CHEFS INCOGNITO (2023, JTBC, South Korea)
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Role: Development Producer, Series Producer/Director/Editor
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Broadcast format: 12 episodes, each 82 minutes long, in an on-location reality format showcasing a delivery food competition.
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Broadcast period: June 25th, 2023 - September 10th, 2023
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Hosts: Kyungkyu Lee, Narae Park, Seungyeon Han, Hyunmin Yun, Bak Yun, Bora Nam, Dex, Oking, Yul Kang
Celebrities compete to be the #1 delivery food business owner!
In this captivating reality competition, three of Korea's top celebrity food enthusiasts, each supported by two dedicated celebrity staff members, collaborate to operate their own delivery food restaurants featuring unique menus invented specifically for the competition.
With their celebrity identities kept secret, each team confronts the challenge of achieving daily sales targets to evade elimination. The restaurant with the highest sales by the end of the ten-day business period secures exclusive opportunities for lucrative ventures, such as meal kits or the opportunity to establish a full-fledged dine-in restaurant.
Production Note
Pioneering New Format
Have you imagined being able to try celebrities' popular dishes on TV, delivered right to your doorstep?
I came up with the show's core format idea: a unique blend of delivery food businesses owned by A-list celebrities and their sales competition.
In this show, top celebrities' special delivery foods intrigue the taste buds of audiences who are eager to taste those dishes. (They might even have the chance to order and try them!) The sales competition, testing the pride of top food enthusiast celebrities, heightens immersion and drives the storyline.
![[웃는사장]_3D이미지_230321 복사본-1.png](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/bbce96_9cfb5b05c4e8432eba01658b27dc316a~mv2.png/v1/crop/x_249,y_382,w_1778,h_2521/fill/w_432,h_613,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/%5B%EC%9B%83%EB%8A%94%EC%82%AC%EC%9E%A5%5D_3D%EC%9D%B4%EB%AF%B8%EC%A7%80_230321%20%EB%B3%B5%EC%82%AC%EB%B3%B8-1.png)
The One and Only Production Design
THREE competitive kitchens coexist under ONE roof.
A single POS system serves ALL THREE businesses.
When I first came up with the show's core concept, I wanted to capture the raw, organic emotions experienced by the cast during intense competition.
"What if my restaurant failed to secure even a single order, while the neighboring restaurant, just steps away, thrived?"
So, I designed this unique production design where all contestants have full visibility into the operations of their rival restaurants under one roof, in collaboration with the production design department.
This exceptional production design played a crucial role in shaping the show's distinct story arcs and visual identity.
Extreme Reality
Not a staged situation for an entertainment TV show, but an extremely authentic business operation.
I wanted to create an 'extreme' reality show, firmly believing that finely captured sophisticated realism possesses a magnetism, drawing audiences in.
Even with top celebrities running the businesses, my vision was for the entire cast(and even crew members, including myself) to immerse fully in the authentic delivery food business market. So before the launch of the delivery food businesses and the first shoot, there were no prior advertisements, and no revelation of celebrity identities.
Thus, no one, not even the entire cast and crew, including myself, believed that our delivery food businesses would secure even a single order. As a result, I was able to capture the raw and genuine emotions of the entire cast in this show, just like in the clips where the whole cast and crew were visibly shaken.
This extreme reality deeply immersed the cast into the situation, thereby fostering a strong sense of immersion for the audience in the storyline of the show.