LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Now you know networks are hurting: Reality-show budgets are being cut.
Long considered the cheapest of programming genres, reality programs increasingly are under the gun to cut costs. Producers are being urged to shoot shows faster than ever and use indoor settings to help reduce expenses.
"Every year there's more and more budgetary pressure," said Mark Cronin, producer of such VH1 hits as "Rock of Love" and "I Love New York." "Every network is having its budgetary problems, and that's being pushed back toward all content. So there's a constant pressure to produce more for less."
Networks have been reducing the budgets of comedies and dramas to offset television ratings erosion. Producers on such veteran series as ABC's "Boston Legal" and NBC's "Law & Order" responded by shedding cast members, while others, including the daytime soap "Guiding Light," have overhauled production methods.
But reality shows have a reputation as dirt-cheap alternatives to scripted shows. At least they used to be. CBS' globe-trotting "Survivor" might once have been considered an inexpensive solution to fill a time slot, but by today's reality standards, it's highly ambitious.
Most new reality shows are shot in the vein of NBC's "My Dad Is Better Than Your Dad" or Fox's "The Moment of Truth" -- studio-based shows hosted by lesser-known talent, Dan Cortese and Mark L. Walberg, respectively, and touting relatively modest prizes.
"There's been a rise in studio-based shows this past year, which are often less expensive to produce," said Jane Lipsitz, executive producer of Bravo's "Top Chef."
Tighter costs also mean productions taking less time to shoot and edit a show.
