Crowds of strangers, eager for a spot on reality television, will try to find out what happens when people stop being polite and start being real at an open casting call for “The Real World” in Santa Barbara this weekend.

Casting directors from Bunim/Murray Productions will be screening candidates tomorrow for the Real World’s 18th season downtown at Java Jones, located at 728 State St. Bunim/Murray Productions Casting Assistant Dave Burberry said his company is responsible for producing the television show, and the casting directors expect between 500 and 1,000 people to come to the casting call. The event will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and applicants for the show are asked to bring a recent picture of themselves and some form of photo identification.

Burberry said the casting is limited to people between the ages of 18 and 24. He said he thinks most of the spots for the next season of the Real World are already filled, and tomorrow’s event is designed to find people for the final round of casting.

Bunim/Murray Productions decided to hold the casting call in Santa Barbara because the company wanted to attract people who were not professional actors, Burberry said.

“We chose Santa Barbara because it’s more away from Los Angeles, where it’s not the acting crowd,” Burberry said. “It’s more mainstream [in Santa Barbara] and we were looking for more down to earth people and not L.A. types.”

Burberry said Bunim/Murray Productions advertised on different radio stations and put up flyers around Santa Barbara to attract many different kinds of people to the casting session.

“We’re looking for all different types, a whole range, that’s why we put [information about the casting call] on a whole range of radio stations,” Burberry said.

Jonathan Murray, executive producer of “The Real World,” said he looks for people who have strong opinions and are not afraid to express them.

“We look for characters from real life; people with strong personalities who are unafraid to speak their minds,” Murray said in a press release.

Burberry said he thinks the applicants with the best chance of being cast are those that appear to be confident in their own identity and do not seem like they are acting.

“I would say [the applicants should] just be themselves,” Burberry said. “Everyone always knows on ‘The Real World’ to just be themselves.”

Jenny Neymark, a third-year art studio and communications double major, said she “The Real World” could be a good experience for some people, but she said she is not interested in applying to be on the show.

“I think it’s cool, but I probably wouldn’t do it just because I don’t really see the point in broadcasting my life,” Neymark said. “But I think it’s a good opportunity because people seem to learn something at the end of it from living with different people. But I don’t see how that is different from living with roommates here.”

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