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The Sarich Rotary Engine of TV

Rick McKenna talks up the adaptation process of our own Kath & Kim as a winning Aussie export.

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An upbeat story today from Rick McKenna, producer of Kath & Kim and partner of Gina Riley. On the eve of the show’s launch this Thursday he projects a positive spin on the US experience. And well he should.

There are few Australian shows to have received an American adaptation, let alone a network one. However it pans out it is a significant achievement.

“From the cast we got and the production team, and the network’s support to order 12 episodes — if that’s all they do, so be it, but I’ve got a feeling it will go longer,” he tells The Australian.

McKenna says the Australian media reaction to US reports have been “surprising”.

“It’s like they want you to fail when all we’ve done is market Gina and Jane’s creative skills and works,” he says. “If it was the Sarich rotary engine we’d be celebrating it, but for some reason there is that desire to cut it down. It’s frustrating but also understandable because the flip side is we’ve been blessed with such a wonderful experience here that people like to talk about it and there’s this disbelief that it can be converted.”

In a lengthy article, McKenna talks about changes to the ‘Kel’ character: now known as Phil, and switched from a butcher to a gourmet sandwich foodie.

Kim runs a hairdressing studio at the back of the house, to allow for colourful characters to drop by. He indicates she is “an amalgam of Britney meets Paris meets Lindsay Lohan.”

The fourth episode is entirely scripted from scratch by the Americans.

Variety’s review adds to another negative reception in the US: Snide but not smart, “Kath & Kim” will likely leave American audiences scratching their heads, wondering what Australians saw in the concept — or if something was seriously lost in translation. The producers have sought to give the project a Yank accent mostly by having their low-class protagonists reference National Enquirer-type gossip about U.S. stars, but the show irritates more than it amuses. Most fans of the better NBC sitcoms surrounding it that say “G’day” probably won’t be able to say “G’bye” fast enough.

McKenna admits, “From a Kath & Kim brand perspective, scared’s not the right word, (it’s) apprehensive.

“But for Gina and Jane as writer/creators, to have your work picked up by an American broadcaster, funded and produced to 12 episodes and the mass marketing campaign they put behind it, it’s incredibly flattering and really satisfying.

“Ultimately Gina and Jane have had their work produced by an American network, which for Australian writers is an incredible outcome.”

Source: Variety, The Australian

6 Responses

  1. I wish everyone would get over the fact that it has been adapted for american audiences. Everyone keeps talking about how they “stole” our idea. First of all if the Creaters of the aussie version worked on this version it’s not really stealing, and second, look at all the countless shows we have “stolen” from america: The Biggest Loser, The singing Bee, Are You Smarter Than a 5TH GRADER(american), the list goes on. People should just get over it and watch only the aussie version if you are THAT upset about it. Let them have their version which will probably bomb anyway

  2. “The Astralian networks and producers tend to give the same people the jobs and the new talented people don’t get a look in. We need to open the doors like the Americans do and the British to new talent and new ideas. In Aus we get the same faces in different shows year after year decade after decade they also keep it in the family.”

    Richard H – my sentiments exactly. About a year ago Tribal Mind ran a blog asking for ideas for TV shows to see if the general TV viewers had any good ideas – the show ideas that came down the pike were astonishing. Too many of the people currently producing and writing Australian shows have been in the trenches too long to know a good idea when they see it.

  3. not saying they are just that like earl they kind of get that trailer park stuff more than a middle class family acting like that. Because in the US middle class US is very different from middle class AUS.

    Kath and Kim would never work because it’s real Aussie humor Yanks have a very different style, look at raymond and so forth they don’t get us much.

  4. I think you’re missing a key aspect of kath and kim if you think a US one should be set in a trailer park.

    KK aren’t the aussie version of trailer park people.

  5. I know there’s the whole tall poppy syndrome thing but I think the negative reaction is more about America’s ability to take any concept and suck whatever good was in it in the first place.

  6. Kath and Kim should have been set it in a trailer park and the yanks would have got it then. Hasn’t Rick ever heard of the Ausssie tall poppy syndrome? Of course the media want it to fail they love bringing Aussies back to earth.

    I’m sorry but as a writer an Australian should be able to write for any market not just our own and not be flatred by overseas interest, i would have thought that writing for an international audience would be the goal of any writer be it script or novel. Truth is in order to do that you must have an open mind and be able to adapt to any style..

    K&K is good as are other home made programes but unlike the office, steptoe and son, man about the house, till death us do part which were all succesfully adapted to american audiences we need more quality writers and more producers with guts.

    To e Astralian networks and produer tend to give the same people the jobs and the new talented people don’t get a look in. We need to open the doors like the Americans do and the British to new talent and new ideas. In Aus we get the same faces in different shows year after year decade after decade they also keep it in the family.

    Wow what a rant!

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