Rants Of A TV Lover

It is hard not to be that angry guy who is always complaining about the entertainment industry when our industry continues to be run with a blatant disregard for the need to expand the talent pool and offer audiences variety and fresh ideas. 

When will we ever get to a point where a child can dream of being in this industry and without having to befriend some people, loose his or her core values or suck up to the so-called celebrities, she or he can see that dream realised solely on the merits of his or her abilities?

Will it be that even at this point in our country's development, our entertainment industry will continue to run on the success of a handful of people? They will be on your tv screens, radios, every magazine cover, hell they even write on the same magazines and produce shows for themselves and their friends , then they will even have their own companies be the ones doing business with the industry. 

What of the many young people that are passionate about being in this industry? How are these kids who are spending money learning to be producers, content developers, actors, scriptwriters, directors, etc ever going to get a chance to showcase their talents? 

If every opportunity in this business is reserved for a select group of people because of their connections to certain people can we really ever question why our award shows are a joke? If there is no room for competition because all work opportunities are given to the same people, can we really call these people -  The Best?

You are only The Best if you have someone else that you can out perform but if there are no other players on the field should we really be celebrating your skills when we have nobody else to compare it with. 

One can not chastise the artists from being everywhere because they want to work and they will not turn down a job when it is offered to them. I know I would not. However for the long term success for the entertainment industry the pool inevitably has to be bigger for there to be any sense of viability. 

We don't have TV Stars, Radio stars, Movie Stars, etc because they all tend to be the same person. There is no sense of specialty in anything within our industry. While one has to acknowledge that everywhere in the world of entertainment these fields will overlap, when you have a bigger pool then you are able to sustain the mergers. 

Hollywood and its award shows are sustained by the fact that every field has its own stars and though some will fit all of them, they are not the only talent. Imagine if the Grammys, Emmys, Oscars, etc all featured majority of the same people. In the occasion that it does, it is able to accommodate it because it is big. 

With that can a small industry carry the burden of having the same people do everything in the industry. I disagree and the nature of our industry is evident of that. The fact that there is very little variety in talent and personalities in South African entertainment industry makes everything look and seem the same which leads to that ugly sense of redundancy. 

I admire media personalities who have their hands on ever pot to exploit the fact that they are hot right now. Good for them. They should make as much money as they can because a stay at the top in this business can be very short. 

The problem is with people at the helm. The decision makers need to instill some degree of confidence in this industry -- a sense that if you work hard and are talent you can make it and when you knock on doors there will be space for you. 

I yearn for the day when each year our industry will introduce us to new talent, a day when I would have more than just 5 people to call big  stars in South Africa, a day when I would be excited about the talent that we acknowledge with accolades because they are indeed THE BEST OF THE BEST and they have the numbers to prove it.

Hey! a brotha can dream...