I recently watched the first episode of Philippe Starck's "Design for Life" reality show.

In an effort to find a new generation of British design talent, Philippe Starck, one of the world's best known product designers, invites 12 hopefuls to a school of design he has set up in Paris.

Starck (to me) has always been rather contradictory in his design philosophies.. nothing frivilous and unnecessary, but often creates intensly lavish and unnecessary products or environments. Controversial, but nonetheless beautiful and ironic.

Even if Starck chose the designers based on portfolios alone, I wonder how much of this show is 'reality' versus production. 'Design for Life' is great for the publicity of not only Starck, but also the profession of Industrial Design, raising awareness (much like Gary Hustwit's Objectified), bringing design to the surface (no pun intended) and making people aware that many products would not exist without designers.

More episodes at BBC