Program Critique: Tusker Project Fame

Introduction
Project Fame was a pan-African version of the international talent/reality show Star Academy. It was held first in Johannesburg, South Africa from June to August 2004, the show had 16 African contestants - 9 of which were South African - groomed for stardom, with the weakest being eliminated on a weekly basis; the top three received record deals and the winner got a lot more prizes.

The contestants were eliminated in the following way: the Board (judges) place four contestants on probation, the teachers save one, the other contestants save another and viewers save a third, thereby eliminating the last contestant. As the show progressed, the number of contestants placed on probation rose to five resulting in two contestants being eliminated. The last five remaining contestants' fates were determined by viewers' votes.

The East African version called Tusker Project Fame aired from October 1, 2006 to December 17, 2006.This show is records the contestants' daily activities and is live 24 hours a day. Tusker Project Fame started with East Africa contestants competing for the coveted price but has grown to include Rwanda and Southern Sudan.

TPF Four Faculty: The Teachers
Helen Akoth Mtawalli is the new Tusker Project Fame principal, taking over from Achieng Abura. Voice coach Kavutha, and dance choreographer Sarakasi's Edu, are back on Tusker Project Fame season Four.

The previous music director Joseph Hellon was replaced by acclaimed Producer Robert Kamanzi (RKay). The TPF band consists of keyboard guru Aaron Rimbui and his crew.
Tusker Project Fame Judges: Ian, Juliana, Hermes

TPF Four: Judges
Tusker Project Fame season Four judges: Ugandan songstress ‘the lovely’ Juliana Kanyomozi, Tanzania's award winning record producer, Hermes ‘Hermy B’ Bariki, Kenyan Ian Mbugua. As usual, guest judges will be featured.
TPF Four: Hosts
Kenya’s Sheila ‘Nikki’ Mwanyigha, who also hosted the first three seasons of TPF, alongside Uganda’s Dr. Michael ‘Mitch’ Egwang.

Coverage
There are two live shows: the elimination show which comes on Saturday from 2000 hours to 2100 hours and a nomination show which comes every Sunday from 1930 hours to 2100 hours. Apart from the live shows, there are also the weekly shows which come from Monday to Friday starting from 2030 hours for 30 minutes. Then there is the omnibus which comes on Saturday from midnight up to 0300 hours. The main media sponsor is Citizen TV.

Critique
Show on October 23, 2010 at 2000hours to 2100 hours.
The show normally starts with the signature tune of the show then a long shot of the students, one by one. There is a close up shot of the two presenters as they start the show officially by greeting the audience, then a dolly in to Sheila who normally starts the show.

After that, there is a close up shot of the faculty as they are introduced by the presenters. After the faculty are the contestants. There was an error made by Dr. Mitch who confused the names of the contestants. This confused the camera man who was supposed to show a shot of the right contestant as the name is called. The next scene was a close up shot of each judge. After that there is a commercial break which lasts for one minute. The commercial that starts is for Tusker malt lager then Dettol. The commercial runs from 2015 hours up to 2016 hours.

The contestants that were put on probation were Prudence, Gabiro, Juveh, K-Denk and Gaelle. As each contestant starts to sing, they are zoomed in. There are long shots and tilting up and tilting down shots of the contestants as they are from back stage up to the stage. As they move on the stage, the shot used is follow right and follow left shot. One can notice the level of professionalism and I think the line out and the preview monitor helps the producers in determining which camera should go on air.

When the judges give the verdicts of each contestant, there is an extreme long shot of each then a zoom in. The judges did not handle the microphone well. The judges table has only one microphone which is passed to the next judge after they finish giving their opinion. I think that they should be given lapels which can be switched on when they are giving their verdict and then off when a contestant is performing, all this should be done by a sound controller. There was a commercial break at 2028 hours up to 2030 hours where they brought a Tusker advert.

After the contestants sang, the next commercial was at 2039 hours for the news highlight, a Tusker advert, a Safaricom advert and for the Stanchart marathon.

