Reality Bites: New York Reality TV School

It’s been ten minutes into my New York Reality TV School seminar, and already I am bumping and grinding in an impromptu dance party with “Trends,'” formerly of I Love New York (season one) fame. Along with about 30 other students, I am learning from the masters of the reality television genre about how to be ourselves, magnified through the lenses of television cameras. 

The master of ceremonies, Robert Galinsky, started the school in late June, and since then, Galinsky, along with casting directors and panel members Robert Russell and Risa Tanania, have been working with students to walk the fine, nuanced line between being oneself and selling oneself. "We have to love you before you open your mouth," Russell says. The seminar is "built on interpersonal relationships and bringing out your fears." Being able to confront your fears on camera will set you back $139 for a three hour session, and $299 for five weeks. 
 


The seminar is split into three sections: On-set training, tips from the professionals, and a press conference with current and former reality stars and the casting directors. The “on-set training” is essentially team building for reality television, where we “pimp walk” to lighten up and walk through the gauntlet (two lines of participants hurling insults at you) to toughen us up. There are two rules for the gauntlet: no touching and no spitting. The Today Show is filming this seminar, and while I slink away into the corner when the cameras are pointing my way, the actual students are comfortable and could definitely hang with New York or Bret Michaels.

Galinsky is encouraging and stresses using the medium of the camera in a way that brings the “true you” to a finer focus. "The camera is going to see everything you do, amplify it and make it look much different through the screen, so why not understand how it captures you and play back just as specifically as it plays with you?" he asks. We also go through an exercise called "On the Grill with Phil" where Phil, another reality guru, wears an apron, totes a spatula, sounds like Gilbert Gottfried and yells every single word he says. He critiques the students’ pitches for potential reality shows, and Trend’s proposed show of “How to Fuck Two Women A Day” doesn't go over so well.

If you’re hesitant about shilling out the big bucks, just look at Jorge Bendersky, one of Galinsky's reality success story. Benderski placed third in Animal Planet's Groomer Has It and is now a TV personality with the network. To perfect Benderski's on-air au natural, Galinsky followed Benderski around with a camera so he could "know his angles" and work them on TV. Benderski also prepared every single outfit he would wear every day of the six week filming, to better concentrate on the show and his dog grooming skills.

At the end of the day, I learned a lot of things about reality television, most of which scared me. One of the students, Tracy Pendergast, went through the casting process for a show, enduring a week locked in a room, blood and personality testing, and a psychiatrist eventually telling her she should consider taking Prozac. Yet here she is at the seminar, willing to learn from Galinski and the others because "reality TV is the best exposure you can get right now."

Some tips for the potential reality star: Eradicate “you” from your vocabulary. Start every sentence with "I" because that is what makes a good sound bite. Speak of everything that happened in the present tense, even if the producers ask you about it a week later. And if you ever want a moment alone, get naked or sing a song because the network most likely won't have the rights to air it. Oh, and when you go to a casting call don't have your head shot in your right hand. The casting director then cannot shake your hand and will immediately think “NEXT!”

Visit www.newyorkrealitytvschool.com for more info.