The Devil Wears Prada director David Frankel (pictured) will serve as the guest judge beside regulars Carrie Fisher and Garry Marshall on the moviemaking competition series On the Lot tonight.

The remaining 15 director finalists have been divided into three groups of five. Last week, the first group of five director finalists â€" Sam Friedlander, Hilary Graham, Trever James, Shalini Kantayya and Adam Stein â€" each premiered a film that he or she wrote, shot and edited in five days. The judges offered their critiques, and viewers voted for their favorite films after the show.

On Tuesday, one of the five will be told "It's a wrap" and will be eliminated from the competition. In addition, the second group of five director finalists will premiere their films for the judges' feedback, and viewers again will vote for their favorites after the broadcast.

On the Lot is produced by Mark Burnett Productions, DreamWorks Television and Amblin Television. Mark Burnett and Steven Spielberg are creators and executive producers. David Goffin serves as executive producer with Darryl Frank, Justin Falvey and Conrad Riggs co-executive producers.

The following is an open letter from Time magazine's TV and media critic, James Poniewozik...

Dear Mark Burnett,
We have fond memories of sultry nights watching Big Brother, Project Runway, the first season of American Idol - hell, even American Juniors. So [I[ was quite the receptive audience for On the Lot, your filmmaking competition. I told people I had faith that you could make this into compelling TV; I even said nice things about The Contender, for God's sake. But you're losing me, and here's why:

 1. The Format. You could have gone in two directions with this show: the boutique, Project Runway approach, where you spend most of your time behind the scenes with the contestants, showing the stress and fights and creative challenges; or the American Idol route, where you parade them on live TV for a home voting audience. Ten times more people watch American Idol, so I guess I can't blame you for making the latter choice, but it totally drains the interest out of your 18 finalists, an indistinguishable mass that I now think of as 17 Finalists Plus the One Guy Who Does All the Special Effects and Will Probably Win.

2. The Host. I will never say anything bad about Ryan Seacrest again. I'll never even say anything bad about Brooke Burke again. The choice of host says a lot about your aspirations for the show, and your choice of second-string entertainment-news host Adrianna Costa - oversmiling, emphasizing every other word with upward-pointed index fingers, referring to everyone as "you guys" - says, "Our show's not quite classy enough to get Jillian Barbarie to host it, so let's settle for a Jillian Barbarie type."

3. The Judges. Since when is everyone in Hollywood so freaking nice? You've managed to convene a panel of Paula Abduls. You have Carrie Fisher, turning every judgment into a self-deprecating joke or Star Wars reference; avuncular Garry Marshall, marveling over and over how amazing it is that they let broads direct pictures these days; and the rotating guest judges, whose assessments of even the lousiest clips conclude, "...but it was really well-made."

You need at least one Simon Cowell or Michael Kors type, who is willing to be blunt with the contestants and able to articulate what's right or wrong with their work. Which brings us to...

Continue Reading...

New host, new show format, and a new time slot on a new night.

If we didn't recognize the judges and the directors, we might have trouble believing this is actually still On The Lot.

With Adrianna Costa now hosting, though, we're ready to study some film. Lots of film. 18 films in all. They better not all suck, at least. Let's get right to it...

Check out this week's episode guide now.

On the second episode of On the Lot, a pair of cuts were made.

With Garry Marshall, Jon Avnet stepped in and judged the short films with Brett Ratner (pictured) and Carrie Fisher. One stood out from the rest, however, as two contestants were eliminated to cut the field down to 24 directors, all yearning to be the next Steven Spielberg.

Which were sent home? And what was the top-rated movie of the night? Check out this week's episode guide now and find out!

And... action!

The 50 hopeful filmmakers starring in On the Lot got a chance to impress judges and viewers for the first time last night. Not everyone succeeded, however.

The pitches made to judges Carrie Fisher (pictured above), Garry Marshall, and Brett Rasner were less than stellar - and a few wishful directors were sent home.

Check out our first episode guide for this new reality show now to learn more.

Premiering tonight, On the Lot is produced by Steven Spielberg and has the good fortune to follow American Idol on FOX this evening. Thanks to TV Guide, here are five things you need to know about the new reality TV show:

1) On the Lot is like YouTube meets American Idol… at least that's how Mark Burnett thinks of it. YouTube and Idol are the constant reference points for Survivor and Apprentice exec producer Burnett, who brainstormed the idea for On the Lot over a meal with the show's other executive producer, Steven Spielberg. Close to 12,000 aspiring directors submitted films, and the top 50 will compete for a development deal at Spielberg's company, DreamWorks.

The deal doesn't guarantee that the winner will see his or her movie in theaters next summer, but it's a lucrative foot in the door. They'll receive $500,000 up front, plus another $500,000 to option scripts and get to work. "In the YouTube universe, we're seeing more and more young filmmakers who have proven to be talented and exciting," Burnett says. "We're going to give one of them an incredible shot."

