{"id":8464,"date":"2021-09-27T09:00:18","date_gmt":"2021-09-27T13:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev2.worldscreen.com\/tvformats\/worldscreen.com\/"},"modified":"2021-09-28T09:12:25","modified_gmt":"2021-09-28T13:12:25","slug":"bad-habits-holy-orders-vows-to-go-global","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvformats\/bad-habits-holy-orders-vows-to-go-global\/","title":{"rendered":"Bad Habits, Holy Orders Vows to Go Global"},"content":{"rendered":"

Crackit Productions\u2019 creative director, Elaine Hackett, talks to <\/em>TV Formats about the international appeal of <\/em>Bad Habits, Holy Orders, a format distributed by Keshet International.<\/em><\/p>\n

Take a group of self-described \u201cparty girls,\u201d who think they’re off to the Big Brother <\/em>house and its requisite popularity contest or Love Island <\/em>to find some ill-advised romance, and drop them off at a convent\u2014where there are no ruthless alliances to be made or men to attract. This is the basic concept of Bad Habits, Holy Orders<\/em>, a format distributed by Keshet International that\u2019s found global success despite\u2014or maybe because of\u2014how it defies certain tenets of the genre in favor of a genuinely fresh idea. Crackit Productions\u2019 creative director, Elaine Hackett, who devised and produced the original format in the U.K. for Channel 5, was inspired to make the series after coming across an article claiming that there was a small uptick of young women contemplating life in a nunnery.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought, wouldn\u2019t it be quite intriguing to take [to a convent] some party girls who are quite materialistic, saying that they can\u2019t find love, not understanding who they want to be, having disappointment in life, too much drinking, too much shagging, not enough loving, not enough understanding who they are,\u201d says Hackett. \u201cYou take that trend\u2014young women who are a bit lost\u2014and you put them in an environment that has really strict rules. Would young women in today\u2019s world, in society, actually go and be nuns? Those were the two worlds colliding. Would it work?\u201d<\/p>\n

Arriving at the convent with expectations of a vastly different reality TV experience adds to the fish-out-of-water culture clash that sets up the Bad Habits, Holy Orders<\/em> format. The women \u201cwere packing miniskirts, stripper heels, bright lipstick, hairpieces, fabulous fingernails,\u201d says Hackett. \u201cThey all thought they were going on a dating show. Then they came to this environment that was so different from a Big Brother<\/em> house or a Love Island<\/em>, where you [have to] get your body on the show, you [have to] get instant likes. You [have to] play a game, and it\u2019s a game about success, making people within that environment like you instantly so that you\u2019re not voted off. There was none of that for this format.\u201d<\/p>\n

But, the format does allow for all of the standard beats that fans of reality TV have come to expect, says Hackett, along with a bit more heart. \u201cWe knew there would be flare-ups, we knew that there would be tears, we knew that there would be emotional revelations,\u201d she explains. \u201cWe knew some of the girls wouldn\u2019t get on. We knew that there\u2019d be a clash of cultures. But amongst all of that, what we hoped within this, is that there\u2019d be a nurturing, an understanding, a sharing, an acceptance of these young women and what they wanted in their world and in their lives, from the nuns.\u201d<\/p>\n

To Hackett\u2019s amazement, however, it isn\u2019t just the aspiring Love Island<\/em>ers that are benefiting from the experience of participating in Bad Habits, Holy Orders<\/em>. The nuns, too, are finding true value in the interactions. \u201cOne of the most surprising factors was how much the nuns missed the presence of these young women, these forceful, energetic, enigmatic characters,\u201d says Hackett. \u201cThe girls brought a joie de vivre<\/em> and a kind of lust for life that the nuns weren\u2019t used to\u2026. To have two completely contrasting worlds and for them both to learn through the experience was incredible. That was something we didn’t expect. We didn\u2019t anticipate the nuns to say the young women have really enriched their lives.\u201d<\/p>\n

Key to creating the environment and the dynamic that Bad Habits, Holy Orders <\/em>requires\u2014no matter the market\u2014is casting the nuns. Finding the ideal young women for the series is not too challenging, according to Hackett. \u201cYou know the type of young women you want; you know you want them to be looking for love, not quite sure who they are, having had some failure in their lives, wanting to explore their own depths of character, feeling maybe overconfident,\u201d she explains. When it comes to the more difficult task of finding the right nuns and order, it\u2019s vital to have both a diverse cast of characters and an environment that will provide a dramatic culture shift.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe order has to be strict enough; it has to have that sort of Mother Superior, \u2018These are my rules!\u2019\u201d says Hackett. \u201cYou also have to have alongside that the fun, younger nun that\u2019s a bit minxy; she\u2019s going to be a bit naughty with the girls. Then you need the ones that are a bit more industrious, show the girls another side of what womanhood can be like\u2014you can work with power tools, you can be feminine, but you can also do everything yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n

