Make Reality TV: 5 Steps to Great Cast Relationships

Cast relationships — how you communicate with and prepare your cast — is key to making a great reality TV show or documentary series. Making sure those cast relationships stay strong both during and long after a show is done is not only crucial to your success in this industry, but it’s the right thing to do. So today we share how to pitch and make great reality TV shows and documentary series all while earning and maintaining great cast relationships. Cast Relationships: The Key to Great Reality TV Shows and Happy Experiences After making TV for quite a few years, we believe there’s nothing more important than earning and keeping the trust of your cast, and ensuring those cast relationships stay strong all during production and well after. A few things we cover today to help you do just that: * The right way to prepare your cast for pitching — or making– a reality TV show or documentary series. * How to get great story without putting words in your casts’ mouths. * Which TV business facts you must teach your cast before you shoot. * And why it’s crucial know…when the toilet paper runs out. Our Cast is Our Family Wesley Branch, one of the stand-out characters on our MTV show CAGED, was seriously injured in an accident, and is currently paralyzed from the stomach down. His friends and family have started a GoFundMe page to support his recovery. Wes is an incredible guy, and loving father to his four-year-old son. We’re proud supporters of his recovery fund, and hope that you’ll consider helping him out, even if all you give is $1. The GoFundMe page is here. Cast Relationships Go Beyond Any TV Show Hit the giant PLAY button above to learn more about working with your cast, from the first time you consider pitching them for a show, all the way through you final episodes and beyond. Transcript coming soon! Helpful and Related Links The page where you can support Wes and his recovery: Wesley Branch GoFundMe page. Joke mentions dealing with network notes and managing their expectation, something we talk about in Make TV Networks and Studios Happy – Dealing With Network Notes Found great characters? You’ll need to put them on tape. Here’s a guide to getting great interviews for documentaries and reality TV. The easy step-by-step guide to pitching us shows. Our all important first 8 episodes with a clickable table of contents on the Joke and Biagio Youtube channel. Subscribe to Joke and Biagio on Youtube. Seriously,