In my opinion, the stage is well lit but there is a blue spotlight on top of the stage that was distracting one from seeing the contestants.

The final part of the live show is when Mr. Mwangi of Price Water House Coopers is called to the stage to bring the envelope containing the winner that the audience saved for that week. We are shown as he enters the stage with a long shot, then a dolly in shot of the envelope that he holds up. There is a full shot of the entire contestant on stage as they see of the contestants that were neither saved by the faculty or the students that were not on probation. The last commercial break is at 2045 hours to 2047 hours then the show ends with the signature tune.

Show on October 24, 2010 at 1930 hours to 2100 hours.
The show starts with the signature tune of the show then a long shot of the students, one by one as they are on the set. There is a close up shot of the two presenters as they start the show officially by greeting the audience. We are shown the whole audience using a boom shot. There is a commercial break that starts at 1939 hours to 1941 hours of Tusker Jitolee, S&L Mortgage and Sunlight washing powder.

The first two contestants sing on stage then there is a commercial break from 1956 hours to 1958 hour of Mr. Price, Ridsect and Telkom Orange.

Omnibus Show
Recap of the show on October 24, 2010 at 1930 hours to 2100 hours.

It starts with the signature tune of tpf with the contestants dancing, which is a pre-recorded segment. Its starts of with Mitch and Sheila doing a run way walk, the shot changes from a boom shot of the audience to the full shot of the two hosts as they enter the stage, then screen changes abruptly to medium shot of Amelina singing her song then Judge Juliana’s and Helens verdicts. I think that this is due to the editing that was done by Citizen TV so as to have all the shows in the allocated time slot. Next is Gabiro, follow right shot as he moves around the stage. Hermes, who is shown by a medium shot, gives his opinion as we are shown Gabiro’s reactions then R-Kay’s verdict. Again, this is due to the edited work. When watching the live show on Sunday and the omnibus show, one will definitely notice the difference if keen.

The spotlight that focuses on the students makes their faces appear bright while the judges who are immediately behind them look normal. Next is Juveh, and the full shot of him as he dances and Ian’s and Kavutha verdicts. As the judge and the faculty, respectively gives their opinion, all have established medium shots. Steven was the last to perform and the shot used is the follow right/left, as we get a clear view as he dances and Ian’s view.

The lighting behind the judges look too bright while the audience behind judge

Show on October 31, 2010 at 1930 hours to 2100 hours.

The signature tune starts of the show as a face to face close up shot of Dr. Mitch as he gives Sheila a rose flower. The presenters introduce the show, as the signature tune fades off.

Next was the ‘Boys band choir’ as the camera focuses on each one of them. They perform a song together. Next is Gaelle and Msechu, which was the second performance. The camera men were having a hard time trying to focus on them together and the stage at some parts was being left empty. Next were Steven and Paleki. When Paleki was signing, the camera was focused on Steven, perhaps due to the drama that was going in the house. They gave a mental map shot. After that were Davis and Annett were next where Davis was among the audience, so the camera that was on stage was zoomed in to Davis as he entered the stage then I think that the director gave his word for a different camera to go to the line out as we now saw a different side of the two as they performed.. Leah and Gabiro. Davis and Gaga. Amelina and Rachel performed in that order.

Show on November 1, 2010 at 2030 hours to 2100 hours.
There was a joint faculty session. Helen, the principle was talking to Paleki and a close up shot of her. As she was talking to Gaga, all the audience was seeing was her back (the principles), due to the different cameras in the house. An extreme close up shot of Leah and as she was talks, then another camera was on the principle. This means that the director often gives directives of which camera should be on the line out.

Steven was also talking but the camera was still on Helen, creating the mental shot effect, and then back to Steven using a medium shot. Next was a play session, where the camera seemed was on the other end of the room, I think using a zoom out shot then a zoom in shot back to the contestants. There was clear focus. The show ends with the signature tune. A wide shot of the judges and then the contestants hugging. The setting was in the sitting area.

