It’s no secret that UCLA is highly competitive. But employees of the UCLA Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering must have been shocked when management service officer Cassandra Franklin asked for a monthlong leave of absence in late November to take part in one of the nation’s most successful reality shows.
Entering its 14th season tonight, CBS’s popular reality show “Survivor” will be boasting a Bruin in its group of 19 adventure-seeking castaways.
Located in the tropics of Fiji, this season’s installment puts yet another twist on the show’s castaway concept by placing one tribe on an island filled with bountiful resources while the other tribe is left to fend for itself on a separate desolate island with a machete, a pot and a source for water.
“We gave all 19 people architectural plans, lumber and tools, everything they needed to build a shelter. Then once they built this beautiful building, we told them that only one of the tribes would get to live there,” said “Survivor” host and producer Jeff Probst.
Though unaware of Franklin’s previous interest in “Survivor,” coworker and senior development engineer Harold Kasper was able to get some insight into her experience on the island upon her return.
“There was not a lot of anything as far as modern conveniences. She did tell me that the show did supply them with a location for water, but everything else was on them,” Kasper said.
Based on the Swedish TV program “Expedition: Robinson,” the show was brought to watchful American audiences by Mark Burnett when it premiered in May of 2000. Since its first season, “Survivor” has accumulated great success and scored high ratings, with devoted viewers tuning in weekly to see both the physical and emotional struggles of the characters.
To win, participants must win challenges while honing their social skills among a group of contestants diverse in both age and background.
“(Franklin) is a really heady player. She does a good job of laying low and staying under the radar, which can often annoy many people. It takes skill to be in the group but also stay out of the frays and fights,” said Probst, citing also that one of Franklin’s biggest challenges was to hide for as long as possible the fact that she could not swim.
With the plethora of reality shows invading nearly every network, “Survivor” itself has taken its mantra to heart, outplaying, outwitting and outlasting most of its competitors.
“It is a social game based around the idea of taking 16 strangers and forcing them to work together and live together and compete together,” said Probst. “But it also deals with two big themes that resonate with all of us: being picked last, whether it be in applying to a fraternity or sorority or in a simple schoolyard game, and also the idea of being lost.”
However, unlike most reality shows, which allows average people many opportunities to get their 15 minutes of fame and enter the notorious reality TV community, “Survivor” undeniably requires a level of physical and mental strength necessary for survival in an environment with more than just “seven strangers picked to live in a house,” as on MTV’s “The Real World.”
“I would imagine the most challenging part would be the mental game because you are living with people who you can’t fully trust because you are in constant competition with them,” said third-year international development studies and Scandinavian studies student Natasha Oxenburgh.
With a Bruin among the castaways, this season should provide even more entertainment beyond the frequent challenges, tribal councils and devious alliances. However, how long will Franklin last?
“I think she has a fairly good chance. She is a team player, she is intelligent and she can learn as she goes. It is a very difficult situation and I think she was able to make the best of it,” said Kasper.
Without giving too much away, Probst provided some hints on how she did.
“Cassandra is very sharp. She knows what’s going on socially, but physically she was at a disadvantage. Therefore, she used social skills to her advantage to offset her shortcomings physically,” said Probst.
Though Franklin’s ultimate success can only be determined by tuning in, it appears that she represented UCLA well.
“We need more Bruins on the show!” Probst said.