Wed, 05/11/2011

Mark Burnett Has Spoken!

The creator/producer of Survivor, The Apprentice, The Voice and many other hit series was recently interviewed for the Archive of American Television. In his newly released interview, he discusses the production of the competition-based reality series he's best-known for, and the "reality tv" genre in general. Watch Mark Burnett's full interview here.

In this video clip, he discusses his philosophy behind Survivor and the tribal council:

About the Interview:
In his Archive interview, Mark Burnett details his upbringing in England and his time in the British Army before discussing his move to Los Angeles, CA. He describes several of the jobs he held before venturing into television production and recounts his love of the outdoors and adventure sports -- passions that led to his involvement with the physically demanding Eco-Challenge race and its corresponding television show. Such experience proved invaluable for his next hit competition-based reality series -- and perhaps the show most closely identified with him -- Survivor.Burnett goes on to discuss the production of Survivor, as well as that of several of his other successes, including The Apprenticeand Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader?He also touches on a few of his more short-lived series, like The Contenderand The Restaurant, and comments on what the term "reality television" means to him. Mark Burnett was interviewed in two parts: in Santa Monica, CA on September 1, 2010 and in Malibu, CA on September 29, 2010. Stephen J. Abramson conducted the combined two-and-a-half hour interview.