House Hunte rs
- BUYERS - 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!
We are currently looking for homebuyers who want to be featured
on the show. Perhaps you can share your story with us on national
television.
The following are answers to frequently asked questions about
House Hunters:
Q. HOW LONG
WILL IT TAKE TO SHOOT AN EPISODE?
A. We
will need four to five days of
your time. The shoot days
typically breakdown like this:
Day
1: an interview at your current
residence along with b roll of
you doing activities around the
house showing how important it
is to find another home
Day 2: you and your agent will
tour the first of 3 houses (takes
about half a day)
Day 3: you and your agent will
tour the other two houses
(In each tour, you’ll be discussing the pros and cons of each
house)
Day 4: a follow-up interview done
soon after you’ve moved into your home
Day 5: a “scenics” day where we may (or may not, depending
on your story) have you in various
locations around town doing usual
activities
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?
A. You
will receive a $500 honorarium
once all the days are taped.
But there is no monetary compensation
for your real estate agent.*
*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 also need a signed “Location Release” for your
current home as well as your new
home. If you currently rent
we will need a release signed by
both you AND your landlord. If
you live in a condominium or co-op,
you and the HOA must sign the location release. 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 your house is at its
very best and not cluttered or messy. 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 ABOUT ME WILL BE IN THE SHOW?
A. The episode will include
your house hunting story along
with all the important details
like your name(s), general neighborhood
location, home prices, sizes, in depth descriptions, likes and dislikes
of each home and information about your realtor.
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. 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 you
finish your home video pre-interview
and application, you can get this
info to us in a variety of ways:
• email or fax the application
• upload the video to our website (we can provide instructions for this)
• send everything through the postal service
• send everything through Fed Ex (we can provide you with an account number)
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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