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Actually, Andreas Hutzler doesn't have any time.
He has to take care of Emilia, who was toying with Fynn, even though he is very attached to Greta, who meanwhile tells every camera that she is “open to everyone” and “everything”.
Emilia, Fynn and Greta take part in the dating show "Love Island" on RTL2 - and they are Hutzler's job.
Six days a week he is currently commenting on the advances made by the "Islanders", as the candidates are called in the program.
In doing so, he succeeds in what is not even attempted in many other trash TV formats: a funny but well-meaning look at the interpersonal mess that happens when young people sit on top of each other in a villa on Tenerife for 24 hours to find “great love”.
Hutzler has been writing for "Love Island" since the first season in 2017.
To do this, he says on the phone, you have to have a “portion of class bullies”.
We Hutzler got it after all - in one of his short breaks from Emilia, Fynn and Greta.
ICONIST:
Mr. Hutzler, what do you love about your job?
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Andreas Hutzler:
Just like journalism, television writing is a great job for people who are not really suitable for any other job.
A shortened attention span, a certain willingness to communicate, curiosity and a somewhat childish instinct to play - with that you are in good hands with television.
ICONIST:
And how did you become a writer on “Love Island”?
Hutzler:
Like most TV writers, I'm a freelance artisan and I'm booked for individual projects.
For “Love Island” RTL2 was looking for an author with taste and sensitivity.
But he didn't have time, instead they took me.
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ICONIST:
What does a typical working day look like for you?
Hutzler:
I come to the set in the morning and gradually get the cut segments for which I then write the lyrics.
The wonderful Simon Beeck speaks immediately.
ICONIST:
On your homepage you describe your age as “born in the last century”.
Do you find it difficult to empathize with the thoughts and feelings of the early 20s who take part in the show?
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Hutzler:
I think every generation is stupid in their own way when it comes to love affairs.
Once you've seen that, it's not that difficult to put yourself in the shoes of younger people.
Today they have cell phones and they can post optimized photos of themselves on Instagram.
But I don't think that makes them happier either.
Andreas Hutzler on the set of "Love Island" - at the moment he writes gags every day for the fifth season
Source: © RTLZWEI / Paris Tsitsos / PARIS TSITSOS
ICONIST:
Young people often speak in front of the camera that they long for “deeper conversations”.
What do you mean by that - and have you ever witnessed such conversations?
Hutzler:
I think many people understand deeper conversation to mean listening to them patiently when they talk about themselves.
Seen in this way, I have already witnessed many deep conversations here.
ICONIST:
Programs like “Love Island” are ultimately only about one
thing: the twists and turns of
human interaction.
How do you manage to comment on this with humor, but not make fun of the protagonists?
Hutzler:
“Love Island” is a very lovingly made show.
And I really grow fond of the "islanders" every time - okay, most of them.
Mocking people you don't like at all isn't much fun anyway - except, of course, when it comes to our politicians.
ICONIST:
Which joke of your “Love Island” career are you particularly proud of?
Hutzler:
There is one, but I don't really want to reveal it because it's so tasteless that even die-hard colleagues groan.
But whatever.
We once had a game called penis kneading on Love Island.
The girls had to recreate their partner's penis from clay.
And the spokesman said: “Today the girls can show what they're made of.” I know it hurts.
What I love about the saying: It is actually completely harmless.
The listener has to first create the nonsense in his own head.
He becomes an accomplice.
Shared guilt, I like that.
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ICONIST:
You don't just joke, you also classify situations for the audience.
A current example: In a game the women should kiss the men.
Some chose to kiss on the mouth, others kissed the cheek.
Some men then praised the cheek kisses for their "honorary action" - which unsettled the women who had kissed properly.
From the off the speaker took a clear position: Honor is an empty word.
Hutzler: Addressing that
like that was a decision made by the whole team.
But that was also very important to me personally, because I have always found this double standard, according to which a man is allowed to let off steam and the woman has to be nice and good, to vomit.
Just like the currently popular honorary gossip.
When I hear Honor, I always think of Barschel in the tub.
The game in question: The women should kiss, no matter how, the men were blindfolded
Source: RTLZWEI, ITV Studios Germany
ICONIST:
In some other reality formats, the behavior of the protagonists stands for itself.
This is also the case in RTL's “Summer House of Stars”: When there were bullying-like scenes there last autumn, it went uncommented.
Do you think the show should have said more about that?
Hutzler:
When watching television, you should always be careful about evaluating colleagues' situations.
Fate is a
bitch
, tomorrow you can have just as much trouble on your cheek yourself.
But I am sure that this matter was discussed intensively and in a result-oriented manner at the station afterwards.
ICONIST:
Can you remember a scene on "Love Island" where you couldn't find the words?
Hutzler:
There were already too many to remember.
A few episodes ago, the entertaining Adriano got over to kissing his partner Bianca.
The kiss was short and not exactly Olympic level.
Then he debated the quality of the kiss with himself for several minutes.
As an author, you come to the limits of your powers.
ICONIST:
There are supposed to be people who
label
programs like “Love Island” as superfluous trash TV.
Hutzler:
Well, first of all, “Love Island” is not trash, but excellently crafted noble trash.
And the show is great fun - if you are into it.
What should be superfluous about it?
I get the impression that a lot of people think it is a mark of culture and intelligence not to like TV entertainment.
Unfortunately, that's not the case at all, you can still be downright simple-minded.
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ICONIST:
You are not only writing for “Love Island”, for example, you also wrote “The perfect dinner” for almost 300 episodes.
What's going on in one show that you would never do in the other?
Hutzler:
“The perfect dinner” is a neat, home-style conversation with a wink.
“Love Island” is a wild party where everyone ends up making out while drunk.
And in both cases the speaker should choose his or her words according to the occasion.
ICONIST:
Did you learn anything about love while working on four and a half seasons of "Love Island"?
Hutzler:
More than I would like.
For example, that all people would always like to be completely in love and at the same time never want to lose control.
Or that most men seem a lot more relaxed when they are with other guys than with their loved one.
In my impression, women are more relaxed when they are with their guy, but only if he tries at least a little bit, which he usually doesn't do.
Pat Benatar was right, love is a battlefield.
About the person:
Andreas Hutzler was a freelance journalist before entering the television business in the late 1990s.
First he wrote for the print magazine “TV total” (was discontinued in 2001) and the scripted afternoon format “Die Jugendberaterin” on ProSieben, which ran until 2003.
Since then, Hutzler has worked on many TV productions, from “The Perfect Dinner” on VOX to “Die Geissens” on RTL2.
In addition to "Love Island", he will soon be capturing the "fight of the reality stars" again, which is to go into a second season.
The fifth season of “Love Island” will run until March 29th every day except Saturday at 10:15 p.m. on RTL2. The episodes that have already been broadcast are available from the TVNow streaming service.