What happens in college often tends to stay in college.
It is an outlet for freedom where parents and the other folks back home are unaware of that party from last night, that hookup from the night before or that mental breakdown an hour ago.
"College Life," a new series that premiered Monday on MTV, has changed this freedom.
Four students attending school in Madison, Wis., were equipped with camcorders to tape their freshman years without producers, cameramen and directors. Here is an interview with two of the cast members, Jordan, 19, and Kevin, 18, on their reaction to their lives away from home exposed to the world.
Q: What went through your mind when you first began filming yourself?
K: How absolutely awkward it was carrying a video camera and having to talk into it around people. It was one little camcorder, not even state of the art. I never had any experience with one, so it was pretty much a homemade video of me and my buddies. I have been doing it for almost six and half months now, so after the first month it became second nature.
J: To be honest, I was a bit uncomfortable with the camera first. I didn't know what to shoot or was well-versed in the production of it. It got easier over time.
Q: Was it hard for you to stay true to who you are?
K: Unfortunately for my parents, I did not hold back at all. I put a lot of faith into the editors. There is definitely going to be things I regret or things that happen that I am prone to regret. That's reality. Whoever has gone to the college can connect to some of the things that are going on and some of the things I'm not too proud to show my parents, and that's college for ya.
J: I have a good sense of who I am. I'm not too nervous because I am not really fazed by the type of people who would pass judgment on me without meeting me. If you are that type of person, I don't really care about being your friend.
Q: Are you afraid of your parents' or others reaction to the show?
K: They always have their concerns. They know I like to have good time. They have seen a couple clips of it, and my mom had a couple of problems. I show my uncut personal life to my parents. Honestly, I would be perfectly content with all of this if my grandparents, parents and little brother weren't watching it. But I'm just going to have to get used to my parents knowing about my social life.
J: Everything that I recorded on camera I feel I am comfortable with my parents seeing and the community seeing. If you want to judge me off this television show, I don't understand how people who know me for my whole life, for 18 years, change their judgment of me from how I am perceived on this show.
Q: Do you think this reality show is impacted because the producers, director and cameramen are taken away?
K: It is definitely a lot more uncensored, a lot more real. Sometimes it would be a lot easier with a crew around. It is MTV. It is not the Discovery Channel.
J: MTV did a great job giving me guidelines, telling me what was good for TV. It got easier overtime. They never really suggested activities for me to do or ever pressure me into doing anything.
Basically what they wanted is if you start a story, they want an end to it. They didn't give specific things to film.
Q: What has this experience taught you?
K: With the filming aspect, the one thing I'm going to have to worry about is growing thick skin. There is definitely going to be a couple of things I'm not too proud of but it happens.
J: My family was never big on home videos. I have always been really intrigued by documenting your life. This is just such a good opportunity to do that.
