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It's been a great pleasure working with Toby Barraud, Stefan Springman and the rest of their crew at NFG on our new series, "Can't Get A Date." They've been stellar partners on every aspect of our production. Not only did they bring us a wonderfully original idea, but they were then able to deliver 17 full half hour episodes that lived up to the original premise and promise of that teaser tape. They work tirelessly. Their inspiration and creativity is boundless. And they stay on budget. We've had a hugely successful partnership with Toby and Stefan. It's a partnership we hope to continue in the future.
Jim Ackerman Toby Barraud and Stefan Springman at NFG-TV are true visionaries in the world of film & television. Working with them on the new VH1 series "Can't Get A Date" has been an extraordinary experience. They're incredibly smart producers who know how to cultivate an idea and then realize it visually, creating great story and captivating television. The entire crew at NFG-TV dedicates every resource to producing a top notch reality series that is unique in its premise and execution. In a TV landscape littered with many unremarkable shows, NFG-TV has delivered a truly remarkable series that reflects their intelligence, production savvy and ingenuity. I look forward to working with Toby and Stefan on many future projects.
Christian McLaughlin “It's different. Really different. By using an auteur's eye for stylized shots, innovative narration and creative casting, CGAD effectively takes a genre known for its base instincts and turns it into a scrumptiously crafted extravaganza. It stands out not because it has come up with a yet-to-be-exploited schtick ("Dancing with Remodelers!") but, rather, because it acutely pays attention to the details and summons the courage to make something, well, beautiful.”
Caryn Brooks Can't make a good dating show? Yes you can. by Joe Dellosa from inletspin.com Reality dating shows have a propensity for suckiness. It's a genre that's awash in Elimidates and Nexts—shows that reduce love and romance to little more than a superficial, gonorrheal blur. Can't Get a Date, thankfully, is something different. A dating how-to guide of sorts, the show's premise—each episode's "subject," a person who is ostensibly undatable and wants to change, undergoes a transformation to make them datable—may not sound particularly original. But where other "Dating for Dummies" shows rely on the viewer's sense of voyeurism or disdain for the subject, Can't Get a Date appeals to one's compassion and intelligence, and the result is a smart, practical show that happens to be a lot of fun. Maybe the most striking part of the show is how it's able to balance sincerity with its supportiveness. It would have been easier to make the show a "let's laugh at this inept rube"-style dating show. However, the narrator's intelligent advice and commentary, coupled with his sharp-but-unvitrolic sarcasm, make it seem like he—and by extension, the show—is on the subject's side, and it's hard for the audience not to join them there. The narrator doesn't make himself out to be an expert or a miracle worker (though he often comes across as both); rather, he's more like a smart older brother, dispensing wisdom with a few good-natured barbs to keep the subjects in line. Each episode closes with the narrator simply saying what appears to be the show's mission statement: "Can't get a date? Yes you can." And that's what ultimately makes this show so enjoyable. It's a show that deals not in humiliation or despair, but rather hope and well-placed optimism. The show acknowledges that love is a rough and difficult endeavor for which there's no panacea, but as long as our hearts are in the right place and we keep common sense and a concern for others in mind, we'll be okay. Can't Get a Date isn't just smart and witty; it is, in fact, surprisingly uplifting. And for that, it's more than deserving of attention, from the lovelorn or otherwise. |
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