Spring Break
The Real World 21 Casting
Issue date: 2/21/08
This Saturday, MTV is having an open casting call for the upcoming Real World season. The News-Letter had the chance to get the inside scoop on crew selection from the casting director himself, Damon Furberg.
News-Letter: What do you look for in a Real World cast member?
Damon Furberg: In a general sense, we always look for charismatic people with interesting life stories and big personalities.
N-L: Do you specifically choose people with contrasting personalities? Ideologies?
DF: To an extent, yes. We try to put seven people in the house who are very different from one another. The ideal cast has a diversity of races, religions, politics, socioeconomic backgrounds, personality types and regional origins.
However, we don't have a laundry list of "types" of people we're looking for and we don't cast someone specifically because we think they're going to have a particular conflict with someone else on the cast. Frankly, we couldn't do that if we wanted to - these are real human beings, and how they will react to one another is a totally unknown quantity. It's one of things that makes the show exciting to work on- after all these years it's still basically just a big, crazy social experiment.
N-L: How has casting changed since the show's inception?
DF: It's gotten more difficult! After 20 seasons, it's tough to find new types of people with stories that haven't yet been told on the show. The biggest change I notice is that applicants in general have become more image-conscious and media savvy. It can be a real challenge to find people who are willing to be totally honest and genuine in front of the camera.
N-L: Do you think the show is still as relevant and cutting edge as it was in 1992?
DF: Real World essentially invented the reality television genre, and that's a tough act to follow. Despite the fact that the show has changed very little in concept since its inception, The Real World remains relevant because each new cast brings with it all of the issues 18-24 year olds are currently dealing with.
N-L: How can someone increase their chances of being chosen for The Real World?
DF: Just be yourself, cliche as that might sound. There's no "formula" for getting cast, contrary to what people may think.
N-L: How does being from a "brainy" school like Hopkins affect someone's chances of being selected?
DF: We always love to see smart people apply for the show, so as far as we're concerned, being from a brainy school is a bonus.
News-Letter: What do you look for in a Real World cast member?
Damon Furberg: In a general sense, we always look for charismatic people with interesting life stories and big personalities.
N-L: Do you specifically choose people with contrasting personalities? Ideologies?
DF: To an extent, yes. We try to put seven people in the house who are very different from one another. The ideal cast has a diversity of races, religions, politics, socioeconomic backgrounds, personality types and regional origins.
However, we don't have a laundry list of "types" of people we're looking for and we don't cast someone specifically because we think they're going to have a particular conflict with someone else on the cast. Frankly, we couldn't do that if we wanted to - these are real human beings, and how they will react to one another is a totally unknown quantity. It's one of things that makes the show exciting to work on- after all these years it's still basically just a big, crazy social experiment.
N-L: How has casting changed since the show's inception?
DF: It's gotten more difficult! After 20 seasons, it's tough to find new types of people with stories that haven't yet been told on the show. The biggest change I notice is that applicants in general have become more image-conscious and media savvy. It can be a real challenge to find people who are willing to be totally honest and genuine in front of the camera.
N-L: Do you think the show is still as relevant and cutting edge as it was in 1992?
DF: Real World essentially invented the reality television genre, and that's a tough act to follow. Despite the fact that the show has changed very little in concept since its inception, The Real World remains relevant because each new cast brings with it all of the issues 18-24 year olds are currently dealing with.
N-L: How can someone increase their chances of being chosen for The Real World?
DF: Just be yourself, cliche as that might sound. There's no "formula" for getting cast, contrary to what people may think.
N-L: How does being from a "brainy" school like Hopkins affect someone's chances of being selected?
DF: We always love to see smart people apply for the show, so as far as we're concerned, being from a brainy school is a bonus.
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