Life After Reality: A conversation with Eva Avila

Much like regular television programs, Reality TV finds its roots firmly planted in Radio thanks to shows like 1947′s Candid Microphone which was the precedent to Allen Funt’s Candid Camera and 1954′s Nightwatch, a show that recorded the daily activities of Culver City, California police officers.

Unscripted television got its big break in the 1950′s with a series of game shows and the first broadcast of the Miss America pageant in 1954 with propelled winner Lee Meriwther – later best known for her role opposite Buddy Epsen in the 1973 television series Barnaby Jones – into national stardom.

Almost 20 years later, the first reality show in the modern sense aired in 1973 on PBS and was a series called An American Family which dealt with a nuclear family going through a divorce.

Just as is the case in the current world of music where a few broad classes such as pop, rock and alternative spurred an onslaught of sub-genres like indie-pop, screamo and post-melodic-hardcore, the universe of reality television also breaks itself down into a variety of sub-categories.  There is the ‘Documentary Style’ with shows like MTV’s Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County and the very popular Survivor; ‘Special Living Environment’ with shows like The Real World and Temptation Island; and ‘Dating Based Reality” with shows like Roam Raiders and The Bachelor just to name a few.  The sub-category of ‘Elimination Shows’ seems to be the one spawning the most series of late however, including such hits as So You Think You Can Dance, Dancing with the Stars, Skating with Celebrities, Celebrity Duets and the every popular Idols series.

These competition based programs have attracted millions of viewers on a weekly basis and none more so than the Idol shows.  Even here in Canada, most of the nation tunes in to see the live performances and millions vote each week.  In an effort to understand the effect these this type of sudden propulsion in the public eye had on contestants, we contacted Canadian Idol contestant, Eva Avila.  20 year old Avila, originally from the region of Gatineau in Quebec, is the winner of the most recent season of the popular competition.

Despite the huge ratings Canadian Idol garners every season, there always seems to be a certain percentage of the population that regards these competitions with scepticism.

“I was one of those people who were really uncertain about those kinds of shows and I was wondering if it was the right way to go or the right way for me or the right path.” Says Avila of her initial thoughts on entering the competition.

“I was afraid of the whole instant fame and then just vanishing; which is always the biggest fear for an artist, right?  So I was a little sceptical about going to audition; and my friends and my family kind of pushed me to it and they said ‘you have nothing to lose.’  I kind of decided at the very last minute to go,” she added, proving that this indecision and this doubt not only affected the viewers but the potential contestants as well.

Much of these viewers’ wariness seems derived from the lack of information that is circulated regarding the processes and the backstage happenings of these contests.  Often times a lack of information is viewed as a deliberate attempt at hiding something; a lack of professionalism or an over-processing of the product.

There are also those who out of concern or sheer misunderstanding, assume that the contestants are treated poorly and with little regard to their quick development into reality stars.

“As I was getting through in the competition and got through every round and in the whole process, I found out how professional it was… you know it’s a lot of hard work. And they really prep us for it and they give us coaching.  I can safely say that this is the best thing that ever happened to me. And my opinion of these kinds of shows has totally changed.”  Avila claims in response to these opinions.