Show on November 2, 2010 at 2030 hours to 2100 hours.
Signature tune starts off the show. Starts with free time and the students are talking. There is Gaelle with a close up shot, giving the students a piece of her mind, and we see her communicate clearly. Then Amelina talks about Rachel and the camera is focused on her. As Amelina talks about a certain contestant, the camera switches to that person. The contestants then watch their performance with the voice coach Kavutha the main focus is the recorded live show they had on Sunday. The voice coach asks questions and all answer. As Gabiro talks, the camera is on Kavutha. Then there is a shot of the contestants on each side.

Next Paleki and Kavutha talk in private, we see a two-close up shot. There are background noises but we can still hear them talk. There are various angle shots, as keep switching from one side to another then they are zoomed in. There is a scroll bar that talks of meet and greet for the contestants that are on probation. A commercial break the house scene.

After the commercial is a close up shot of R-Kay. There is then a long shot of Aaron Rimbui. This is a session where the contestants choose their song. A three ladies as they laugh: Amelina, Paleki and Annett. A shot of Davis as he sings. When Msechu came on the screen the camera men focused on his t-shirt, which had a Tusker message, don’t drink and drive. Commercial break then there was the slide that shows the contestants as they ask the audiences to vote for them. This shows a split screen where on the left side of the screen is the contestants urging the viewers to vote for them while on the right half, is the contact details.

After the commercial break was the time for phone calls for the housemates from their loved ones. The camera was zoomed as they talked to their loved ones on each contestants so as to show their facial expressions. As Davis completed talking to his mum, he went dancing to the room, this we were shown using a long shot. Next was Leah and when she was talking to her child she was zoomed till one could see her tears. Leah leaves. Next was Paleki. Ends with a signature tune in the background as Paleki ends her conversation with her mum then there is a superimposition of her and the signature tune video.

Show on November 3, 2010 at 2030 hours to 2100 hours.
An establishing shot of Edwin Oroo’s dancing class as the contestants practise. A close up shot of all of them as they practise their steps. We can see the furniture and the dancers. The lighting in the house is better that the lighting in the dome tent, where the live recording is normally done. The choreographers leave and the camera are still in place so we get to a point where we see the stomach of the choreographer. I would not say that it is a medium shot because the object (the choreographers) were moving towards the camera as the camera was still in place, not zooming or focusing.

The next scene was of Gabiro singing the song that he is to perform on Sunday and R-Kay is watching him so that keeps switching. Other students seem like they have sat so far as the camera is focused on R-Kay in that there are students who have sat behind him. As he asks who will sing a particular song, the camera goes round. After Paleki decides she will do the song, she gives a test drive and the camera is focused on her. The reason for that was that there was a mirror that was reflecting the contestants. As Msechu was dancing with Amelina, a long shot of them. Commercial break then after that it was a session of Kavutha and Carol Atemi. Various shots of the contestants as they listen to Carol. Even when a contestant was in the way of the camera, it still was in focus.

Chris Adawars session for the contestants’ personal composition. Gaelle was the first to sing. I have noticed that when a person speaks or a judge speaks about someone or to someone, the camera is focused on that particular person. As Steven sings, the camera is focused on Chris and zoomed so as to see his facial expression. Commercial break where there was the slide that shows the contestants as they ask the audiences to vote for them. After the commercial break was the time for the contestants Karaoke Night. The camera man focused and zoomed in on a Tusker Billboard along Thika Road hence, it was zoomed in then focused to give a clear view.

The destination was Black Diamond in Westlands where the lighting matched first with the location, which was a night club. It was not bright and the cameras had different colour gels to bring out that party-like feeling.. The contestants were happy to have left the house. The camera man zoomed in all the contestants as they gave out their personal views. The contestants looked like they were shouting due to the back ground music but it appeared not to irritate the viewer.. The show ended with the tpf’s signature tune as the contestants dance to Rihanna’s song which was sang by Gaelle.

