Returning from a successful 2003-2004 season, YTV will continue its coverage of general local and campus-specific events while expanding its programming to include sitcoms, reality shows and home makeover shows.
First, “YTV News” will try to retain its momentum after a promising season last year. The first episode will include a special on the freshman bazaar and the ice cream scene at Yale, while subsequent episodes will feature topics such as homelessness in New Haven, the recent protest at Toad’s, and a cappella tap night. The program premieres on Oct. 6 and will be aired every Wednesday at 9 p.m., with re-runs on Sundays for those who miss the first showing. Students interested in working with the show should contact producer Adrian Heinzelman ’06, who said “YTV News” could especially use people for the technical side of production.
“We just got a new studio space, with a blue screen and new sound and lighting equipment,” she said. “This year is going to be very exciting.”
New to YTV this year is the reality dating show “Al Dente,” which will pair up randomly selected contestants and film their impromptu dates at area restaurants.
When describing how the dates will be centered around local restaurants, producer Natalia Oberti Noguera ’05 said, “We want to cater to the students. Pun intended.” The last episode will pair up the two contestants that the audience chooses as the most compatible in an online vote. Yale students interested in applying to be on the show should e-mail al_dente@IAmIt.com by Oct. 5 with personal information and a short paragraph describing why they should be chosen.
Another newcomer to the YTV scene is “Sweet Suites,” a show filmed in the vein of “MTV Cribs.” The inspiration behind the show, producer Albert Lawrence ’07 said, was the realization that many students had no idea what their fellow classmates had done to their living space. The program will give viewers an in-depth look at uniquely decorated common rooms, bedrooms, and overall suites around campus, with each episode based on a specific theme.
“The suites don’t have to be glamorous,” Lawrence said. “You can make anything that’s yours awesome, using whatever you have. We’re not expecting diamond chandeliers, after all. This is about creativity and personal touches.”
A major part of the show will be the background music, which will be tailored to fit the personality of each suite. The first episode will feature the “party suites” around campus, such as the Branford God Quad and the JE Sextet, while later episodes will be centered on themes like holidays, rooms on Old Campus, and the “Bittersuite” edition, which will interview people who can live in completely trashy rooms and still be perfectly comfortable.
“Idiot Wind” is a weekly sitcom based on college students scheduled to air next semester.
“It’s humorous at times, dramatic at times — it’s loosely based on stuff that’s happened to us, but it’s more of a collaboration of ideas,” producer Nicholas Evans ’05 said.
The show’s title, which refers to a Bob Dylan song of the same name, captures the producers’ intentions.
“Both the song and the show have the same kind of feeling. The characters don’t know yet what they’re doing or where they’re going, which is basically like college in general. And we thought the title was very indicative of that feeling,” Evans said.
Yet another new show is “Discussion Section with Alan Kennedy-Shaffer,” a political commentary program that will present a subjective, opinionated view of the news instead of merely the factual side. In the style of Walter Cronkite and Edward R. Murrow, host Alan Kennedy-Shaffer ’06 will open and close the show, covering both national and local political topics as well as issues in the Yale College Council, the Yale Political Union, the Yale Dems and other undergraduate organizations. There will be opportunities for other students to act as anchors, editors, and interviewers.
“I’m not expecting everyone to conform to my opinion,” Kennedy-Shaffer said. “In fact, the appeal of the show is that it will present diverse opinions on these issues.”
“Bulldog Profile” is a new show featuring interviews with Yale alums working in a variety of fields across the nation. The inspiration for the program, producer Ingrid Graves ’06 said, was the realization that she and many other students don’t know what to do when they finish school. The show will help fellow classmates “see what else is out there” apart from the highly-visible careers in consulting or investment banking. The show will cover fields that are less heavily-recruited, interviewing alumni in major metropolitan areas with careers in art, music, communications, intelligence and foreign affairs, among others.
Finally, “Songs in the Key of Lee” is a program that will feature a variety of sketches satirizing Yale traditions, as well as a number of other issues.
“I approach the show with a sense of humor,” said Lee Ngo ’05, writer, editor, and producer. “It’s risky in essence, but not in a grotesque way. I cover topics that are in the backs of students’ minds.”
While he will take on serious subjects such as sexuality and race, Ngo said he will also poke fun at the musicians in the common rooms and show why he would be a terrible freshman counselor.
“It’s in a sketch comedy format, really laid back, with students playing roles designed for them,” Ngo said.
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