Jungle Run Analysis
When it came to researching shows for our pitch, (Jungle Run, 1999) was one of the shows that we looked at and took inspiration from. (Jungle Run, 1999) was a children’s game show set in a jungle and was broadcast on CITV between the years 1999-2006 (IMDB, 2022). The aim of the game was to complete a series of challenges, collecting monkeys that gave the contestants additional time for the final challenge. (Jungle Run, 1999) is considered as a game show rather than a quiz show due to the challenges within the show being “more physical” (Brown and Duthie, 2016). This holds relevancy with our pitched idea as our show is intended to be a game show with physical challenges throughout. Through studying the structure of Jungle Run, I have been able to gain a greater understanding of what a game show entails, which will be useful in informing the amount of challenges the contestants face, the dynamics between the talent, the use of a timer, and the use of world building within our concept.
Fig. 1 Jungle Run Poster (1999)
When watching the title sequence and introduction for the show, I took notice of the fact that they establish the location, the contestants, and the purpose of the game show.
Lindley (2003) argues that “a game is a goal-directed and competitive activity within a framework of agreed rules”, (Jungle Run, 1999) is a prime example of this. Within the introduction, the audience are informed that the programme is a game show as the presenter states that there is a directed goal, “mission is to find your way to the temple of the Jungle King.. to retrieve his precious collection of sacred idols” (Jungle Run, 1999), and that the contestants are competing against the clock. When creating the concept for our show, this helped us to try and ensure that there was a direct goal that the contestants were trying to achieve. We decided upon the goal being the contestants wanting to escape from Planet Bundahs and make their way to their home planet. Through having an end goal, it gives the show a sense of purpose, drives the audience, and takes the audience along on a journey alongside the contestants (Glazier, 2022).
Throughout the show there is a sense of jeopardy in terms of the contestants being trapped within the Temple of the Jungle King if they do not get out of the Temple before the time runs out. To aid this sense of jeopardy, a timer is displayed throughout the challenges and the host regularly reminds the contestants of the amount of time they have remaining. By having the host do this, it helps build the tension and increase the sense of jeopardy the contestants are in (Brown and Duthie, 2016). Through using a timer within the challenges in the idea for our show, it will hopefully build a sense of tension and jeopardy amongst both the audience and the contestants. Additionally, it should help to maintain the audience’s attention, keeping them engaged throughout the programme.
The main goal of Jungle Run was to collect as many of the Jungle King’s statues and escape from the Jungle King’s Temple within the allotted time. The other challenges prior to the Jungle King’s Temple allowed for the contestants to gain more time within the temple through collecting as many monkey statues as possible. The host reminding the contestants that their time is slipping during each task has been done successfully within (Jungle Run, 1999). The host helps to build tension and helps the audience at home to root for the contestants (Brown and Duthie, 2016), which the host in (Jungle Run, 1999) does successfully. Whilst watching (Jungle Run, 1999) myself, I was on the edge of my seat rooting for the contestants to successfully complete the challenges and escape the Jungle King’s Temple. With this in mind, it is important that we select a host who is capable of helping to build the tension within the show, whilst also having some sort of chemistry with the contestants and the Gayliens (the two minion-type character in our show).
As the show contains two minion-type characters called the Gayliens, we looked towards the relationship and character of the two monkeys within (Jungle Run, 1999). The way that they interacted with the contestants is similar to that of what we want for the Gayliens. The monkeys, Sid and Elvis, are incredibly mischievous and are there to prevent the contestants to successfully reach their goal of collecting the prizes. Both my peer Heather and I decided that we wanted the Gayliens to have similar personality traits to the monkeys in terms of their interaction with the contestants trying to stop them from completing their goal. However, upon discussion, it was decided upon that the Gayliens would speak rather than just make noises like the monkeys in Jungle Run. By having dialogue from the Gayliens, it will hopefully have a greater comedic effect upon the show (Glazier, 2022).
(Jungle Run, 1999) takes place in a different world in terms of it being set in a jungle with a fictional Jungle King. With our pitched idea being set on another planet, we thought that it was fitting to look into how the location was incorporated into the challenges. Each challenge within (Jungle Run, 1999) takes place inside different parts of the jungle and the challenge relates to the jungle theme. The location plays a big part in the look and feel of a show and can “add a specific authenticity and mood to the production” (Kellison, , 2008). By having Jungle Run set in a jungle set, it makes the show hold some sort of authenticity in terms of the audience holding somewhat of a belief that the show is taking place in an actual jungle and that the contestants are actually in jeopardy. The jungle set also ignites a sense of empathy towards the contestants within the audience with regards to the conditions they are suffering in and battling against. For example, jungles are often hot, dangerous places. So, the audience is vicariously experiencing some of what the contestants are enduring. Within our show, we will aim to build another world with the location and aim to dress it as though it is another planet, hopefully making the show appear more believable in terms of taking place on another planet. Set design will be a crucial aspect when thinking about our project.
