Support our non-partisan non-profit newsroom 💜 Donate now

Getting ‘UnReal’ with reality television

Adriene Hill Jul 13, 2015
HTML EMBED:
COPY

Getting ‘UnReal’ with reality television

Adriene Hill Jul 13, 2015
HTML EMBED:
COPY

“UnReal” may be a scripted drama, but the world it spoofs wants to pretend it’s anything but. The show is a (sometimes) scathing look behind the world of reality television.

Co-creator Sarah Gertrude Shapiro says she drew on her own experience working in the genre as the seed of the idea — she previously worked as a field producer for “The Bachelor,” after all.

“UnReal” has also found an unlikely partner in crime: Lifetime. While a drama about how producers manipulate television might seem like an odd match for the network, Shapiro says it actually makes a lot of sense.

“What’s kind of amazing about it is there are some things that really line up well,” she says. “The fact that I was able to have two female leads without even having to have a conversation about it was part of being at Lifetime.” 

Click the media player above to hear Marketplace’s Adriene Hill in conversation with Sarah Shapiro. 

There’s a lot happening in the world.  Through it all, Marketplace is here for you. 

You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible. 

Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.