Show on November 4, 2010 at 2030 hours to 2100 hours.
The tpf’s signature tune starts the show as the scene is in the Tusker House, Atemi’s class session. Steven hands out the lyrics to the other contestants. Steven sings while Atemi gives Msechu and Davis some pointers on the song. Gives the contestants a last word and then leaves.

Next scene was a crane shot of the principle talking to the She also had a Q&A session with the contestants. She then separates the group into two and gives instructions to each group. The line out keeps switching from one group, then to the other.

Commercial break then a session with voice coach. The contestants were warming up with a round song and it sounded lovely. The camera focused on every side. After that session was Annett and Msechu arguing as Rachel watched from a far. She was in a different position. Every human has issues. There was a session on Steven, Amelina and Annett talk. The camera was in a distance. One could also hear at the same time other contestants talk in the background.

Commercial break then there was the slide that shows the contestants as they ask the audiences to vote for them. After the commercial break was the time. The contestants really love their free time. Davis was bonding with Rachel, on their own. The other people who were alone were Steven and Paleki, in a distance then a close up shot of them as they talked. Alex and Steve were the next guests who were giving them their next tasks. They were to shoot something and they were to develop a concept. This would include them suing a camera. They were taking a class that I am taking. Surprise. They left to get the tripod stand as they were left watching P-Units song and then P-unit appears. The contestants get very shocked as they stand to great them. (Long shots). They were given a short lecture of making a music video. The show ends as they perform the song that they composed and then fades under with the signature tune.

Show on November 5, 2010 at 2030 hours to 2100 hours.
This is my best show so far. It starts with the signature tune. It starts with choreography class. As they do different stunts, so the camera captures them while in motion. It was the ladies dancing. The gentle men on the other hand, as the camera infront of them was doing its work, it blocked the ladies.

Next was a guest from Sarakasi who gave them a talk on entrepreneurship. The contestant seemed bored but some were interested and they asked questions. The guest had a full shot. Commercial break. After that was Maranana (one cannot see the name clearly due to the Citizen logo) who took them through an exercise that they really enjoyed. It was team building session.
During the free time, there was Nyama choma where some students were roasting meet while others were singing. They were enjoying every minute, shown by the mood and the sounds. Commercial break then there was the slide that shows the contestants as they ask the audiences to vote for them.

Alaine and STL came to visit the contestants courtesy of Homeboyz. The contestants were thrilled. This was shown by extreme two-shots as Alaine hugged each contestant. They hugged everyone. R-Kay introduced them and then STL started asking the contestant questions. The contestants were more thrilled with Alaine. Before they left, she sang them her latest song. The weekly show ended as Alaine sang her song and fade and under with the signature tune coming up.


Show on November 6, 2010 at 2000 hours to 2100 hours.
There are background noises of the audience in the hall then the signature tune with Sheila’s voice over, going through the prizes still with the signature tune as the background music. The show normally starts with the signature tune of the show then a long shot of the students, one by one.

There is an crane shot of the whole audience. There is a close up shot of the Sheila as she starts the show, medium shot next, together with the contestants that are on probation. Her use of the microphone has improved. The co-host, Mitch is zoomed in from a long shot up to medium shot. He introduces the contestants that were not on probation. The back light and the background light help one to see as the back stage contestants. The fill light also helps to eliminate the shadows..

The scene is switched to Sheila and we are shown as she walks and the camera man zooms in to her. She introduces the faculty. The camera man then switches to Mitch who introduced the judges. The camera keeps going to the crane shot of the audience as they applaud the judges.

The next scene is for the meet and great, a recap scene that happened during the week of the contestants. The first stop is to Hot 96 fm and the camera men try to focus on all of them. They are then driven away in the Hammer and that we can see with the help of the extreme long shot. The next stop is at the Capital Fm studios. The microphones in the studios must be universal microphones because they pick up the sound of al the contestant.

