“The Sweet Molecule” — a children’s show promoting food science / 3rd season production in VIVISTOP Telliskivi
For the second summer in a row, the kitchen island of VIVISTOP Telliskivi will be the setting for the children’s food show “The Sweet Molecule”. And as usual, the co-hosts of the show will be VIVITA’s brilliant inventors.
Meet Freya, Oliver and Sohvi. The summer break was extraordinary for the young trio this year. They all agreed that participating in the show was a worthwhile experience.
Preparation at home
All three got a homework, which was memorizing the accompanying texts. According to Oliver, it wasn’t that hard. “Each episode was filmed in VIVISTOP Telliskivi, where we had to do things according to the script. It took about 3 hours to make one 12-minute episode,” Oliver recalled.
Sohvi also agreed that learning the accompanying texts went smoothly — “I practiced every day, in the morning and in the evening, both in front of the mirror and with my toy animal,” she said.
“At home, I had to personalize and memorize the text. And choose the clothes as well. We went to the studio to take pictures and to meet with the shooting team. In the studio, we rehearsed the script and then went straight into filming,” Freya summed up the whole preparation period.
Experienced masters?
The new situation always creates both excitement and fear — but did the young co-hosts have any fears? Only one — the fear that something will go wrong. However, the brave presenters did not allow the fear to disturb them and they did an excellent job.
Buzzing on the set
“The Sweet Molecule” brings together two exciting topics — food and science. Merle Liivak, the leader of the Kahvliahvi cooking school, prepares dishes from interesting foods, and the well-known scientist Aigar Vaigu and his co-hosts are trying to turn the foods into exciting scientific experiments.
But what kind of exciting things were happening on the set?
Oliver recalls: “We had to make the water hot in the microwave, but it didn’t go hot right away and we had to do it several times before it succeeded. However, watching the show gives the impression that it was a success for the first time.”
Freya honestly admits: “Well, I was growing my bangs and the bangs had already grown to my eyes. And then during the shooting, I didn’t say I was growing out my bangs and they cut it shorter. Afterwards, I was a little angry at myself as to why I didn’t say I didn’t really want the bangs to be cut shorter. But no need to worry, I’ll grow them back.”
Sohvi shares behind the scenes stories: “During the apple battery experiment, we found out that we had bought the wrong apples — so somebody from the crew had to go to the store to buy some new and sour apples. During the balloon experiment a balloon full of water exploded and now I just hope that my face won’t look silly on the TV screen.”
New knowledge and experience
For the first time, all three inventors were TV hosts, and what was happening on the set was fascinating for each and every of them. Sohvi learned that as a TV host, you have to speak louder than usual in order the message to get across. Oliver talked about how awesome it was to observe what was happening from the side and from several screens, where each screen showed different camera angles.
Neid kõiki üllatas aga see, et lühikese saatelõigu filmimine võtab kordades rohkem aega, kui teleekraanile reaalselt jõuab. Nende jaoks oli hämmastav, kui palju tehakse tööd enne saadet ning kui suur meeskond saateproduktsiooni taga on. Lisaks saate juhtimisele, said lapsed rohkem aimu ka kaameratööst — näiteks lähivõtteid valmis toitudest tehakse eraldi, mitte ei filmita samal ajal teise kaameraga.
However, they were all surprised by the fact that filming a short episode takes many times longer than it actually gets on the TV screen. It was astonishing for them to see, how much work is done even before shooting the show and how big of a crew is behind the production. In addition to hosting the show, children also got a better idea of how the shooting works — for example, close-ups of food ingredients are taken separately rather than being shot with another camera at the same time.
Who do you want become in the future?
We asked the youngsters whether the job of a TV host could be one of the career choices in the future, which Oliver said emphatically that he had another goal. Freya also knew that she wanted to become an interior designer and run a café. However, if a program is related to one of these topics, she could definitely consider it. Sohvi then replied that she would not refuse the offer of being a TV host again and she’d re-run the show with Aigari and Merle every time.
Now that you’ve gained another new experience, what advice would you give to the following TV hosts?
Oliver: “The most important thing is that you won’t get nervous, when something goes wrong.”
Freya: “If you want to come out of your comfort zone and experience something new, you should definitely apply. You don’t have to be afraid at all, because everybody is so friendly and if it even goes wrong, you can do it again. You have to be brave and want to do it, you don’t need anything else.”
Sohvi: “Be sure to memorize your text! Otherwise, changing the text on the spot becomes especially difficult.”
Tragid saatejuhid said kingituseks Magusa Molekuli põlle ning meeldejääva kogemuse ETV võttemeeskonnaga. Lapsed mäletavad veel eredalt Merlet, Aigarit ja kogu tiimi ning kinnitasid, et koostöö nendega oli vahva!
The young TV hosts received “The Sweet Molecule’s” apron and a memorable experience with the ETV shooting team. The children still vividly remember Merle, Aigari and the whole team and confirmed that the cooperation with them was wonderful!
Text: Steveli Säde
Translation: Anette-Heleri Lind
Photos: Siiri Lubaso and VIVITA Estonia/Sigrid Kägi
