Saktyd (the Afrikaans word for 'deadline') is a South African reality television show, which aired on the Afrikaans television channel kykNET (channel 111 and 144Die Burger. 2012. Vind DStv se ou en nuwe kanale só [Online]. Available: http://www.dieburger.com/Suid-Afrika/Nuus/Vind-DStv-se-ou-en-nuwe-kanale-so-20121001, 1 October.) on DStv between 17 July 2012 and 9 October 2012. In Afrikaans, the word ʽsaktydʼ refers to the time that a magazine or newspaper is sent to a printer to be printed.Huisgenoot. 2012. Saktyd. “Huisgenoot,” 5 July, 25.
The show was set in the offices of South Africa's biggest, oldest and most well-known family and general interest magazine, Huisgenoot (the Afrikaans word for 'house companion'), whose editorial team gave 13 delegates the chance to win the job of a lifetime as a journalist at the magazine. The show aired on Tuesdays at 19:30, and was repeated five times during the week: Wednesdays at 10:30, Fridays at 00:00 and 22:00, Saturdays at 15:30 and Sundays at 09:00.kyknet. 2012. Saktyd. Available: http://kyknet.dstv.com/programme/saktyd/
In the show's finale on 9 October 2012, the 26-year-old proofreader and copywriter Christiaan Boonzaier from Cape Town was declared the winner in front of an audience of 6000 people.Huisgenoot. 2012. Saktyd se Christiaan glo aanhouer wen [Online]. Available: http://huisgenoot.com/fokus/saktyd-se-christiaan-glo-aanhouer-wen/, 10 Oktober.
Rationale According to kykNET's marketing manager, Haddad Viljoen, the concept for the show was formulated by Huisgenoot, kykNET and the show's production company, Homebrew Films; Viljoen added that the show is a first for South Africa.kyknet. 2012. Bravo! [video]. 31 May. Cape Town: Homebrew Films. Available: http://kyknet.dstv.com/2012/06/01/bravo-31-mei-2012-saktyd/ However, in an article about the show, Haidee Muller – Huisgenoot reporter and Saktyd judge – was of the opinion that the show is the brain-child of Esmaré Weideman, CEO of Media24 and previous editor-in-chief of Huisgenoot, YOU and Drum magazines.Muller, H. 2012. HG-lekkerte op die kassie. Huisgenoot, 26 July, 22. In turn, Weideman commented that the idea for Saktyd was born from readers and fans of the magazine, who wanted a behind-the-scenes look of what it takes to write a story for Huisgenoot. At the same time, the Huisgenoot editorial team, according to Saktyd's head judge, Izelle Venter (currently Huisgenoot, YOU and Drum's editor-in-chief) is also continually looking for the best talent to work for the magazine. Therefore, the show gave viewers a peek into the pressure-filled world of weekly magazine journalism, while concurrently searching for the next wave of talent in South African magazine journalism.
Format Saktyd's format was no different than other reality TV shows: In every episode of the 13-episode first season, challenges tested basic skills needed by a successful journalist in the world of magazine journalism.Huisgenoot. 2012. Saktyd – Kom werk by Huisgenoot. 5 April, 24. Although it was initially reported that the judges would send the contestants packing one by one, two revelations were revealed in Episode 3 (which aired on 31 July 2012):
the losing team in each challenge was sent to "Die Hok" (Afrikaans word for 'The Chamber'), where they got the chance to explain why they should stay in the show, and the contestants got an opportunity in The Chamber to vote their fellow contestants out of the show.
Judges Izelle Venter – Editor-in-chief (Huisgenoot, YOU and Drum) Wicus Pretorius – Deputy Editor (Huisgenoot) Haidee Muller – Reporter (Huisgenoot)
Prizes The winner of Saktyd won a one-year contract to work as a journalist at Huisgenoot.
Contestants [In alphabetical order, according to name] NameDie Burger. 2012. Sak, Sarel, dis tyd vir Saktyd... “Die Burger,” 16 Mei, 12. Age♠Huisgenoot. 2012. Saktyd. “Huisgenoot,” 5 Julie, 25. Resident ProfessionkykNET. 2012. Profiele [Online]. Beskikbaar: http://kyknet.dstv.com/programme/saktyd/ [2012, July 7]. Astrid Lippert-Fisher 32 Muizenberg Coordinator at In Country Christiaan Boonzaier ("Rooibaard"♣) 26 Cape Town Proofreader / Copywriter Christian Lee 23 Johannesburg Producer, coordinator, stylist, master of ceremonies, artist Elridus Grobler 26 Bellville Photographer Jeannie Erasmus 22 Potchefstroom Student Jolene Fransman 31 Cape Town Researcher Jurie Prins 32 Franschhoek Owner of a production company and part-time radio broadcaster Laura Stopforth 23 Stellenbosch Works for an NGO Leilani Snyman 37 Witwatersrand Owner of a marketing company Leon Flemmer 35 Middelburg Correctional Services Leveinia Botha 42 George Consultant in Human Resources at the George Municipality Lilian Strauss 23 Cape Town Student Tercia Jacobs 27 Gordon's Bay Au pair ♠ At the time of recording. ♣ Afrikaans word for 'Red Beard' — a nickname given to Christiaan Boonzaier by judge Wicus Pretorius in Episode 2, to differentiate him from Christian Lee, another contestant with the same name (although different in spelling).
Elimination Table The elimination table gives a summary of the contestants that were safe (indicated by a green block) and were eliminated (red block) in each episode. Contestants who were sent to The Chamber and were up for elimination, are indicated with a yellow block. The finalists are indicated by a maroon block, while the winner is indicated in blue.
