bar, and a working-class, or near-underworld bar.

Final selection of these three bars will depend on the bars owners’ full legal agreement to participate in the program during the period of pre-production and the twelve weeks of the show. (see: Liability). Once in legal agreement to participate, all legal liability for whatever occurs on their own premises rests with themselves.

Professional casting of each bars contestants is not allowed. Selection of each bars contestants must be made from genuine customers who understand that their individual behavior during the show will affect both their personal success as well as the success of that bar. Those contestants must sign full release forms, releasing both the bar and the producers, sponsors and creators of BARFLY from any indemnities. (see: Casting)

Each of the three selected bars will reserve twelve seats along the actual bar top for twelve contestants recruited from their regular clientele. Reserve contestants to the number of five per bar will also be selected and vetted. These reserve barflies may only take the seat of one of the main contestants if that person is absent during the specified hours of gaming, and are only to assume that seat permanently at the beginning of the second absence, at which point they themselves are immediately eligible to be voted on.

In the first broadcast (Week 1) the Celebrity Host introduces the three participating bars, their twelve contestants, their reserve contestants, and the rules. At the end of the broadcast, the Host reminds the public to cast a negative vote against whomever they wish to be thrown out of the bar, reveals the contact number and closes the show with the information that the next show will reveal the votes and expel the losers.

In the second broadcast (Week 2) the Host summarizes the format and what we’ve learned of the personalities involved. After enough suspense, the customer in each bar with the most negative votes is very pointedly announced to be expelled from the bar. These losing customers should be frog-marched off the set and any protestations they have should be met by the Host’s or the bartender’s firm explanation that “the votes are in and five million people think you’re a schmuck!”

Ties will be resolved by any fast bar-game the Host decides upon, no matter how eccentric it might seem.

And the close of this second broadcast (Week 2) the public will be reminded to repeat the voting process in the identical manner as before, for the second victim of their dislike.

This procedure is then repeated exactly in each broadcast, until, in the final live broadcast (Week 12) the last losing vote is announced and the loser expelled from each bar.

There now remains one solitary barfly contestant. Whether he talks to himself, the bartender, or the Host, we keep the focus on this person, who is now declared the individual winner of the round. The tension remains, however, because the Host has not yet announced the winning bar –that bar of the three with the least total individual negative votes cast for its team over the course of the program. The individual’s prize money is not yet guaranteed, because he himself might not have chosen to associate with the milieu the public considered most entertaining.

Now all the original contestants are brought back into each of their sponsoring bars. They discuss their failures and their possible advantages. The original comradery or irritations are seen once more as the suspense mounts.

Finally, after visiting all three bars and re-introducing all the original contestants, The Celebrity Host will announce the winning bar –that which had the least negative votes under its auspices. The Host presents the cash prize to be shared between the winning bar owner and the individual winner who was participating in that bars efforts.

MUNICIPAL, NATIONAL, INTERNATIONAL

Very small countries with limited broadcasting and limited geography would be able to participate in and extend the profitability of BARFLY along the following model:

Example: Denmark. The initial, Municipal, phase would be a contest between three bars in Copenhagen. At the end of twelve weeks one of these Copenhagen bars and its surviving customer are declared the winner in a live broadcast. That winning duo rests on its laurels while the next twelve weeks are broadcasting the BARFLY show from three bars in Arhus. The Arhus winning duo is declared after twelve weeks. The strip is then repeated with the participation of three bars in Odense, which will have its own municipal winners after twelve weeks.

Now the National championship is broadcast. The contestants are now the three winning bars and customers from Copenhagen, Arhus and Odense. The previous single winning customers reappear in their designated bars, but the remainder of the contesting teams may be newly selected by each bar if they feel their chances of winning the National championship would be improved. Similarly, contestants who feel they performed well as individuals but might have a better chance of winning in a different milieu may apply to the winning bar owners to join their teams.

The National championship is conducted with the precise same rules as the previous stages. At the end of twelve weeks the National winning customer and bar are declared. The prize money is considerably larger than that for the Municipal phase.

