2Survive

Please face the court reporter and raise your right hand.

Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth,

and nothing but the truth, so help you God?

Sure.

State and spell your name, please.

Benjamin Friedman.

B-e-n-j-a-m-i-n F-r-i-e-d-m-a-n.

And what is your profession, Mr. Friedman?

Producer.

Film and television producer.

Would you give us the titles of some of the films

or television programs that you've produced?

Well, I produced this... Well, my partner and I

produced a series, uh, called Dumb People,

uh, it's on YouTube, it's gotten over 100,000 views.

Have you ever produced a film or a television show

that was distributed commercially?

No.

Have you ever produced a film or television show

for which you were compensated for your work?

No.

And were you the producer of a television reality show pilot

entitled "Survive!",

which began shooting on July 15, 2014 in the Mojave desert?

Yes. I was a producer.

I was one of the producers.

And I was not personally responsible...

Would you describe the events of July 15, 2014,

as clearly as you can remember them?

Well, like you said, it was the first day of filming

for this pilot, intended pilot...

I just finished a tour in Afghanistan.

Two in Iraq before that.

I'm looking forward to this.

I'm expecting to see some guys from the other branches.

I think I can give them a run for their money.

Oh, I think it's going to be a grand adventure,...

...n'est pas?

Oh, Piddles doesn't want me to go.

They talk to us all the time, you know,

the animals, but we have to tune them in,

like radio frequency.

And if we do, we-we have much to learn.

Yes. More than you can imagine.

What should people know about me? Well...

Uh, I'm gay. Uh...

I love reality shows. I would kill to be on The Bachelor,

as a contestant, of course.

Um, I'm also a practicing Buddhist.

At least I try to be.

So, a reality-show-watching, chubby, gay Buddhist.

So we got that demographic all sewed up, I think, don't you?

Well, I have to be careful in the sun, you know,

because of my complexion?

But, you know how some nights,

you want to look up at the moon,

but there's, like,

an Arco station right outside your bedroom window.

Well, I just want to look up at the moon.

So it'll be fun, right?

I spend most of my career in the ER,

and now I just work night shifts here at the nursing home.

It's hard.

You... you do what you can,

but you always know what the outcome's gonna be.

Guess I just need a break.

You know, it'd be nice to get away from death for a while.

This is just a continuation of my work.

You know, I've studied extreme environments all over the world,

and, uh... frankly, you're lucky to have me.

Though you're going to have to accept...

probably gonna win.

From somewhere deep in the vast, uncharted regions

of Planet Earth, this is....

Survive!

Six contestants, abandoned hundreds of miles from civilization.

Four clues, each one leading to the next.

One chance to win it all.

One hundred thousand dollars in cash.

And here's your host.... Erik Estrada!

Hello. And welcome to Survive!,

the world's most intense, and dangerous, reality competition.

In a few moments, these six contestants

will begin the adventure of a lifetime.

Let's meet them.

Mitch Adams. He'll carry the shelter.

Peter Dunkirk. He'll carry the compass and other essential tools.

Bruce Charmaine. He will carry the food,

just enough for the first leg of their journey.

Elsa Brouchard, who will carry the water supply.

One day's worth.

Violet Rheems has the medical supplies.

And finally, Amber Trembell,

who carries... nothing.

Nothing but a secret that could make her

the most valuable contestant of them all.

Wait, wait...

You've gotta be kidding me. I thought this was for real.

Listen carefully, all of you.

In a few moments, you will be given a clue.

You must solve that clue, together or on your own.

When you do... yellow marker flags

will lead you to a second clue, which could be miles away

or in the very environment around you.

Four clues in all. Solve them all,

and you'll find a gold flag and win the competition.

And what will you win? Well, that depends.

If all six of you make it to the end together,

it's... one dollar.

Just enough for a cold beer back in civilization,

if you split a six-pack.

I hate beer!

If only five of you reach the final flag, the prize increases tenfold,

ten dollars a piece.

And if only one of you reaches the final flag,

one hundred thousand dollars in cash.

Your packs now contain the personal items you brought with you

and the items you'll be carrying for the entire team.

You are now being fitted with specially-designed helmets.

Each has been fitted with two high-definition video cameras,

internal memory chips, a headlamp,

and solar charging cells. Starting right now,

those cameras will be recording continuously

for 24 hours a day.

You will hike in these helmets. You will eat in them,

and you will sleep in them.

If you attempt to disable the cameras in any way,

you will be eliminated.

There are also video cameras in your monoculars,

and motion-activated cameras at each of the clues

and at other remote locations along your route.

And you will be accompanied by one other person,

just one.

His name is not important.

All you need to know is that

he is a world-class cameraman who has documented,

among other things, three expeditions to the top of Mt. Everest.

If you speak to him, you will be eliminated.

You cannot personally impede another contestant in any way.

If you do, you will be eliminated.

If you are eliminated, or want to quit,

he will use a satellite phone to summon a helicopter,

and your participation in this competition will be over.

You are now being given two gallons of water.

Just enough to make it to the next clue.

A minor point, perhaps, but out here,

you'll quickly learn that water is worth more than all the money in the world.

Good luck,

and welcome to the biggest adventure of your lives.

Oh... my...

Well, that was a little overly dramatic, don't you think?

It's supposed to be overly dramatic.

It's a reality show.

Anybody ready to quit yet?

Looking a little burnt there, Sarge.

All right. Let's do this.

Oh, excuse me.

Um, I think the correct procedure is to elect a leader.

I'm sorry, what's your name again?

Bruce. William Bruce Charmaine.

Do you spend a lot of time in the desert, "Bruce"?

Actually, uh, a group of us go to Palm Springs almost every Easter.

It's a 105 degrees.

We have two gallons of water.

In six hours, that sun's gonna set.

I suggest we read the clue.

- Read it again. - She's read it five times already.

And she'll read it another five, if necessary.

"Count now the foreign treeless plains,

for only southern sun can show the way.

This far, this year, oh.

One for six."

I give up.

Actually, I gave up the first time we read it.

Look, it's simple, I've already explained it.

These are the treeless plains, see?

- No trees. - But what about the...

- Those are cactus, not trees. - Technically, they're yucca.

Whatever.

Look, the southern sun knows the way,

so we follow it, on this day of the "year, oh".

And "one for six"?

One clue for six of us to solve.

"All for one, and one for all." Who cares. Let's go.

Um, I-I think it may be something else.

Oh, I'm sorry, everybody. Sarge, here, has a better idea.

Well, there's another word for treeless plains.

- Um, it's a foreign word. - Oh, steppes!

In Russia, they are called steppes.

Right, "steps", so, um, I think that,

maybe, we should count steps. Um, our steps.

See...

"This far, this year."

This year is 2014.

Plus an "oh".

Twenty thousand, one hundred and forty.

Oh, you're military intelligence!

- What else? - Uh, well, this word, "sun".

Maybe it's "s-o-n", like a man.

That could be Peter because he's Australian.