Toxic Culture Unveiled in ‘Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV’
Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV is an investigative docu-series from Mary Robertson and Emma Schwartz that delves into concerns surrounding Nickelodeon content produced by Dan Schneider. Centred on Schneider and Nickelodeon shows from the late 1990s and early 2000s, the four episode miniseries questions the showrunner’s role and influence in the creation of these programmes on child actors and viewers. Tackling the documentary from the perspective of two show writers, Quiet on Set gets to grips with the toxic culture from on set working conditions to behind-the-scenes for both children and staff.
The enlightening series starts with a character profile of Schneider, how he came to be in a position of power. From acting to writing and beyond, Schneider became an influential figure at Nickelodeon, charged with managing creative from concept to execution. Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV goes about unmasking Schneider through archive footage, damning clips from shows and retrospective interviews with former child actors and writers. A “vital showbiz expose” (Rotten Tomatoes), now boasting a 100% Tomato-meter rating, the compelling series is infotaining, well-composed in its assessment and thorough in its findings.
The Quiet on Set project began over a year and a half ago after viral videos with clips from some of the shows and sketches Schneider presided over revealed sexually suggestive content. Featuring actors who are now famous, including Ariana Grande and Jaime Lynn Spears, the clips were evocative of pornography with teen actors leaning off the side of a bed pouring water on her face and body as well as squeezing a potato. A children’s channel, many young viewers grew up watching this sexually-charged content thinking it was normal. This spate of provocative videos prompted Robertson and Schwartz to investigate how these popular shows were made, who was in charge and if there was any push back in response to its airing to hundreds of thousands if not millions of children.
The docuseries delves into the insidious environment, its toxic culture and allegations of abuse, sexism, racism, and even child predators. By scratching the surface, the investigation reveals gross exploitation and a darker side to children’s entertainment of this era. The creators of Quiet on Set reached out to hundreds of people who were connected to the making of this content in the industry and as expected many were afraid to speak out publicly. This outreach led to an unburdening as people stepped forward to share their stories and experiences of what went on behind-the-scenes. While traumatic, this cathartic process helped the investigative documentary shine a light. The documentarians prioritised the quest for truth, working hard to separate fact from fiction in a bid to advance and verify the most complicated sophisticated sense of actuality.
Quiet on Set focuses in on this Schneider era, rather than addressing the modern age of children’s television. Since this era at Nickelodeon, there have been a great deal of changes. Following the arrests of several men charged with child sex abuse, the background process and security checks have been reviewed and tightened. Having children working in an adult working environment is tough, often working long hours and having pressures that most kids wouldn’t experience at such an impressionable age.
Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV will premiere across two nights, Sunday, 7 April and Sunday, 14 April, from 21:00 – 23:00 CAT on Investigation Discovery (ID) Africa with two episodes back-to-back each week.