There is a shot of Klub Bettyz signboard. The lighting is bad as we see the contestants shining and can not even see the face. Then a passing shot of the fans shouting and the camera moves/slides form one fan to the next.

The commercial is at 2010 hours of Mr. Price, Tusker Jitolee, Tropical air freshener and the commercial ends at 2012 hours.

The signature tune then the camera slide from the audience to Mitch who has a big screen that kind of confuses the eyes. There is a recap of last week show of the first contestant on probation. The camera then zooms in slowly to Dr. Mitch. A long shot of Paleki and Steve as they start singing. The lights are too bright. A shot of both the contestants and the camera is like on the ground. There is switching of cameras from one side to the other. Camera keeps on switching angles of both the contestants as they sing and as they move on the stage. Their faces are then focused on.

The camera moves form the contestants to Dr. Mitch to the judges. The scenes keep switching from the judges to the contestants then to the faculty and the contestants. I think that is

Next scene is for Sheila, a medium shot. The signature tune then a recap of last week performance of Gaelle. The medium shot of Sheila again then we are taken to medium shots of the two contestants then to a long shot as to show the audiencewhat they were wearing. Then an individual shot of Meschu dancing and a pan round him. The scene changes to Gaelle and a boom shot of the two as they sing. The blue light on top of the stage makes Gaelle when she goes to that direction make her not to be seen well. The camera men then zoomed to the two then extreme close up shots till they finished singing.
Then a round shot of the two by the camera men that are placed next to the stage.

The next scene keeps switching from the judges as they give their verdict and the reaction of Gaelle who is on probation. They focus on the judge then the facial expression of Gaelle.

There is a medium shot of Dr. Mitch with the same background of the blue big screen then commercial break at 2027 hours of Citizen Zawadi, San Valencia, and Dettol to 2028 hours.
The camera man zooms in to Dr. Mitch from the whole scene of the contestant then zooms out to have the scene of Paleki, Dr. Mitch and Paleki. The background is black and the lights livens it. The scene changes to Sheila, a long shot and it’s zoomed in to a medium shot.

A recap of last week Leah’s show then back to Sheila. Medium shots of Gabiro and Leah and a wide shot of the two. We are taken back to the audience then the two contestants are zoomed in. the camera man on the front zooms (dolly/movable stand) in to them and then medium shot of the two. A long shot of Leah, who is probation and then a boom shot as they walk hand in hand across the stage. The blue light keeps interfering with the faces of the people.

Back to the judges as they finish singing. A shot of each judge and the facial expression of the contestants as they are told of each opinion. A long shot of the two as they exit the stage.

The microphone is well used by the contestant. As for Dr.Mitch, he is still in the same position.

Signature tune then a recap of last week’s performance. An individual shot of Leah as she enters the stage. The light is again bright. Gaga’s face is shining. We can see a short shot of Davis as he enters the stage. Medium shots of the two as they sing together. The light on these two is very bright and the microphone suits their voices and the use. A boom shot of Gaga as she sings. Then the camera/scene changes.

Dr. Mitch is still on the same position. A medium shot of the two contestants then back to judges then contestants as they are told the verdict. A long shot of the two as they leave the stage.

Sheila in the same position and then a commercial break at 2042 hours for Tusker, Citizen news highlight, Safaricom, Tusker again and commercials end at 2045 hours.

Sheila has changed a position and she is zoomed in and the camera man slides the camera to the ladies but then a switch to the camera in front. Dr. Mitch has also changed and it is a long shot.

As Dennis comes in, he is told to show that the envelope has not been tampered with, a zoomed in shot. Paleki is zoomed in as she is saved. Back to Dr. Mitch then to the contestants then to the faculty –Helen in particular. Camera is from faculty to the contestants, hence the producer directs the monitor view and the line out. A boom shot as Gaelle walks toward Sheila as it slowly tilts sown.

Back to Dr. Mitch then a commercial at 2048 hours of Citizen Zawadi and program line up, Techno mobile up to 2050 hours.

