'Angry Viewers' take on MTV

Every once in a while, a television show comes along with just enough spontaneity and creativity to capture the attention of Generation X-ers everywhere.

Housed in an intriguing informative-meets-interactive environment, MTV's "12 Angry Viewers" certainly has the potential to fill your late afternoon TV time. With a different panel of 12 people between the ages of 16-26 each week, the show has its guests critique music videos and decide which ones merit enough attention to be slotted into MTV's prestigious regular rotation.

But like all juries, diversity is a necessary ingredient for a truly unbiased verdict. In most cases, this would normally prevent two friends from the same school from being chosen as angry viewers on the same episode.

But thanks to some enterprising determination and a slight twist of fate, two University students, LSA seniors Jordan Berke and Eric Patin, found themselves sitting in MTV's New York studio as jurors on episodes two weeks ago. Suddenly, two seemingly ordinary students were thrown into the media spotlight of one of MTV's newest creations.

ADRIANA YUGOVICH/Daily LSA seniors Jordan Berke and Eric Patin aren't as angry as they seemed on MTV.

But the working environment of their fame wasn't quite what Berke and Patin were expecting. "I've had miserable experiences with employers before, but this takes the cake," Berke said. "They make working in a Nike factory look like a picnic in the park," Patin said.

While fame may have some drawbacks, Patin and Berke's MTV experience was not completely disastrous. Berke's original plan to get on the show and his eventual audition were packed with some rather hilarious moments.

"Two months ago, I watched the show for the first time and there was a great race going on between Daft Punk and Peter Gunz for the 'Video of the Week,'" Berke said. "The concept of the show and the competition between two classic videos was so great that I thought to myself, 'I could get jiggy wit dis!'"

But instead of simply hopping on a plane to New York and enduring the ills of all subsequent travel expenses, Berke turned to a friend of Patin for help.

"I was planning on going to New York for spring break," Patin said. "My friend Dave told me that Jordan was looking for a ride because he wanted to try out for the show. I thought 'Hmm, that's not a bad idea.' So I offered him a ride."

But a ride was not the only thing these soon-to-be friends were going to share by the week's end. There were many more antics.

"We knew that after watching the show, they weren't going to put two people who were both somewhat intelligent, let alone both U of M students, on the same episode, so we created a new identity for Eric," Berke said. "As far as MTV is concerned, I am actually a writer of fiction who lives on a farm in Western Michigan," Patin said.

So, with a little white lie and a boatload full of verve, nerve and guile, Berke and Patin continued in their pursuit of fame and fortune - MTV-angry-viewer style.

"We split up as soon as we got to New York," Patin said. "We went separately to the auditions." "The auditions themselves were a little crazy," Berke said. "Every aspiring actor, actress and Puff Daddy wannabe in the tri-state area was there to showcase their 'talent.'"

Careful to preserve their innocent Midwestern exteriors, both students took the audition process with a grain of salt. "I walked in just as Jordan was walking out," Patin said. "He threw me a look that said, 'Don't blow our cover.' I sat down in the waiting room, which was crawlin' with more New Yorkers than Hill Street during rush week."

As a result of their well-practiced posturings, Berke and Patin found themselves side-by-side with hostess Ananda Lewis, as well as 10 other lucky juror selectees.

So how about some behind-the-scenes dirt? How did MTV treat its precious viewers-turned-cast members?

The two claim that interacting with the other viewers was indeed exciting and stimulating, but other than Lewis, the entire staff was "overbearing, incapable and totally classless."

"I expected the royal treatment - personal dressing rooms, makeup artists, and wardrobe consultants," Berke said. "We got one dressing room for all 12 of us (male and female) and the only makeup I got was a little lip balm!"

Yet even despite the lackluster breakfast of green bananas and stale bagels, and what they said were bare-bones accommodations, Berke and Patin enjoyed every minute. But the stars said they didn't get any professional advice from the show's director before their debut.

"Fortunately, I'd seen the show," Patin said, "because they gave us absolutely no direction as to how the show works. They just sat us down (strategically) on the set, miked us up and started rolling. The first episode seemed like a practice run, but after we cut, I realized we weren't practicing and we'd actually filmed Monday's show."

Adam Freeman, the producer of "12 Angry Viewers," said this minimal direction tactic is to ensure that the show keeps its fresh improvisational feel. "The most frustrating thing is that we shoot five shows in one day," Freeman said. "The first show or two are usually rocky, because the jurors are getting the hang of it - they're learning when to speak up and when to not. The jury has to know when to vote, how to vote, how long their comments should be, when to stop for commercial breaks, and things like that."

But instead of cramming these instructions and commands down the jurors' throats, MTV prefers that the cast members learn by experience on the live set, as part of a more hands-off directing approach.

"We want the kids to relax and have a good time," Freeman said, "but at the same time, there are technical aspects of making a television show that need to be recognized. We try and put as little restraints on them (the cast) as possible. We really just want them to have a good time, and realize that the show is all them - it's the video they pick that is going to go into rotation."

And the videos themselves were what excited Berke and Patin the most before they actually started taping. "I went there expecting to see The Beasties, The Verve and Radiohead, and all I got was Sylkk the Shocker, Hanson and Joey Lawrence," Berke said. "I haven't seen that much crap since I fell in my Uncle Jimmy's manure pit," Patin joked.

Although the selection of videos might not have been the greatest, the dirty dozen did get to see one great video. The group chose U2's "If God Would Send His Angels" as their "Pick of the Week." Both Berke and Patin claim to have chosen U2's video solely on its artistic merit, though they may have been slightly biased. As it turns out, a third University student, LSA senior Dave Valazzi, the same aforementioned friend who originally introduced the two, was an extra in the video, providing yet another University-MTV connection.

After being filmed for eight hours under the glowing hot studio lights, MTV didn't let the jurors walk away empty-handed. "They get breakfast, they get lunch, they get a T-shirt and a hat, and we usually pay about 10 dollars, which should cover their travelling expenses," Freeman said.

Although they did not receive a T-shirt, Berke and Patin's payment for their time did include a baseball cap, a crisp $10 bill and a brisk 10 minutes to pack up and leave the studio for good.

Fifteen minutes ... and counting.

03-24-98