The contestant that is eliminated appears at the bottom of the table in the week he/she left the show, while the contestants still in the game are collated alphabetically, according to name.
Contestant Week 1♦ Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7♦ Week 8 Week 9♥ Week 10 Week 11 Week 12 Week 13Christiaan BoonzaierAstrid Lippert-FisherJeannie ErasmusJurie Prins Jolene FransmanChristian LeeLaura Stopforth Leilani Snyman Tercia JacobsElridus Grobler Lilian Strauss Leon Flemmer Leveinia Botha Winner Finalist Safe Unsafe Eliminated
♦ No contestant was eliminated in this episode. ♥ Two contestants were eliminated in this episode.
Episode summaries
Episode 1 In the first episode (that aired on 17 July 2012), Saktyd's three judges are introduced – Izelle Venter, Wicus Pretorius en Haidee Muller. Viewers get to know them a bit, and all three name the qualities they are looking for in the perfect candidate. Izelle takes viewers on a tour of the Huisgenoot office, which occupies two full floors in the Naspers building in Cape Town. Key members out of the 150-member editorial team also introduce themselves to viewers, and explain what their roles at the magazine are.
Then, the programme focuses on the audition phase of the competition. Although over 1000 entries were received, only a top-100 were invited to auditions. Some auditionees sing, while one contestant tries to bribe the judges with sweets; some contestants fail to identify Gill Marcus, Maria Ramos, Zahara and Angie Motshekga, while most struggle to spell the words 'onmiddellik' (Afrikaans word for 'immediately') and 'Franschhoek' in front of the judges.
Finally, only 13 delegates are selected to take part in the programme. The top-13 introduce themselves to the judges and the viewers. Izelle then announces that viewers will get to know the contestants more in-depth in the next episode.
• Eliminated: No contestant was eliminated in the first episode.
Episode 2 The second episode (that aired on 24 July 2012) opens with in-depth profiles of the 13 finalists; the diverse group is introduced at their homes, on a golf course, in the gym and at the beach (to name a few settings).
Thereafter, Izelle (head judge) announces that a cocktail party will be held in honour of the 13 finalists. The party, which was held on the roof of the Naspers building, is star-studded with South African celebrities and influential people in the media. After a short introduction, the contestants get the chance to mingle with the guests. What the contestants do not know, however, is that they are already busy with a challenge — one that will send the weakest contestant home. It is only after the party that Izelle shares with the contestants that they would have to write a 350-word article in 30 minutes by hand, using information they should have garnered as journalists from celebrity guests at the party. Izelle adds that the weakest contestant will leave the competition immediately.
After 30 minutes, the articles are handed to the judges, who heavily criticise the contestants: Izelle notes that many of the finalists did not listen to the expectation of the assignment, while other contestants wrote about themselves when they were supposed to write about the celebrity guests. Wicus (judge) said that the articles make him nauseous.
In front of the contestants, Jeannie is singled out for an outstanding article, while Christiaan [Red Beard], Leilani and Jurie are described as disappointing. Eventually, Leveinia is eliminated from the competition, after Izelle comments that there wasn't one single sentence in her article that could be published.
• Eliminated: Leveinia Botha.
Episode 3 In the third episode (that aired on 31 July 2012), the contestants were split into two teams: Lilian was appointed the captain of the Commas (Astrid, Christiaan [Red Beard], Christian, Jeannie and Tercia), while Elridus was appointed the leader of the Full Stops (Jolene, Jurie, Laura, Leilani and Leon).
The top-12 were challenged to post 3 different posts on Huisgenoot's Facebook page: a post with only text, a post with text and a picture, and a post with text and a video. The team who could generate the most "likes" would win the challenge. Each team could use the expertise of one South African celebrity comedian and singer: the Commas were assisted by Wicus van der Merwe, while the Full Stops were guided along the way by Emo Adams. During the challenge, two members of each team (Christian and Lilian on behalf of the Commas; Leilani and Leon on behalf of the Full Stops) visited the offices of Cape Town-based radio station 94.5 Kfm, where they vied for listeners' votes on Elana Afrika's afternoon show.
At the end of the challenge, Izelle (head judge) lauded the Full Stops' creativity, which eventually garnered them just under 5000 "likes" – a new record for a single post on Huisgenoot's Facebook page. Although the Commas only generated just over 3500 "likes", and the win would then go to the Full Stops, both Izelle and Wicus (judge) questioned the winners' integrity. On one post, the Full Stops promised readers that they would shave Emo Adams's hair, if they could get 3000 likes; by the end of the challenge, Huisgenoot's Facebook fans surprised the team with just under 5000 "likes". Not having Emo's permission to shave his hair, the team promised Huisgenoot's readers something they could not deliver. According to Izelle, she would give a Huisgenoot employee who made the same mistake a written warning. Because of the damage the Full Stops inflicted on the Huisgenoot brand (with many Facebook fans posting that they would "unlike" Huisgenoot's Facebook page), Izelle sent the actual winners to The Chamber.
Introduced for the first time, The Chamber is a small room, where contestants get to motivate why they should stay in the show. In another twist, Izelle also announced that the contestants themselves would get the opportunity to eliminate one of their team members. The votes were split as follows:
Contestant Voted For Elridus Jolene Jolene Elridus Jurie Leon Laura Leon Leilani Leon Leon Elridus
On account of Leon's mistake at 94.5 Kfm (where he accidentally confused Emo Adams with Riaan Cruywagen) and his performance in the challenge in general, he was voted out of the competition.
• Eliminated: Leon Flemmer
Episode 4