Dominik Kaiser: "The castes are our future"

Media expert and presenter Eva Camenzind was recently named as a member of the jury for the 3+ presenter casting - the very casting in which "unknown faces" are currently being sought for the "short news, weather and future entertainment shows" (see Presenters wanted: 3+ in casting fever).

But on Wednesday, Werbewoche received the official media release from the new Swiss private broadcaster that Eva Camenzind will now not only be seen presenting Ringier's TV magazine "konsum.tv" and heard on Radio Energy, but that her face will also be a figurehead for the 90-second short news program on 3+. Certainly, with the 26-year-old Basel native, an experienced and prominent presenter has been brought on board. But didn't they explicitly want to give inexperienced people a chance?

Dominik Kaiser, Head of Broadcasting at 3+, answered questions from Werbewoche.
Werbewoche: Are there several news programs on 3+ or is more than one news presenter needed?

Dominik Kaiser: The news is christened daily, 365 days a year, so we need at least three news presenters. The presenters for the first few weeks have already been confirmed. Otherwise we wouldn't be able to go on air next week. We are currently looking for new talent. As we think very efficiently, we have combined the first campaign for the station shortly before the start of broadcasting and our promotion of young talent.

WW: Did Eva Camenzind also apply for the casting and was she the best?

DK: We've had Eva in mind for the job for a long time, so we cast her separately in advance.

WW: So the 550 people who signed up for the auditions are not being made fools of?

DK: The presenters for the first few weeks for News and Weather and our big event show Superstar are already finalized. At the moment we are looking for young talent for the time after that and to complement the established presenters. By the way, there are already more than 800 applicants! WW: If a celebrity were to be hired for the weather, would name recognition be the deciding factor?
DK: The fame certainly wouldn't hurt, but of course she would still have to look very good in front of the camera.

WW: So aren't the cast members simply the plan B if no familiar faces can be signed up?

DK: Some famous people are already there and known, we will announce a few more in the next few days. The casts are our future. We really want to find new talent and build them up. Of course, we will also turn the castings into a show. But it won't be very cheap. Organizing a casting of this size and then implementing it on TV in such a way that it meets our requirements requires a lot of personnel and technology. However, the combination of talent search and broadcasting makes sense for us.

WW: So isn't 3+ playing a false game with people's hopes with the casting shows?
DK: The path from registering on our homepage to becoming a TV star is of course much longer and rockier than most applicants probably imagine. The few that we select will be taken under our wing, trained and supported. In addition to talent, training and our support, a bit of luck is certainly also necessary for great success. However, Mirjam Weichsel-Braun is a good example of how it can work. We discovered her back then at a very similar casting in Germany for VIVA-Plus and today, 5 years later, she presents Saturday evening shows on ORF1 in her home country. If we find someone like her, we will have achieved our goal.

Interview: Yvonne Kunz
Editor: Kathrin Fischer