MCTV building on strengths of viewer favorites

Marist College Television is stepping up its programming this year, bringing back favorite shows as well as revamping them. MCTV entertainment director Steve Krill talked about the most anticipated programs that the station has to offer this semester.

"Our two biggest shows would be 'Marist Cribs' and 'That's A Shame,'" Krill said. "Marist Cribs has been a student favorite for years is in its third season." "That's A Shame" premiered at 10:00 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 21, and will continue to air at 10 on Wednesdays, followed by "Cribs" at 10:30. Assistant entertainment director and producer of "That's A Shame" Ryan Cowdrey talked about the work that went into bringing the show to the air.

"John Larocchia teamed up with me to make his dream come to life," Cowdrey said. "The show is a combination of wit and silliness, and always keeps the audience laughing."

Cowdrey explained that the premise of the show is its "talk/variety" format "in which the host, Larocchia, and his small cast create havoc on the Marist College campus."

The show was "conceived by John Larocchia about two years ago, and underwent intense planning and pre-production before premiering in the spring of last year," Krill said. "It was definitely an instant success."

Krill said that the show is building on its first season.

"This year the cast has increased in size," he said, "and some new segments will debut in the first episode of the new season."

Cowdrey discussed the philosophy of the show.

"What we really are trying to do is pay attention to what makes people laugh and what doesn't," he said. He also mentioned that observing how viewers react is helpful in seeing what the target audience enjoys.

Sophomore Erica Pryor talked about her experience of being caught on tape by "That's a Shame.

"It was pretty embarrassing when I realized I would be on TV in my pajamas and a ski cap," she said, "and when the show finally aired, I was terrified, but after 10 minutes of my roommates laughing at me, I ended up realizing it was pretty funny too."

MCTV's "Cribs" follows the same format as its inspiration, and like MTV's version, Marist's enjoys a healthy following, Krill said.

"'Marist Cribs' has been a student favorite," he said. The show is in its third season.

Krill also said that this season, the producers of the show are "looking to balance the season with both on and off campus houses" to offer viewers "a unique look at how Marist students live." Junior Scott Toohill, whose off-campus house will appear in the season premiere, said he remembered seeing the show for the first time.

"I thought it was cool to see what an off-campus apartment, other than a frat house, really looked like," he said. "I just didn't ever expect it would be me showing my place off."

Krill also talked about the other shows that can be seen on MCTV, such as "The Showcase," which involves taping campus events and airing them.

"In the past we've taped shows like The Humarists' Big Show, the Dance Club Show, the SGA Talent Show, and other campus events."

Senior Cyndi Pierre noted what she called a vast improvement in MCTV during her time at Marist.

"It's impossible to ignore the growth MCTV has gone through over my past four years here," she said. "The news has gotten better each year, and all of the new shows are awesome."

Krill discussed MCTV's goals for the future.

"We're really trying to bump up the quality of our shows and make them more detail-oriented," he said.