The National winning customer and bar are now eligible to participate in the International championship for the largest prize.

In a limited national broadcast situation, the Municipal phase may be repeated again from the beginning to the end as many times as the market will bear before advancing to the National level, provided the repetition of this phase does not endanger the market success of the National phase.

Example: Large Countries. Large and very large countries with multiple territorial broadcasting possibilities may greatly expand the profitability of their participation in BARFLY by simultaneously broadcasting -in each of many territories- the Municipal phase contest. Thus, in the USA, for example, three bars may be contesting in many, many different cities at the same time. In this case, the Municipal phase may be prolonged until a set date for the National competition, provided doing so would not endanger the market success of the National phase.

Once the National contest is completed the producers may either re-start the competition from the multiple-Municipal phase and continue to recycle the program endless on the Municipal-to-National format, or participate in scheduled International competitions for greater prizes.

The International phase maintains all the same rules as the preceding phases. The single winning bar/barfly duo from each National championship, along with their teams and reserves, enter the competition and continue to broadcast from their native bars.

An internationally accessible site records the votes in accordance to all the preceding rules.

Once the International winner is declared, they are eligible to compete in the next International competition.

These cycles may be repeated as long as the market bears.

CELEBRITY HOSTS

Each territory should make the best use of a Celebrity Host to maintain a narrative cohesion during each phase of the program, and to add to and maintain the market share. In the first broadcast, the Celebrity Host will stand before or inside each bar in turn and introduce both the bars and the contestants.

For the subsequent ten weeks, the Celebrity Host will begin the show with a summary of what has transpired in each of the bars the preceding week. In week twelve, the Celebrity Host will make a brief live appearance in each of the three contending bars, to summarize the general status and exchange some comments with the bars last remaining contestant. The Celebrity Host will then present the prize to the winning barfly and winning bar.

The weekly summaries clarify the personalities, hidden or emerging histories, troubles, hopes, goofs, gaffs and intrigues of the contestants. -Is romance budding between X and Y? Is Z truly a film producer or just a poseur? Will P get national recognition for her vocal talents? Was poor, besotted Q actually a doctor before becoming a barfly, and what did he do to lose his license? Or, in a true-life example, why did K begin his career as a cop, then become instead a biker, and finally a nudist? -Above all, which contestants from each of the three bars were voted out, and what was it about them that might have turned the public against them?

CASTING

BARFLY distills the concept of interactive reality TV down to its very essence by eliminating casting. The contenders must be legally released participants mustered from each bars regular customers. (see: Liability) The program thus maintains its principle of non-interference -outside of the initial rules and subsequent editing- and allows the social microcosms to operate and evolve honestly. Only this way can the show deliver a complete palette of pathos, absurdity, wit, competitiveness and solidarity necessary to the success of the program.

During the period of pre-production, each of the selected bar owners will have a month to explain the shows aims and its rules to the regular customers who have formed its milieu. Those regulars who wish to participate will then be presented with a written set of rules and be required to sign the appropriate release forms while completely sober.

Bartenders alone may be cast, or more preferably coached, by the sponsors to solicit background histories and weave summaries during the filmed conversations. The bartenders thus function as a Greek Chorus, or near-invisible narrators. While their role is to facilitate the daily gathering, however, BARFLY must always keep the viewers attention on the customers. In stark contrast to other reality shows, BARFLY is built entirely around the genuine customers of such an operation.

WILD CARDS

Wild Cards are selected reserve personalities picked by the producers and legally cleared to enter the broadcast. They have no voting privileges. They are excluded from the viewers’ voting choices. Whether they are celebrities or simply persons of quick wit, or even merely eccentrics, they should be used only occasionally to provoke the contestants; to what is entirely up to them, so long as it maintains the legal invulnerability of the producers. They can simply enter a bar and announce “Everybody switch drinks!” or they can stay for one whole evening and insert comments designed to elicit responses from the contestants. Each participating bar may receive no more than three visits from Wild Cards through the duration of the contest, whichever phase that might be. These three instances would be on the orders of the producers, and the bars have no choice in whether a Wild Card is sent in. On the other hand, each bar may request no more than three visits from Wild cards through the duration of the contest, whichever phase that might be, if the bar feels it is in need of additional entertainment value. The maximum visits to each bar must total no more than three Wild Card visits. No bar will know who the Wild Card is before they arrive on the set. No bar will be able to know whether the Wild Card will improve or corrode their vote percentages.