Various shots are used throughout the duration of the show. The most common shots within the challenges appear to be reaction shots. By using reaction shots of the contestants, it allows for the audience’s emotions to be directed and sets the pace of the show (Deguzman, 2021). A dramatic build up is created as a result of the reaction shots of the contestants during the challenges as it shows how they’re feeling about taking part in the challenge and how they’re feeling about their team’s performance within the challenge. For example, in the Leopard Seals (Jungle Run, 2006) episode, the close up reaction shot of the contestant Suzie, in the Lost Cave challenge, presents her as being fearful of going up against the swinging objects and displays her concentration in trying to complete the task. This allows for a sense of empathy to be created between the audience and the contestant, with the audience rooting for the contestant to win. It will be important to ensure that reactions shot are included within our show to increase the tension within the show and allow for the audience to feel as though they are being taken on a journey with the contestants.
Fig. 2 Reaction shot of Suzie in the Lost Cave, Jungle Run (2006)
Within the show, the host played some role in terms of guiding the show and informing both the contestants and the audience the premise of the show and challenges. However, the show was focused more on the contestants and the completion of the challenges. Due to the contestants often not speaking, the host appeared to try and fill the silences with encouragement and informing them of the time remaining. With one of the characteristics of a television presenter being the “ability to get on and connect with people, young and old, from a variety of backgrounds” (gradIreland, 2022) it is important for the host to have a good relationship with the contestants. Throughout Jungle Run (1999), you get a sense that the host (Micahel Underwood) is a bit hostile towards the contestants and doesn’t particularly appear to hold much empathy towards them. For instance, during the Temple Wall challenge, he says “come on, you need to sort this out now” (Jungle Run and Michael Underwood, 2006) to the contestants when they’re trying to complete the challenge. With it being a children’s show and the host supposed to be there to support the contestants, it would be thought that Underwood would hold a greater sense of empathy towards the contestants. Despite the hostility, Underwood was good when it came to informing the audience about the contents of the challenges and filling in the gaps of silence. When thinking about the host for our show, it will be of utmost importance to ensure that the host has the ability to connect with both the contestants and the audience. The chemistry and banter between the host, gayliens, and contestants for our pitched show is a core element so with this in mind, it is a good idea for us to have some sort of chemistry test within the audition process. It is also key to ensure that the host is able to fill in the gaps of silence with banter and is able to improvise therefore, it will be something we will look out for throughout the audition process.
Through watching Jungle Run, I was able to get a sense of the structure of a physical game show as well as the dynamics between the contestants and the hosts, which helped in thinking about various aspects of our pitch like the location, the challenges, and the dynamic and chemistry between the contestants and hosts.
Bibliography:
Brown, L. and Duthie, L. (2016) The TV Production Handbook. London: I.B. Tauris. At: https://www-bloomsburycollections-com.ucreative.idm.oclc.org/book/the-tv-studio-production-handbook/ch8-game-and-quiz-shows (Accessed 06/02/2022)
Deguzman, K. (2021) The Reaction Shot - Much More Than Essential Film Grammar. At: https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/what-is-a-reaction-shot-definition/ (Accessed 07/02/2022)
Fig. 1 IMDB (1999) Jungle Run Poster. [Photograph] At: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0488264/mediaviewer/rm4211604737/ (Accessed 06/02/2022)
Fig. 2 Reaction shot of Suzie in the Lost Cave, Jungle Run (2006) [Television Still, Youtube] In: Jungle Run, Leopard Seals. London: ITV.
Glazier, J. (2022) As Live lecture series. [Kent: University for the Creative Arts 11/01/2022].
GradIreland. (2022) Presenter, Radio and Television. At: https://gradireland.com/careers-advice/job-descriptions/presenter-radio-and-television#:~:text=Presenters%20act%20as%20the%20public,generally%20holding%20the%20show%20together. (Accessed 13/02/2022)
IMDB. (2022) Jungle Run TV Series 1999-2006. At: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0488264/ (Accessed 06/02/2022)
Kellison, C. (2008) Producing for TV and New Media: A Real-World Approach for Producers. (2nd ed.) London: Taylor and Francis. At: https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/ucreative-ebooks/detail.action?docID=535177 (Accessed 20/01/2022)
Lindley, C. (2003) Game Taxonomies: A High Level Framework for Game Analysis and Design. At: https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.477.905&rep=rep1&type=pdf (Accessed 06/02/2022)
Jungle Run (2006) [Television Programme] Youtube 2006. At: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zRS9hqJzIg&ab_channel=JungleReRun (Accessed 15/01/2022)
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