My Life at Work

Another eviction over and another life destroyed. It's an emotional game, this reality show. As an observer, I find it extremely difficult not to become entangled in these people's lives; in their fears and hopes and in this case, bitter disappointment.

Who was evicted? The Housemate in question is the South African girl, Nkuli. Her face a picture of utter shock as she realised her fate in front of millions of people. Nowhere to hide. This is why we watch. These moments of human nature, exposed in the naked truth, provide us with fascinating entertainment.

We shriek in anticipation and horror as we witness the reactions from the Housemates. We find ourselves identifying with their character flaws and judging them in retaliation of the voice inside us that shares their shame. We feel relieved that other people are getting the flack for choices we all make every day and laugh at them to cover our own humiliation.

As a person who is constantly trying to find peace through truth, watching the show induces in me an ongoing internal battle between right and wrong, good and bad. The eternal feud of humankind. Every time I 'whoop' with delight as one of the Housemates is berated, I am filled immediately with a sense of shame. Shame in myself for enjoying someone else's misery. As much as I feel the satisfaction of witnessing someone else's retribution on another, my heart knows that it is all an illusion. This game of life has many faces. Each individual is propelled along their own path of choices and consequences that fit perfectly into their Big Plan so for me to judge them or to feel satisfied with the events that unfold around them is to hide behind those issues that I myself, plan ton deal with.

This is one of the reasons why I love working on a production like this. I am constantly engaged in self-realisation and reflection as I love, hate and grow with these people on the screen. And I get to make the pictures look pretty...and it's all LIVE!

Lucky me!

Snow in Jozi!

My head is filled with the thrill of snow! A cultivated world of mirrors and deception where anything is possible. This is the land from which I return to reality and as I sit here settling into my familiar skin, I struggle to pacify my excitement as I reflect on the surreal events of the evening.

Channel O, house music and foam. What a combination! Take it one step further and add passion and the beautiful vision of my camera operators and you have a melting pot of exquisite creativity! That was how my evening rolled tonight! I LOVE MY JOB!

I was fortunate enough to be the Director on shift in the Big Brother House this evening for the live Channel O party. With bated breath and quickening pulse, the house doors opened onto a garden filled with snow, creating a winter wonderland. The Housemates were provided with Christmas costumes to coincide with the theme and the sight of gorgeous guys and girls in sexy elfin threads set the tone for the party!

No matter how much you prepare for the unfolding events on this show, you can never predict how it's going to go so when the housemates poured out into the garden and saw a landscape of foam that looked like snow, their screams and excitement tingled my senses! And so the party began!

The air was alive and on fire, pulsating to the sounds of the beats; hips gyrating and bodies dripping from the sea of foam. And all the while, the team of camera operators, directors, shaders and sound working in sync to create a montage of beautiful images.

As the music faded and the dj left, I was on a high. What an amazing experience. As I was driving home, alone in my car with my thoughts lulling me back to self, I realised what a privilege it is to be able to create a constant flow of beautiful images as a means of telling a story. A story that evolves and diversifies with every, single moment. And I get to capture every moment that I sit behind that desk. What a job! Wow, do I love it!

Tomorrow I get to do it all over again! Til then...