LIVE FEEDS

Since the hours of filming might be limited according to the producers’ means, and a weekly broadcast of the highlights of those filmed hours sets limits for the viewing public’s psychological involvement with the contestants, live net feeds should be used to complete the picture. This tactic is also important to maximize audience obsession and market shares for the producers. Incidents from the live feeds also contribute to the PR bombardment which should accompany each round of the format. (see: Publicity)

EVENTS

Participating bars are neither encouraged nor discouraged by the producers from holding events. Naturally occurring events such as birthdays, holidays, engagements, etc., will take place as usual, as shall any other scheduled event such as happy hours, women’s nights, etc. This position is taken to maintain the principle of reality/non-interference.

All participating bars, however, are allowed to create as many events as they so desire to, provided these events neither disturb the assembling of the contestants along the bar nor infringe upon the legal impunity of the producers or the contestants.

Whichever choices the bars will make regarding events, the antics will only amplify each bars personal nature. The notion of an event is obviously -and entertainingly- very different in a working-class bar than in a jet-setters’ bar. On the national scale these differences become extremely pronounced, with, say, a New York bar celebrating one thing or another in a totally different manner than an Alabama bar. Nationally, many viewers will be left laughing at the pretentiousness or the pathetically imbecilic ideas any one region might have about celebrating. In the international phase, these extremes will be jaw-dropping.

PUBLICITY

Advance publicity is the provenance of the station or sponsor. The build-up should trumpet the outrageousness, the unpredictability and the authenticity of BARFLY.

Throughout the run of the series, full press agent activity should be employed to draw the viewers closer into the personal lives and general conflicts or alliances of the contestants, with regular releases dispatched to tabloids and magazines. These releases must amplify the histories, the incipient romances, and the aspirations of the contestants. Further, a strong element of star-searching and star-discovery (e.g. elaborating on a contestant’s singing ability) will be a constant element of the publicity campaigns. Humor, Redemption, Salvation, Decline, Improvement, Revenge, Justice, Intrigue and Romance will comprise the world of BARFLY.

VERIFICATION

In keeping with the integrity of the BARFLY concept of purity and the dual locomotion of the vox populi, a recognized accounting firm must be retained to count all votes. The knowledge that a firm such as Price Waterhouse or Arthur Anderson is verifying the viewers’ opinions through every phase of the competition eliminates any scent of manipulation and keeps the excitement building without the speed bumps formed of disappointment.

TECHNICAL

Web cams and/or HD cameras must be arrayed to shoot only along the length of the bar, thus filming only those contestants legally cleared to participate. Directional microphones should be pendent from the ceiling or shelving directly above the bar and spread to best pick up each contestant’s dialogue. Since each bar is architecturally distinct, the production crews must tailor these requirements to fit each location. Ambient sound is necessary to maintain the character of each bar, but, like the crowds not located directly along the bar top, must be vague enough to leave the producers unencumbered with legal issues.

Naturally the producers should use as many cameras as feasible without making the workflow with the editors impossible. This is to keep the program as lively as possible. The combined edits must create an entrancement, an obsessional yet varying visual and verbal flow to resemble the real life of the setting.

Astute editing will be necessary to intercut between the three participating bars. A comment or dream mentioned, for example, in Bar A might find it’s most appropriate response in Bar B or C.

If the program is broadcast in an hour-long format only one night per week, roughly twenty minutes of the best footage must be culled from each of the three bars to compile the show. While editors might quail, this places the producers in a golden position, as it is nearly mathematically impossible not to collect twenty minutes of hilarious and outrageous action.

Persons not legally cleared to participate in the broadcast, who nevertheless accidentally stray into the camera/mike range must have their faces electronically masked with the head of a fly.