There is an error of the microphone moving fast from the contestants to the presenters. A wide shot of the contestants writing who they want to save then back to the contestants. A vote is shown by the contestants then the reaction of the contestants’ medium shots. A boom shot of the two as they announce the winner.

A recap of Leah while she was in the house as she is the one voted out. A signature tune then the show ends as the presenters urge the audience to continue watching the show and voting for their favourite contestant. The cameras keep switching form Sheila to Dr. Mitch. They also recognize the sponsors. The show comes to an end contestants come to tell their contestants goodbye and Leah ends by singing the song she was to sing tomorrow. A long shot then she is zoomed in.

The show ends with Leah breaking down on stage as she sings her last song then the signature tune.

Monday show November 8, 2010
Starts at 2030 hours. Signature tune of tpf. Watching was difficult as it was raining so the signals were being cut off. They are on EABL factory tour. There are several stages where there were different shots. Foe example, when they were leaving the stage where beer is fermented, they were on a top floor. As they went down the stairs, the camera was up so we could see them, thus a canted shot.

Recap of Saturday’s show where they showed the contestants that were on probation. I think that the Citizen TV crew put up the wrong show today as the elimination show was on Saturday and they normally do a recap on Sunday.

Commercial break was at 2041 hours, and it was a Citizen TV advert, followed by the Tusker advert. The commercials ended at 2043. A recap of Sunday’s live show was done. As Amelina was singing, there were several angles that were used. Her white pants were conflicting with the lighting that was on stage. As Gabiro was signing, he kept moving around, on the stage hence, I think that the producer had to think fast in selecting which camera had to go on air.

Sheila’s position changed where the background was the audience. The audience seemed to be far from Sheila. Msechu, as he finished singing when judge Juliana was giving her verdict, the angle that was used was different where the camera is normally in front, but this time, it was on the side. Gaga was shown using a full shot. Gaelle started her performance from the side where the contestants normally sit, hence they were also considered so that was a long shot. Steven while singing, his background vocalists were dancing so it reached a point that the camera men had to show us Steven and the background vocalists as they sang. Rachel impressed the crowd. Aneth is one contestant who likes dancing a lot. Paleki did a slow song and she rarely moved from her position but the camera shots kept changing so the viewers did not get bored as the scenes kept changing. Davis was the last to perform.

Commercial break at 2053- 2055 hours of Tusker Malt then the Commercial break where there was the slide that shows the contestants as they ask the audiences to vote for them. It was then a faculty session after the performances where they speak their thoughts out of how they have just performed. This happens immediately they get back to the academy. I have noticed that during this time, the camera men focus on those who are on probation and they are zoomed in then zoomed out then the camera switches to the principle Helen as she uplifts the students’ morale.

The show ended at 2059 hours as the students sing then in the background is the signature tune of tpf.

Conclusion
Having attended a live show of tpf and watching it on the television gives one various views and things to think about. Whichever way one watches the show, there are various things that one learns. During a live show, you do not get to experience the various angles that the program is formatted to, the lighting, the camera movement . However, you get to experience the camera men and number of cameras, the floor director and the program controller who are placed strategically so as the audience can get the instructions and the lighting manager Also, you experience the tension and the noises that are in the dome tent in EABL’s headquarter, Ruaraka.

When watching it from the television, what we watch is the final output after the producer decides what we, the audience, will watch. I mean, he tells which camera is going to be in the line out, which is fed live to the audience watching it from home. We see the final edited piece. We do not hear the sounds that are normally made by the audience expect when they applauded. This means then that the microphones they use are specifically used to pick up what is necessary.

In my opinion, I think that it is difficult to produce a live show and not have any errors but that can be covered easily. However, having gone through broadcast classes, one can recognize these errors. Example, at times, the stage was left vacant for a long while, the microphones that the presenters and the judges used were not suitable as they picked up everything. I think that the presenters should have been given the lapels microphones.

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