House Hunte rs
- REAL ESTATE AGENTS - FAQs
Pie Town Productions and Home and Garden
Television are pleased to announce that House Hunters,
a reality-style television series
highlighting the emotional experience of finding and purchasing
a new home, is coming to your city! Are you a real estate agent
currently working with a homebuyer? Perhaps you can share your
story with us on national television.
The following are answers to frequently asked questions about
House Hunters:
Q. HOW DO I APPLY TO BE ON HOUSE HUNTERS?
A. Contact your current clients to see if
any of them are interested in being
featured on the show with you. Once
your clients agree to apply, have
them fill out an application and
make a home video pre-interview
and send it to us by mail/Fed Ex or uploading to our website (more
info on this is listed at the end). We will notify you if your application
is up for consideration.
Q. WHAT WILL THE CREW
WANT TO SHOOT?
A. Every
episode of House Hunters consists
of interviews with
you and your clients, tours
of homes that
your clients are looking at and
finally, your clients all settled
into their new home. Each
episode strives to feature the
unique challenges that arise
when buying a home, as well as
the excitement and satisfaction.
Q. WHAT DO I NEED
TO DO?
A. Once
you and your clients finish the
application process and are approved,
the only other requirement is
that you help
us secure two houses to tour. We will need a signed
location release for every house
we tour at least 2 weeks before
the shoot.
Q. HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE TO SHOOT AN
EPISODE?
A. We
will need you on 2 of the 5 days
that we shoot the episode. Your
clients are needed for 4 or 5
days. The shoot days typically
breakdown like this (bolded
days are the days you are needed):
Day 1: a day at your client’s house getting their backstory
Day 2: you and your clients
will tour the first of 3 houses
for one half of the day and the
2nd half of the day is an interview & b
roll with you at your office
Day 3: you and your clients
will tour the other two houses
Day 4: a follow-up interview
with your clients once they’ve moved in
Day 5: a day of “scenics” (this may or may
not include the clients)
These days may be consecutive or they may be shot a few weeks or
months apart depending on everyone’s availability.
Q. WILL I BE PAID FOR MY PARTICIPATION OR
DO I PAY?
A. We
do not provide monetary compensation
for real estate agents. We
will however, give your clients
a $500 honorarium once all the
days are taped.*
*Please note that even if you are cast in an episode, Pie Town
Productions and their affiliates and assigns, HGTV and Scripps Networks
reserves the right to cancel that episode at any time and for any
reason.
Q. DO I NEED TO SIGN ANY PAPERWORK?
A. Everyone
who appears on camera must sign
an “Appearance Release”.
We will need a “Location
Release” for every home
that is toured. If one of the
tours includes a condominium,
townhouse or co-op with an HOA,
a “Location Release” must
be signed by the HOA. We also
need a “Location Release” from
the owner/manager of your office.
If you foresee a problem, please
alert us ahead of time so we
can work out the details.
Q. HOW MANY PEOPLE WILL THE CAMERA CREW
CONSIST OF AND HOW MUCH EQUIPMENT
WILL THEY HAVE?
A. This is a reality-style
shoot so we travel light. The crew will consist of about
three people, including a cameraperson,
an audio engineer, and a director. Most shoots
will be done with a single professional
video camera and with a minimum
of lights and equipment. For interview set-ups, the crew may need
to move your furniture in order to get optimum light or the nicest
backdrop. We will make the
best effort to return everything
to its place when the shoot is
complete.
Q. WHAT
ELSE WILL THE CREW NEED?
A. Please
be aware that we will need to use
your electricity to power our lights.
Sometimes circuits become overloaded
and fuses may blow. In that case
we will make best efforts to reset
them. If you know of existing electrical
problems, you must notify us immediately.
We are not responsible for fixing
existing problems.
Q. DO I NEED TO
PREPARE THE TOUR HOMES IN ANY
WAY?
A. Please do everything
you can to make sure that the houses
we tour are clean and not cluttered
or dirty. Although it has never
been a problem, we always recommend
that you store your valuables in
a safe place for the day of shooting
to avoid damage or loss (just as
if it were an open house). We are
not and cannot be responsible for
missing or stolen items in your
home.
Q. WHAT INFORMATION WILL
BE FEATURED IN THE SHOW?
A. All
aspects of your clients’ home
search will be discussed in the
show such as: reasons for moving,
desired neighborhoods, home sizes,
prices, general locations (no
specific addresses). We’ll
also have the house hunters discuss
what they like and dislike about
each house.
Q. IS BEING
IN FRONT OF A CAMERA DIFFICULT?
A. Have you
ever heard the expression “Hurry
up and wait?” It’s
a little like that but we make
every effort to schedule your time
efficiently. It’s still
going to take some patience from
you and your clients. Being
in front of a camera and part of
a television program is hard work! It
can also be a lot of fun as long
as you have a great attitude and
are flexible. However, this is
an experience like no other and
we are sure that you will find
being part of this show to be a
happy story you tell for years
to come! But if you are not
up for it, just please let us know
ahead of time!
Q. WHAT
SHOULD I WEAR?
A. You
may wear whatever you feel comfortable
in, but please avoid wearing
intense solid colors, including
fire engine red, lemon yellow,
lime green, bright turquoise
blue, intense orange, hot pink,
and bright white. (Muted solids
are best.) Cameras have a difficult
time interpreting high saturations
of solid fields of color. In
addition finely checked or striped
patterns are also difficult for
the camera to interpret. Do not
wear clothing with logos, slogans,
or advertisements on them. Do
not wear clothing that is too
revealing. Please bring extra
options on shoot days. If you
are unsure about your wardrobe
please contact us.
We will not provide you a hair
or make-up person on shoot days.
You will need to prepare yourself
for camera. Nothing special is
required other than appearing neat.
Our Field Producer may have a simple
powder on hand as sometimes the
lights will cause a shine.
Q. ISN’T
THE CAMERA JUST GOING TO FOLLOW
US AROUND?
A. Many
of the activities we videotape
will take more time to complete
than if you did them on your
own. (Ex., you might be
able to tour a house in 15 minutes,
but it will take us several hours
to videotape you because we have
to light and set up our camera.)
This is “reality-style” television,
which means that although we
aim to remain true to events
as they happen, there are times
we may need to direct the action. For
instance, we may ask you to re-do
some things, so that we get a
better shot or a different camera
angle, or ask you to repeat certain
answers in order to tell your
story in a succinct way.
PLEASE ONLY AGREE TO PARTICIPATE
IN THIS SHOW IF YOU HAVE THE PATIENCE
AND THE FLEXIBILITY TO ACCOMMODATE
THE NEEDS OF OUR PRODUCTION.
IN CONCLUSION...
We have tried to anticipate all
of the questions we think you might
ask, but if you would like more
information, please don’t
hesitate to phone, fax or e-mail
us at our production office. We
hope we’ll be working with
you and that it will be an exciting
and rewarding experience!
When you have made the decision to
apply, please contact us through
the application and home video pre-interview
process. Once your clients have finished
their home video pre-interview and
application, please mail it to us
at:
House
Hunters
Pie Town Productions
5433 Laurel Canyon Blvd.
North Hollywood, CA 91607
Phone: 818-255-9300
Toll Free: 1-877-PIE-TOWN
Fax: 818-255-9333
Email: househunter@pietown.tv
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