LIABILITY

As noted throughout this manual, liability issues have been resolved. The owner(s) of the concept have a firewall protecting them, and in fact absolving them from legal liability. Initial liability is handed in full to each station or sponsor producing the show in their territory. From there, the stations/sponsors ensure that each bar chosen is operating within the bounds of all laws operative in their area (e.g.: health, opening hours, age limits, etc., in accordance with the superceding municipal, county, state or national regulations).

By signing the contract to participate in the program, each bar legally assumes full liability for all occurrences within its walls. This means that it clearly recognizes that while abiding by the rules, schedules, and recording of BARFLY, each bar retains the identical full legal responsibility it would normally have.

Final liability is addressed by each bar by having its chosen contestants sign full release forms while indisputably sober and free of any mood or mind altering influence.

Participating bars should clearly post, both outside and inside, notices of participation in the BARFLY show. If doormen are employed, they should also clearly inform all customers of the participation and active recording.

Cameras, as stated, will be focused exclusively on the bar, and the length of the bar reserved for shooting will be reserved, during shooting hours, only for those contestants who have signed releases. If desired, the bar may also be cordoned off from the general public, with the serving area(s) left open but out of camera and microphone range. Finally, any unsigned persons accidentally stumbling into camera/microphone range for a quick exchange of quips with any of the contestants -should the editors wish to keep the exchange in the broadcast- must have their faces electronically masked with a large fly face.

In this manner Barfly can remain true to its purpose of non-interference and run without legal liabilities of a threatening nature.

THEME SONG

The theme song will be Rock Bottom Bar, written by Philip Newton. A blues/rock number with an instant hook, the final recording will be performed by The Shouters.

SUMMARY

Because the contestants are not isolated from the real world, current events –their own as well as gossip and news- will maintain a strong presence throughout the show, keeping an immediacy and genuine liveliness to BARFLY usually lacking in reality shows. Then as the cameras roll the contestants think less about the filming. The conviviality of the setting will encourage some contestants to be on their best behavior. Others will feel it is in their best interests to become more and more of who they think they are. In this peculiar yet universal setting, contestants will let lose a veritable fusillade of flirtatiousness, jokes, tricks, sob-stories, facts, insults, romance, knowledge, innuendos, philosophies, rants, monologues and, of course, opinions about the government -as they do all over the world.

Although BARFLY begins with the revelations of very strong class differences, in action it is breaking the class divide constantly. Firstly, by eliminating the focus on management, the real people, who can only win by being themselves become our wonderful or madly annoying neighbors. By opening the forth wall, the contestants are clearly participating only when they wish to. This also eliminates the mundane elements of domesticity, daily ablutions and other human necessities, and shifts the entire focus onto the individual in a purely social setting. The public will be forced to delve into the uninhibited true characters of the contestants, thus engaging in a constant process of self-discovery and discovery of their fellow members of the public. Finally, the format is based on the continuous exposure of one type of people to others, whether the different milieus of one city, the provincial character of differing parts of a nation, or the differing behaviors of people of several distinct countries. Here is the unifying power behind the viewers’ involvement.

Placing the viewing public in a virtual bar and exposing them to absolutely everything that goes on there creates an almost unbreakable emotional bond. The public gradually learns the histories of the contestants, who are now their fellow barflies. They will share the hopes and anxieties of their fellow barflies, laugh at their unpredictable antics, marvel at their esoterica and cringe at their connivings. Each week they will also get the supreme pleasure of voting to throw out the type of bar customer they have always hated -not from an artificially constructed world, but from their own natural social setting -as well the joys of supporting or debasing the kinds of bars they like or dislike. Nor need the participating bars all be known, thus opening up the possibility (for the viewers) of discovering a new bar –and possibly even going there in person. Whether rushing to jump on the sofa and go to the bar via their television screens or out on the town in search of laughs, masses of people everywhere will gather to watch BARFLY, voting with or against their neighbors or even citizens of another country to discover the best barfly and, ultimately, the best bar in the world. Finally, for the maximum thrill, people will gather in bars to watch the show!