Control

In the past week after ControlTV announced that my brother would be its star, I have been Googling and Twitter searching this topic obsessively.  Tristan Couvares will be the focal point of an online social experiment where he'll be on air for the majority of the day and the audience will make his decisions for him (i.e., what he should eat, who he should date, what he should wear, etc).  A lot of people think that the idea is crazy.  They are afraid for my brother and think this is utterly foolish. They could never imagine being told what to do.  It's just horrific, right?  When my brother called me recently, he asked me on a scale of 1-10 how crazy he was.  I gave him a 6.7, he gave himself a 9.5.

I think both my brother's concerns and people's concerns in general about being controlled are a bit overly dramatic.  When you think about it, most of our lives are controlled in someway or another already.  We are controlled by our jobs, our family obligations and our basic needs.  Most of us do not consider on a daily basis how many decisions are already made for us.  Even those of us with out any "real" obligations (ie, those of us who are old enough to be living on our own and still young enough to  have no real responsibility-- or "20-somethings") are still held hostage by our fundamental needs.  In America, we treasure the illusion of freedom.  Everyday I get up and go to work.  I work until around 5:30 or later, and I come home.  A lot of people do this and more.  If I don't do this, I can't pay my rent, I can't pay my student loans back, and I can't eat.  There is very little choice in the matter of whether or not to go to work (at least on most  days).  There is not that much choice in what I eat or wear (it really depends on whats clean and what I have in the fridge). These daily choices are really not the existential crisis that some critics are making it out to be.

Just as I made a choice to take the job I have now (and made the choice to go to college, accumulate debt, and live in New York City), Tristan has voluntarily signed on to this social experiment.  He placed himself in this framework.  The difference between me and him, though, is that my daily choices are assumed and I don't really critically think about them.  His "choices" will be more obviously be more pronounced.  These major choices we make (our jobs, our relationships, etc.) dictate what we end up not actively choosing on a daily basis.


 Tristan is certainly no stranger to life events that are beyond his control.  In fact, his experiences have probably made him more willing to take control of his own life than most of us are willing to do.  Yes, he'll have to do what the audience tells him for six weeks, but this isn't like he is entering into some sort of indentured servitude similar what they have in present day Pakistan and India or accidentally find himself the midst of a rape frenzy in the Congo.   Anyone can read the news any day and find hundreds of examples of people with far less choices and control in life than Tristan.  Many people do not have the same liberties we have, and I think it's important that we remember that.  You'll be able to chose who he dates and what he eats, not whether or not he lives or dies. 

Go here to see a short video of Tristan:

http://news.tubefilter.tv/2010/10/05/qa-seth-green-on-his-24-hour-live-interactive-reality-experiment-controltv/

My Brother is Seth Green's Next Pet Project

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(Tristan)

For better or for worse, my brothers and I lead charmed lives.  We've all been in very unique situations--both good and bad.  This time it is my brother Tristan's turn to have something unique happen to him: He's been selected to play the role of the protagonist in Seth Green's new interactive reality experiment "ControlTV."  It is a show that allows the audience to control my brother's every decision for six weeks.  He will be 'on air' for eighteen hours a day, seven days a week.  The show will stream on the Internet.

(Me and Tristan)

My brother has never had any aspirations to be an actor.  He's never strived to be in the spotlight, which is something especially unusual for someone living in Los Angeles.  His friend convinced him to try out for the show, and by chance (or likely because of his charisma and good-looks) he's been selected as the protagonist for this experimental show that Seth Green has cooked up.  He turned 25 a few days ago and has been living in Los Angeles for about two years now.  I try to persuade him on a regular basis that New York City is the better place to live of the two cities, especially because he's always wanted to go into finance.  It was extremely difficult for him to decide to take this opportunity. We spent hours going back and forth with eachother evaluating the nitty-gritty pros and cons.

(Josh and Tristan)

It will be an interesting road ahead for him and I'm eager to see him walk it.  I just hope he can stay sane.  I can't imagine what it would be like to be filmed eighteen hours a day, seven days a week, for six weeks--and not even be able to make decisions for myself.  I suspect he'll be just fine, though.  Tristan has never been an automaton and won't take orders lying down.  He can be very persuasive when he wants to be.  I'm confident that his efficacious personality will bend the audience's will to his own desires. It's so exciting to hear about his photo shoots, the famous people he's meeting, and the places he's being interviewed.  I have been on pins and needles all week anxiously awaiting his phone calls and gchat messages to hear his latest updates.

I think what I am more excited about than anything (dork that I am) is that this experiment could be studied for years to come by media scholars.  Audiences and media producers alike have long been fascinated by the idea of total invasion of someone's life.  For the first time we will get to see  "EdTV" or "Truman Show" in practice, not just in theory. Will the audience be engaged? Will my brother crack?  Will media start shifting to web-based content rather than television viewing?   Is interactive media viewing the way of the future? Will this start a new era of reality telivision?

These are just some questions that come to my mind.  We'll just have to wait and see...

Links (I will post more as they become available):

http://blog.moviefone.com/2010/09/27/the-truman-show-becomes-real-thanks-to-seth-green/

http://javazero.com/the-truman-show-becomes-real-thanks-to-seth-green/

http://amazon.imdb.com/news/ni4582363/