2) Filmmaking can be complicated… and so can reality shows about filmmaking. On Idol, the contestants sing and you vote. On The Apprentice, they do a task and the Donald fires somebody. But On the Lot, in its early shows, is a little trickier, with a variety of tasks designed to test the skills needed by a director. The top 50 start by pitching a film concept to a panel of judges. The top 36 contestants are divided into 12 groups of three and given 24 hours to shoot a three-page scene. Four of the groups are eliminated, and the remaining 24 each shoot a short using professional actors on one of five sets.

After six more eliminations, the top 18 each make a one-minute movie, which will be aired. At that point, the public begins voting for its favorite, and the process becomes simpler. "Every weekend millions of Americans vote with their wallets by choosing what movies to see," Burnett says. "On this show they're voting with the phone."

3) Carrie Fisher is not Simon Cowell… but she kind of likes him. For the initial episodes, the judges consist of actress and writer Carrie Fisher and directors Garry Marshall (Pretty Woman), Brett Ratner (X-Men: The Last Stand) and Jon Avnet (Fried Green Tomatoes). Fisher is around for the duration, but the other judges will change throughout the series. As with Idol, the judges critique but don't make the decisions once viewers begin voting.

If there's a designated "Simon" on the panel, it won't be Fisher. "I don't want to be that!" she says. "I've stayed in relationships for years rather than break up with someone, because I'd like to avoid confrontation. Who wants to reject someone? But I think Simon is playing a role. It's very unpleasant for the people he's doing that to, but I hear he's a very nice man. In fact, I met him once and he seemed pleasant enough."

4) They're looking for the next Brett Ratner… not the next Robert Altman. It's all about boffo box office. "The public is choosing," Burnett says. "Let's face it, if the public has chosen this person after 13 weeks of watching their films, then they've reached a big, general audience. Somebody may be an artistic, avant-garde filmmaker, but if nobody pays to see their movies, it's not gonna work. Look at how many TV shows have failed miserably. I mean, look at 30 Rock or Studio 60 â€" very well made, I enjoy them, but they [didn't do well]."

5) There's no place for backstabbing and conniving in Hollywood… at least that's what Burnett wants to believe. Burnett's other reality shows often showcase lying, double-crossing and other morally dubious behavior that would seem natural among ambitious youngsters looking to land an agent, a Lexus and a house in Malibu. This time, though, he's not predicting any new Omarosas. "I don't think there'll be any of that backstabbing," he insists. "You don't see that on American Idol. Hey, there are always personalities, and you like some people more than others. But in the end, this is about the films."

It premieres tomorrow night - but what, exactly, is On the Lot? For starters, it's produced by Steven Spielberg. Maybe you've heard of him.

In a reality TV nutshell, aspiring filmmakers show off their talent as they compete to win a development deal with Dreamworks.

Here's how the show will work:

• With the help of celebrity judges, auditions are held to find a group of promising filmmakers.

• The top 50 finalists move on to the semifinals, where they endure a "Hollywood Boot Camp."

• After the boot camp round, 18 finalists are chosen.

• The finalists must produce weekly short films in assigned genres from romance to horror.

• The filmmakers are given the opportunity to work with professional writers, cast, and crew.

• The films are shown on a Film Premiere episode and viewers are given the opportunity to vote for their favorite film.

• The director whose film receives the least number of votes is eliminated.

Sounds promising. As promising as a Laguna Beach-type show set in Nashville? That's hard to say. But we'll be recapping it every week and will let you know.

As always, Mark Burnett is a busy man.

The man behind Survivor and The Apprentice is coming out with a pair of new reality shows this summer. We've talked about one already, Pirate Master.

The other one, On the Lot, teams Burnett with director Steven Spielberg. And the pair has tapped several big-name film vets to help launch their upcoming FOX reality competition.

Carrie Fisher, Brett Ratner, Garry Marshall and Jon Avnet will serve as judges on the first round of the show which debuts May 22 (behind the penultimate American Idol), and continues on May 24.

The program will start with a group of 50 applicants, who are sent to Los Angeles to attend a "Hollywood Boot Camp." They'll meet with the four judges and screen their personal submission film; as well as pitch their project; show and edit a short film within 24 hours; and then shoot a one-page scene within an hour.

The judges then will select the top 18 finalists, who will move on to the first "film premiere" episode May 28.

Fisher's credits, besides her role as Princess Leia in the original Star Wars trilogy, include the book and resulting screenplay Postcards From the Edge. Ratner (X-Men: The Last Stand) most recently helmed the upcoming Rush Hour 3. Marshall's next film, Georgia Rule, opens May 11. Avnet's upcoming projects include directing the thriller, 88 Minutes, as well as cable mini The Starter Wife.

Spielberg and Burnett created and exec produced On the Lot, which is offering a $1 million DreamWorks development deal to its winner. Series comes from DreamWorks TV, Amblin TV and Mark Burnett Prods.; David Goffin also exec produces. Darryl Frank, Justin Falvey and Conrad Riggs are co-exec producers.