Dating in the Dark

Dating in the Dark
Original workDaten In het Donker (The Netherlands)
OwnerBanijay
Years2009–present

Dating in the Dark (Dutch: Daten in het Donker) is a reality show created in the Netherlands where 3 single men and 3 single women move into a light-tight house getting to know each other and form bonds in total darkness.

Format

[edit]

Dating

[edit]

Three men and three women are sequestered in separate wings of the house, unable to have any conversation or contact with the opposite sex unless in the dark room. Initially, all six contestants have a group date in which they all sit at a table in the dark room exchanging names and getting to know one another's voices and personality types. After this date, each contestant can invite another contestant for a one-on-one date; these dates are also held in the dark room.

Throughout the show, the host provides the men and women with additional insights by providing personality profiles showing which contestants are their best matches and also allowing them to view items the others have brought to the house, such as items of clothing or luggage. Other episodes include sketch artists drawing contestants' impressions of each other.

After the one-on-one dates, each contestant can choose to invite another that they wish to see. The contestants enter the dark room for the final time and are revealed to each other one at a time. During the reveal process the couple must remain silent.

The Reveal Process

[edit]

While being shown in the light, a contestant cannot see the other contestant's reaction. Each contestant is standing at opposite ends of the dark room with a very large two-way mirror between them. A color camera films from the dark side of the mirror while the other is illuminated on the other side. A separate infrared camera films the person on the dark side's reaction; the two images are combined in post-production. This is done, in part, by using video editing software to fade the infrared image of the person being revealed to black before they are illuminated, then seamlessly showing the color image of the person being revealed as it is faded in and out. During the reveal process the couple must remain silent.

The Balcony

[edit]

The show culminates with each contestant choosing whether to meet another on the balcony of the house. The contestant will go to the balcony and wait for his or her prospective partner to join him or her. Joining the other on the balcony signifies that the contestants both want to pursue a relationship; exiting the house through the front door signifies that they do not want to pursue a relationship. Cameras are set up to show both the meeting balcony and the front door.

International versions

[edit]
Country Name Host(s) TV station Premiere Finale
 Australia Dating in the Dark Australia Laura Dundovic FOX8 1 December 2010 29 May 2012
 Brazil[1] Romance no Escuro Eliana SBT 29 June 2010 2 January 2011
 Chile[2] La Pieza Oscura José Miguel Viñuela Mega 1 June 2011
 China 完美暗恋
Wanmei Anlian
Zhū Róng Guangdong TV 27 August 2011
 Colombia[3] Cita a ciegas Carolina Cruz RCN August 2010
 Finland[4] Treffit pimeässä Susanna Laine Sub 24 December 2010
 France[5] L'amour est aveugle Arnaud Lemaire TF1 16 April 2010
 Germany[6] Dating im Dunkeln RTL 21 November 2010
 India MTV Dating in the Dark Nora Fatehi MTV India 8 June 2018 31 August 2018
 Israel[7] דייט בחשיכה
Date BaHashekha
Yaron Brovinsky Reshet 13 October 2012
 Italy[8] Appuntamento al buio Sky Uno May 2011
 Netherlands[9] Daten In het Donker Renate Verbaan RTL 5 6 April 2009 present
Gigi Ravelli
 Norway[10] Dating i mørket NRK3 12 January 2011
 Romania[11] Intalnire pe intuneric Andreea Raicu Prima TV 4 August 2010
 Serbia[12] Sami u tami Nikolina Pišek Prva Srpska Televizija 9 April 2013[13]
 Slovenia[14] Zmenek na slepo Jasna Kuljaj Planet TV Spring 2014
 Sweden[14] Dating in the Dark kanal 5 2 March 2010
 Turkey[15] Aşkın Gözü Kördür Kanal D 4 June 2009
 Ukraine[16] Побачення у темряві Inter 16 February 2011 30 March 2011
 United Kingdom[17] Dating in the Dark Scott Mills Sky Living 9 September 2009 5 July 2011
Sarah Harding
Mathew Horne ITV2 15 September 2016 20 October 2016
 United States[18] Dating in the Dark Rossi Morreale ABC 20 July 2009 13 September 2010

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "SBT Compartilhe - Sistema Brasileiro de Televisco". Sbt.com.br. Retrieved 2013-12-15.
  2. ^ "PiezaOscura". Mega.cl. Archived from the original on 2013-12-16. Retrieved 2013-12-15.
  3. ^ "Total T.V.: Cita a ciegas programa de RCN con Carolina Cruz". Totaltv.blogspot.com.br. 2010-08-25. Retrieved 2013-12-15.
  4. ^ "Sub - Mtv.Fi". Sub.fi. Retrieved 2013-12-15.
  5. ^ "L'amour est aveugle". TF1.fr. Archived from the original on 2014-02-07. Retrieved 2013-12-15.
  6. ^ "Dating im Dunkeln". RTL.de. Retrieved 2013-12-15.
  7. ^ Ewave ltd. רשת - דייט בחשיכה. Reshet.tv. Retrieved 2013-12-15.
  8. ^ "Appuntamento al buio | Blog Tivvù – La tivvù in un blog". Blogtivvu.com. 2011-05-24. Retrieved 2013-12-15.
  9. ^ "Daten In het Donker".
  10. ^ "Dating i mørket - NRK". www.nrk.no. Archived from the original on 2010-12-29.
  11. ^ Întâlnire pe întuneric769 personen vinden dit leuk. "Întâlnire pe întuneric". Facebook. Retrieved 2013-12-15.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  12. ^ "Sami u tami". www.prva.rs. Archived from the original on May 19, 2012.
  13. ^ "Sami u tami - 1. epizoda". www.prva.rs. Archived from the original on April 6, 2013.
  14. ^ a b "Dating in the Dark". kanal5.se. Archived from the original on July 23, 2011.
  15. ^ "Aşkın Gözü Kördür". Tvrehberi.milliyet.com.tr. 2012-02-16. Retrieved 2013-12-15.
  16. ^ "Шоу «Інтера» «Побачення у темряві» вироблятиметься за форматом голландської компанії Talpa". detector.media (in Ukrainian). 2010-12-14. Retrieved 2023-10-23.
  17. ^ "Sky Living HD". Skyliving.sky.com. Retrieved 2013-12-15.
  18. ^ "Report: ABC orders new 'Dating in the Dark' reality dating series". Reality TV World. Retrieved 2013-12-15.
[edit]