The University-Program-Board-sponsored Late Night event, held Saturday at Emens Auditorium, featured a guest appearance from MTV's "The Real World" cast members and a showing of the National Lampoon's film "Van Wylder."
The program began at 9:30 p.m. with Brad Firorenza and Cameran Eubanks of "The Real World -- San Diego" giving a presentation on their personal experiences during the filming of the show's 14th season. Fiorenza and Eubanks spoke on three different topics that frequently come up in the show -- diversity, drugs and alcohol and conflict resolution.
We caught up with them before the show to learn more about their experiences on television and learn what it is like to be a cast member on a reality television standard.
Daily News: First off, what did you do before you were cast on "The Real World"?
Cameran Eubanks: I went to school and worked at a pizza restaurant. I was a pizza waitress.
Brad Fiorenza: I was in a management training program with MB Financial.
DN: A lot of fans see the show and think it would be a dream to be a cast member. What were your personal reasons for auditioning?
CB: I was bored one Saturday, randomly on the Internet, and I saw that they were having an open call in Atlanta. So I drove. I didn't tell anybody, and I went and just did it.
BF: I was talking to my cousin on the phone on my one day off from work, and he said, "Let's go to this thing, let's go to this thing," and I told him I didn't want to waste my one day off to go to this club for a casting call. We ended up going and they pulled me out of line and told me to come upstairs for some pictures... I didn't even really want to go, I didn't watch the show. Then it goes through the whole casting process ... and I didn't even send in the tape. I figured, "What are the odds?" They called me a few weeks later and told me that if I didn't send in a tape, they couldn't go any further with the process. I actually found a buddy with a video camera and sent in the tape. A couple of months later is when you get the call.
DN: It sounds like the casting process is just about as long as the show, but four and a half months is a lot of time -- do you feel you were portrayed correctly, or were you a victim of editing?
CB: I think they only show one side of people. I was the na+â-»ve girl, so they showed me acting na+â-»ve and new to things. They're not going to show me discussing religion or politics or anything like that because that's not my character.
BF: I would agree, because when you're walking into a situation like this, they're not going to portray every aspect of your personality. You're walking into this knowing that this is a television show and they're going to try to max their ratings. That's their job. They're going to take advantage of that and show only what they think viewers are going to like the most ... I was thinking of leaving the show after Frankie left because I started thinking, "How's this going to get chopped up?" I thought about how much I had given them but I was concerned that they could make it look any way they wanted to make it. It wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be.
DN: There are cameras everywhere, you have to share bedrooms and common areas, did this make it hard to conduct personal business inside the house?
CB: It's crazy how used to it you get, but our season wasn't a very racy one. Not everybody in the house had sex, not everybody went out and had to manage a trios every night. We were pretty quiet as far as that goes.
BF: For the most part, you do get so used to the cameras. It's like they're not there, but in certain situations, when it comes down to it... I don't even know what to say to make it sound right... It's difficult to do some of the things you might do off of a reality television show that keep you sane.
CB: Right.
BF: If we're all on the same page.
DN: I think so. What could you do to keep sane?
CB: We drank. We drank ourselves silly.
BF: That and we played a lot of Monopoly.
CB: You're each other's entertainment and that's how the show is set up. If they give you music, if they give you TV, what are you going to do? Sit around, listen to music and watch TV. You're not going to talk to each other.
BF: Right. It gets quiet and what are you supposed to do? You could just go "Wa-ha-ha!" and wile-out you know? Get a chain reaction or something. Start doing funny skits or Chris Farley imitations, whatever it took just to entertain ourselves. Overall, it was a great time; we were a crazy dysfunctional family.
DN: You're minding your own business, and then one day, everybody knows who you are. How has the show affected your personal life?
CB: It is weird because you're on the show one day and you come off it and it's like you're in this tornado, and you get spit out. You can't just go back to being yourself after having your life put on TV. I think we're more approachable than people like Tom Cruise or whoever. People would come up to you because they feel like they can talk to you, but it is kind of weird when you're having dinner and someone comes up and they're like, "Oh my God! You're Cameran from 'The Real World!'" And you're like, "No! Let me eat my dinner!" But you know that's going to happen; you can't really complain.
BF: I'm with my girlfriend a few weeks ago and we walk into this pizza place. There's all of these 13-year-old girls and they start screaming like one of the N'Sync boys just walked in. Other people start screaming out, "Who is it?" Who yells that in the middle of a crowded restaurant in Chicago? My date doesn't know how to handle it; I don't know how to handle it ... It's overwhelming because you want to make everybody happy, but you still need your personal space.
DN: Reality television can affect your business life, too. Do you have any new show business prospects?
CB: I actually just started doing a show with the NFL Network, it's a hosting job. It's an opportunity that came because of the show and I'm very blessed to have that. But as far as acting? No.
BF: I definitely wouldn't rule out any opportunities, but I haven't really pursued it - I'm not moving to L.A. Right now I'm filming stunt-riding DVDs with street bikes and I'm trying to pitch a show to Spike TV next spring. If I can get that pilot put together and make it as good as I want it to be, that would be a dream come true for me.
DN: Finally, many college students are familiar with the problem of living with new people. Do you have any tips for those with roommates they don't know?
CB: You know, it's luck. Each season the producers go into it knowing what they want. They do typecast, it's pretty much the same people on every season ... We just really cliqued with each other. I think it really pissed the producers off because they told me we were cast because they thought we'd really butt heads. Just be yourself.
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