Exporting Television

Where’s the great big “Mission Accomplished” banner when you need it? Now that Afghanistan is getting their own version of The Office, perhaps our work there is done. Time to bring the troops home.

I’m being glib of course, but it’s certainly a step forward, albeit a kind of funny one, for this country to have sitcom. And to have that sitcom being poking fun at the government (the office in question is based on a Ministry of Garbage, instead of a paper company as in the original) would never have been possible in Afghanistan 10 years ago.

It doesn’t seem like Ricky Gervais is involved as he has been with Office versions in the US, Germany, Chile and China among others, but then again, it’s not a straight up recreation of The Office. But I think that makes it a more interesting glimpse into Afghani culture that way. The NY Times has gotten an insider glimpse at some of the episodes and offers a more complete review, pointing out the ways in which this program is a landmark for its nation.

Of course, exporting TV formats is not a new situation. Endemol, a Dutch company, pioneered reality and game shows like Deal or No Deal and Big Brother and sold the concepts worldwide. Selling formats is how many TV production companies make their big bucks. Singing competitions and fly-on-the-wall reality shows are easily translatable when you insert a cast native to the country.

But what happens when the show you’re exporting is distinctly American? That’s the problem Phil Rosenthal, executive producer of Everybody Loves Raymond, struggled with when he was a consultant for a Russian version of his successful show. With little knowledge of Russian humor or culture, Rosenthal tried to make his show with its quintessential American family and flavor for an audience he didn’t understand at all. He made an award-winning documentary about the experience called Exporting Raymond. As you'll see, in Russia, TV makes you. (Ok, that was a horrible joke - please excuse it, but I couldn’t resist.)

Exporting Raymond was released on Blu-Ray and DVD on August 2nd.