The Hunger Games – MTV Producers Assignment

Task: In groups, you will assume the roles of MTV television producers at a “pitch meeting” where you will present your idea for a new reality tv show inspired by The Hunger Games.

In your pitch, you are looking to address the following questions:

  1. What is the name and essence/spirit/nature of your new series? What is the goal of the winner and what will be their prize?
  1. What types of contestant are you hoping to attract and why?
  1. Who are you hoping to attract in terms of viewer demographic? How will you ensure audience attention?
  1. Who will be in control of production and how will profits be generated and used?
  1. What is the “agenda” of the show? What social/political influence do you hope to generate through the show and its contestants?
  1. As producers, you are constructing this show to reflect what intentions and biases?
  1. What explicit/implicit messages with regards to societal values is your show looking to express?
  1. How will you ensure that some of the themes/symbols/allegories of the text maintain integrity in this new reality tv format?
  1. How will intimacy/immediacy/interactivity be used on the show?
  1. How will the traditional conventions of reality tv be present?

Project Requirements:

  • 15-20minutes in length
  • 4 students per group
  • Must have a visual/use media/technology to enhance project (ex. interviews of potential contestants, re-enactment of a challenge, clip of pilot drama/outcomes, stats/charts, powerpoint)
  • Presentation may be presented live or be pre-recorded

K/U = /10

  • Is is clear that the group understands the major events and characters of The Hunger Games?
  • Does the group identify conventions of Reality Television as a genre?
  • Does the group demonstrate an awareness of the performance’s intended audience (e.g. classroom peers)?
  • Does the group demonstrate an awareness of the expectations of the audience for the “pitched” product?

T/I = /10

  • How well do the ideas for the new show reflect themes of The Hunger Games?
  • Do the elements of the “pitched show” include significant political and social messages?
  • How effectively does the planned show fit the Reality TV genre?
  • Does the “pitch” include a rationale for the type of contestants the producers wish to attract and why they are being sought?

COM = /10

  • Effective structure to the presentation (including proper intro and conclusion)
  • Appropriate use of language, appropriate to the occasion.
  • Appropriate conventions for multi-media or staged elements (e.g. themed background, consistent fonts, audible voice, etc.)

APPL = /10

  • Props and costumes are effective for the scene / video
  • Appropriate use of technology to enhance the presentation
  • Clear connections between the text of The Hunger Games and the group’s own experience with Reality Television (current shows including Big Brother, The Amazing Race, The X Factor, American Idol, The Voice, etc.)