Trackback from My Reelity:

I’m sure there are people who think we are reacting too strongly to this, but I can assure you that to actors, this no laughing matter at all....

so if tomorrow.sg posts this content... does it mean it agrees with this guys overeaction?

this site is getting more classy day by day.

Mediacorp should inform the actors beforehand that they are on Just for Laughs......

Doesnt make a difference whether they are acting or not..... look the same to me, same stony expressions.

OK. Big whoop, the author is baised, because he/she removes comments that contradicts his/her post.

He's just way too uptight, and what this country needs is less people like him.

maybe they should read the fine print, humiliation is part of the contract

Wah lau, these people are not even big stars! Get a life lah, get a sense of humour also.

totally agree with you. how about they compare themselves to big name celebs in HOLLYWOOD when they get punk'd with bigger and obviously more humiliating pranks?

Trackback from MediaCorp's "Just For Laughs" -- Everyone loves it...Not!:

MediaCorp ought to apologize publicly to the 'victims'. There's nothing funny at all (we're still not laughing!) about giving a false hope. The actors turned up for an audition (of course eventually to earn some money!) ...

Who cares.

They are well-paid for their trouble.

Honestly, what disturbed me the most was the release of rights. This has nothing to do with whether one was an actor or not.

Imagine that this happened to you. In almost all such cases, the producers will ask you if you are willing to allow that footage on TV. If you say yes, they will get you to sign a contract or agreement called a release stating they own that footage. So you cannot sue them or ask for more money in future if your clip or image is used once or over and over, and all that... Also it makes it a legal and commercial project for profitable sale and distribution around the world.

Makes sense, doesn't it? There is mutual respect and honesty.

I understand that at this fake audition, they made the actors (or anyone) sign what they said was a "talent form". A talent form is often just a biodata form for casting personnel to refer to when accessing a talent's suitability for different roles. They can be designed differently and are often filled up at auditions, sometimes requiring a signature to state that everything written is true, as in job interview forms.

The "talent forms" turned out to be release forms. Now that sounds like trickery which I feel is rather unethical, premeditated and selfish.

I suspect they didn't want to spend any money on a location outside MediaCorp premises and any money on transportation, crew and technical gear (very typical of them I think). Instead it is so much easier to take advantage of the sincerity of others to clear their schedules (could include giving up a rehearsal, part time job shift, other real auditions) to come for an interview, and get them to sign a release without being upfront about it.

erm where did you get the information that the talent form is the release form? According to Mediacorp they had to sign release forms but there was no mention that the talent form is the release form. We shouldn't be commenting without knowing the facts of everything...

but anyway such a show is hard to work in countries such as Singapore where everyone is so stressed and busy that they have lost all sense of humour that they take every single thing so seriously and every single minute cannot be wasted on such 'meaningless' acts.. its just a shame to hear such comments from so called 'professional' actors...

just to add, after reading another blogpost on this issue, it seems a deliberately crafted audition just to perform the gag feels wrong as Just For Laughs gags are usually random and happens while a person is already at the place... so if Mediacorp really wanted to do this, they should have done it at a real audition so the actors' time are not wasted. According to Daphne, however, the producers told her "it really was a casting designed as close to a gag as possible." but i guess the facts just need to be clarified further...

you guys are fighting over this..? Go africa. Lmfao. Speaking about unethical stuff.. Gee they're paid actors, they're not forced or cheap labored into this ''humiliation''. Jesus christ! call MinistryOfManpower lor.. LOL. action speaks louder than words.

you are totally missing the point