Geelong stars pull back curtain on reality TV
Reality TV has provided Geelong some much needed escapism throughout the coronavirus. Now, some of the region’s stars from Australia’s much loved shows – ranging from dating to adventure – have shared what goes on behind the scenes.
Geelong
Don't miss out on the headlines from Geelong. Followed categories will be added to My News.
REALTY TV has been offering Geelong some much needed escapism throughout the coronavirus. Some of the region’s stars from much loved shows – ranging from dating to adventure – have shared what goes on behind the scenes.
HAVING competed at five Winter Olympics, Lydia Lassila understands physical hardship.
The Lorne resident, a gold medallist in freestyle skiing, says the challenges on Survivor are even more gruelling than people would expect.
“I was really looking forward to the challenges but when I actually got there, how they build them just blew me away, how dangerous they are, that was really surprising,” she said.
“That’s another thing you don’t see, everyone is cut up and bruised.”
Lassila competed on Australian Survivor: Champions vs. Contenders in 2018, and returned for Australian Survivor: All Stars, which airedthis year.
Her enjoyment of her first season inspired her return.
“Everyone loves the experience, everyone is going to be deceived or lied to but what everyone has in common is you love the experience,” she said.
“Not for the TV side of things but the experience, that’s what I loved about it.
“I have to laugh, I’ve been in five Winter Olympics and then you go on a reality show for a month and people finally see you, they see a different side of you.
“As an athlete you’re used to doing so much without anyone watching, but reality TV … you become a face people can recognise.”
“I didn’t want to go on a reality show to be famous, I want to be well known for my sporting endeavours.”
Lassila said being on the show was both “the best and the hardest thing”.
“I don’t particularly like watching myself on TV, it’s quite a stressful thing to sit through it,” she said.
“You do cop it … people get trolled,” she said.
Potential contestants needed to weigh up whether they were willing to open themselves up to that, she said.
“The experience exceeds silly people who have nothing better to do with themselves,” she said.
Lassila said three days of constant filming across two tribes would be squeezed into just one episode.
“You don’t have any control on how the story will be edited, or what character you’ll be painted as,” she said.
“The first time I was frustrated because I was (portrayed as) this person that never laughed or joked … which is the complete opposite to who I am.”
“That’s something you can’t control and that’s something you need to be ready for.
“Production will paint the story to fit the dialogue.
“Viewers need to take that into account.”
TIM McCallum was drawn to The Voice as he knew the judges would assess him purely on his vocals.
McCallum, 40, said he had auditioned for the first season of Australian Idol in the 2000s.
“Me and my family stood out in the cold in a line,” he recalled.
“I got in the door and enrolled and sang about four bars and they said ‘thanks very much, you’re not what we’re looking for.’
“For me stung a little bit.”
McCallum was told he might never sing again after a diving accident at the beach left him a quadriplegic in 1999.
He found fame on The Voice in 2015, appearing in three episodes before being knocked out in the Superbattles.
“On The Voice for me, where they don’t have any preconceived ideas about what I should look like, I could wheel out knowing there was no judgment,” he said.
“It’s the perfect platform for someone like myself.
“I think it was a great opportunity to showcase to everyone that at the end of the day we’re all there to be heard.”
He did not want his background being used as a sob story.
“I wasn’t naive to thinking they could use my story to promote the show – I was very open and honest and said while my disability is something different, it’s not a gimmick, I needed to back it up with a good voice,” he said.
“I was very honest with the producers, and said in no way was my disability to be portrayed as a sob story or in a negative way.
“They weren’t going to get the violins thing from me, but what they were going to get was enthusiasm and positive feelings about ability more than anything, and they embraced it, I thought they portrayed it really well.”
McCallum, who was born and raised in Geelong and now lives in Queensland, said the impact on his life from his time on The Voice had been “huge”.
This week, it was revealed the classically trained tenor will perform the national anthem at the AFL Grand Final in Queensland.
“I still get stopped in the street which is very humbling, it’s a bit weird,” he said.
“I call myself the G grade celebrity.
“For me I'm still riding the wave from the show … it’s not like that for everyone.
“I have some friends who have been on that show and other shows and sometimes their lives just go back to normal.
“For me I’ve made the most out of it.”
JESS Wolfe is one of the most recent Geelong residents to have graced the nation’s TV screens.
The South Geelong 25-year-old ‘won’ the heart of a country bloke on this year’s season of Farmer Wants a Wife.
But Jess’s love interest broke it off while the two were on holidays.
At the reunion episode, which aired in late August, it was revealed to viewers he had rekindled romance with the runner-up.
And while Ms Wolfe may have not found lasting love, she says her experience did help her realise what she wants in life.
“It did show me I want a block of land for myself, maybe just not with that guy,” Ms Wolfe said.
“The lifestyle is what I’m looking for.”
Filming in Cunnamulla in southwest Queensland helped her gauge how difficult life in remote Australia could be.
“It shows you what life could be like, it’s not easy being in the middle of nowhere,” she said.
“Seeing how far he was, if something goes wrong, you need to be on the ball.
“I think I'd feel safer being a bit closer (to a city).”
The experience has changed the way she views reality TV.
“Every time I watch TV now I feel sorry for the contestants,” Ms Wolfe, who won over fans with her sense of humour and down to earth attitude, said.
She described long hours – sometimes from 9am to 2am filming – and said the experience was exhausting.
“You’re doing all these hours of filming … and they only show two seconds,” she said.
“I think producers choose people for a storyline, everyone gets a storyline.”
However, she said she respected producers who “bust their butts” working.
While Ms Wolfe’s time on reality TV did not have a fairytale ending, she says she was blessed to meet “amazing people” on the show and had walked away with lifelong friends.
She urged people considering applying to carefully consider the choice.
“I think you need to be wary if you apply for a show, just stay yourself,” she said.
“I never went on the show for fame and I think that’s why everyone saw who I was.
“Stay yourself and you’ll go a long way.”
MORE NEWS:
OTHER JOBS UNDER THREAT IF OIL REFINERY SHUTS
BURNING PILES OF RUBBISH SPARKS HOUSE FIRE
NORLANE BONE DISCOVERY REMAINS A MYSTERY
Originally published as Geelong stars pull back curtain on reality TV