Marie-Ève Gariépy likes the variety that the job offers her. When she was younger, she wanted to do everything. And it is well served. She has worked on crime series, among other things Apartment 5 And It happened near youabout sensitive documentaries like Father of 100 children or more poignant In the face of monsters.
Recently she has produced Paul in all his states. And here she is in a stunning entertainment project with international influence, MasterChef, whose Quebec edition is very attractive if we trust the first images.
Stefano Faita and Martin Picard in MasterChef Quebec. Photo provided by Bertrand Exertier
Master chef is an internationally known format. They present it in a daily meeting. What format did you have to follow and where did you have leeway?
We had to respect the elements of the Bible, especially at a visual level, to properly represent the brand: computer graphics, music, editing rhythm, studio dimensions and decoration. And the sequence of steps, the mystery box, the elimination. The challenge was for our content creative team and our artistic team to do justice to our identity. There are different formats around the world: one hour weekly, one hour daily, two hour special broadcasts. The daily format of 22 minutes (30 minutes on air) never worried Banijay (owner of the format). Others have done it. We have much more material than we can show on screen.
How will we find ourselves in the content?
It's important that our version of MasterChef represents our identity. The territory is represented among the candidates who come from across Quebec. In certain challenges we will recognize exotic foods, but we are in familiar territory. We face a challenge with boreal products. Some will remember that a few years ago it was difficult to find lawyers, whereas today everything is accessible. People experience and share flavors and cultures. We will see Moroccan and African inspirations… Our chefs are open-minded.
In competitions like The voice, We know that we are fertile ground for good singers. How about good cooks?
It's a nice surprise. The interest in registrations was enormous. Passionate, talented people. More than 4,000 people have registered. We could tell they wanted to impress us with what we wanted to try. We have real fans of the show who worked hard to be on it.
Martin [Picard] and Stefano [Faita] know each other well. Were they taught to adopt this tone that is both stern and didactic to add humor and apply pressure?
They already knew MasterChef well and did their homework. The sauce hit! They are there as mentors. They give fair feedback and ensure that errors are corrected. All this with respect and the pursuit of improvement. We want the candidates to develop further. For an amateur chef, being crowned with the MasterChef grand prize is no small feat.
What does a day of filming look like to produce such a fast-paced show?
We work about 12 hours. There are meetings by department: kitchen team, artistic direction, production and technology. We film with each of the candidates. Anyone still in the running will be in every episode of the week and will have to face the challenges unless they have won a privilege. We have three or four challenges a week and it's important to track their progress. We don't always have everything under control in the kitchen! We film the challenges, the interviews with the candidates, the comments from the judges. We also have guests. The shows are always very rhythmic when editing. We want to feel the intensity and emotions that the jury will experience with the candidates. The eliminations become more and more heartbreaking. The pace is maintained to show the excitement in the kitchen. We don't get bored. And we become attached to people. We see them disappointed, laughing and crying. It is not easy to have your court judged.
♦ MasterChef Quebec : Monday to Thursday 7:30 p.m. on TVA