To date, Bad Habits, Holy Orders<\/em> has been adapted in the Netherlands for NPO for its Christian channel EO, Belgium for SBS and Italy for Discovery\u2019s discovery+ platform. Further, Keshet International has sold the finished tape of the original series to Hulu in the U.S., Belgium\u2019s SBS, DR in Denmark, Nelonen Media in Finland, Discovery in Italy, NPO in the Netherlands for EO, TVN in Poland and TVNZ in New Zealand. Of all of these markets, most surprising to Hackett has been Italy, where there was a big question of whether or not the format would make it.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen it dropped in Italy, it just landed and it was crazy\u2014people went wild for it, the numbers were brilliant,\u201d says Hackett. \u201cWe never believed that we\u2019d make it directly under the nose of the Vatican\u2026 That was our biggest challenge, but that\u2019s kind of gone away. We needed to get the blessing of the pope, thank you very much, that\u2019s all fine now. [Laughs<\/em>].\u201d<\/p>\n

Hackett goes on to note that despite the setting, the show is not about religion, and the biggest challenge\u2014after landing successfully in Italy\u2014was conveying that to viewers. \u201cWe wanted viewers to know these crazy, hedonistic women who wear very little clothing and have a lust for life\u2014but do they, do they know who they are?\u2014are going to go into a convent. You had to know it was a convent, but you wanted them to know it was going to a convent without too much Jesus.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yet it is the religion and the nuns\u2019 commitment to Jesus that deliver the beats that any reality format worth its salt needs. As a producer, Hackett illustrates, \u201cI want [the young women] to be woken up, I want them to get very little food, I want to take their social media away from them. All of those things were happening in reality. A strict regime\u2014fabulous, because those nuns were on a strict regime. Check. No social media\u2014brilliant, tick, the nuns don\u2019t have social media and won\u2019t allow it. No alcohol! Tick. What modest living. The nuns live on a tiny budget. It ticked every single box that you might put on a Love Island<\/em> or a Big Brother <\/em>cast. For us, it just happened naturally because that\u2019s the way that nuns live their lives.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hackett credits Bad Habits, Holy Orders<\/em>\u2019 success across borders to every territory having nuns and convents or other similar holy orders, and the fascination and curiosity that people have about what goes on behind their doors and who the women are living on the other side. Viewers around the world also recognize the party girl archetype and all that comes with it. And of course, international audiences are reliably drawn to the charming chaos of colliding worlds.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a beautiful moment, whether it\u2019s in German or French or Italian, when the nuns are peeking out the convent windows and they see the girls arriving and the look of horror on the girls\u2019 faces when they realize where they\u2019ve arrived,\u201d says Hackett. \u201cIt\u2019s pure drama, that moment. \u2018What is this? I\u2019m going to live with nuns?\u2019 They don\u2019t expect it and that\u2019s fun\u2026 It could really blow up in our faces as producers, fights and tears, one leaving\u2014I think in most territories at least one contributor either leaves or decides they can\u2019t take it anymore. That\u2019s a sign of your format working! [Laughs<\/em>].\u201d<\/p>\n

On a more serious note, Hackett continues, \u201cThe way nuns live their lives isn\u2019t a simple journey. It might be a very basic life, in terms of material possessions, but they bring so much more to it than the material things. Once the material things have gone, like onions, they start to lift layers and layers and you can see them across the format. Across the series, you can see the girls really becoming who they are\u2026 It feels initially very light and frivolous, but what is actually going on is a much deeper transformation.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Crackit Productions\u2019 creative director, Elaine Hackett, on the international appeal of Bad Habits, Holy Orders, a format distributed by Keshet International.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1033,"featured_media":8465,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pmpro_default_level":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[68,69],"tags":[2339,2337,2338,124],"class_list":["post-8464","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-profiles","category-top-stories","tag-bad-habits-holy-orders","tag-crackit-productions","tag-elaine-hackett","tag-keshet-international","pmpro-has-access"],"yoast_head":"\nBad Habits, Holy Orders Vows to Go Global - TVFORMATS<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvformats\/bad-habits-holy-orders-vows-to-go-global\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Bad Habits, Holy Orders Vows to Go Global - TVFORMATS\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Crackit Productions\u2019 creative director, Elaine Hackett, on the international appeal of Bad Habits, Holy Orders, a format distributed by Keshet International.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvformats\/bad-habits-holy-orders-vows-to-go-global\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"TVFORMATS\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-09-27T13:00:18+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-09-28T13:12:25+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvformats\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2017\/07\/BAD-HABITS-HOLY-ORDER-KESHET-518.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"640\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"360\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Chelsea Regan\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Chelsea Regan\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"8 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvformats\/bad-habits-holy-orders-vows-to-go-global\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvformats\/bad-habits-holy-orders-vows-to-go-global\/\",\"name\":\"Bad Habits, Holy Orders Vows to Go Global - TVFORMATS\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvformats\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2021-09-27T13:00:18+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-09-28T13:12:25+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvformats\/#\/schema\/person\/2a2c6d8fb3c7c8b4220b8877ecffb79a\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvformats\/bad-habits-holy-orders-vows-to-go-global\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvformats\/bad-habits-holy-orders-vows-to-go-global\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvformats\/bad-habits-holy-orders-vows-to-go-global\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvformats\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Bad Habits, Holy Orders Vows to Go Global\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvformats\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvformats\/\",\"name\":\"TVFORMATS\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvformats\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvformats\/#\/schema\/person\/2a2c6d8fb3c7c8b4220b8877ecffb79a\",\"name\":\"Chelsea Regan\",\"description\":\"Chelsea Regan is the managing editor of World Screen. 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