Survivor: Borneo - Production

Production

The abandoned institute is on the island of the boomerang's open "V." This is the leeward side of the island. It faces west, and the South China Sea sunsets turn the sand orange-purple each evening at 6:30. One these shores we built a dock for offloading equipment, then living quarters with cold-water showers for sixty-five personnel-the camera crews, the production staff, and the assorted other individuals vital to producing thirteen hours of prime-time television.

In 1998, CBS offered Mark Burnett the chance to present his idea of this reality show to producers. In October 1999, CBS held a casting call for a new reality show concept. The idea was Survivor, in which sixteen people would be stuck on an island 20 miles (32 km) away from the mainland of Borneo. Ten main cameras were set on the island that would film the castaways every day. Every three days, a Tribal Council would be held in which one castaway would be voted off the island. The last castaway to be on the island would win $1 million.

Over 6,000 people applied for the show; 800 were then interviewed in sixteen cities. 48 people were then chosen, and after background checks and psychological evaluations done by the producers, the final sixteen contestants and two alternates were picked.

As the survivors awaited the game's start, Survivor crews prepared the island for reward and immunity challenges, removing any harmful items, checking for any harmful animals in specific locations, and building a Tribal Council set. Camera and other crews were sent to the island three weeks in advance for testing. On the opposite side of the island from the tribes, headquarters were set up for the producers, and crew to live in on the island. This facility included many traditional trailers with running water, televisions, and one phone line. The Tribal Council set was built two hundred yards from the crew's facility. The Tribal Council set was 30 by 30 feet (9.1 by 9.1 m) with no walls and only a platform. In the middle of the set was a fire lava pit providing fire for the torches, which represented the castaways' life in the game.

On March 7, 2000, the contestants were flown to Los Angeles, then to the city of Kota Kinabalu in Malaysian Borneo. From there, they were taken by boat to their island. Contestants were not allowed to speak to one another until they got on the boat headed towards their beaches. The two tribes shared the island of Pulau Tiga, which was divided by over 20 miles (32 km) of forest. The castaways were surrounded by wildlife such as pythons, kraits, adders, monkeys, monitor lizards, and white-bellied sea eagles. The show was set to air in the summer of 2000.