In his new exclusive uInterview, Nate Boyer spoke about how hosting the new Discovery reality show Survive The Raft, especially dealing with the differing opinions of each passenger and the conflicts that ensued.
Boyer explained to uInterview founder Erik Meers that the show is based on an 1973 experiment by anthropologist Santiago Genovés.
“He put 10 people on a raft from radically different backgrounds and they floated from the Canary Islands in Spain to Mexico – 101-day trip. And you know these people with obviously their different beliefs and backgrounds, they brought different skills to the table right,” he said. “And that trip was not without controversy, it was not without struggle. I mean they’re floating across the Atlantic, that’s not gonna be easy for anybody. But you know these people also, I guess, found ways to come together through all this and help each other through the trip and I think they all learn quite a bit.”
Discovery decided to recreate this experiment with a group of Americans, who have widely different views on many issues. The premise of the show is for people to put aside their difference and learn how to work together.
“You know 50 years later we’re still very divided and maybe over some different things but it’s kind of a similar feeling across the country and even the world,” he said. “So we’re gonna put people today on a raft and we’re gonna be in the Panama – excuse me the Pearl Islands – down in Panama and you know these people they’re not all going to get along, they’re going to be hand-picked to disagree actually.”
Boyer explained that he was chosen to be the host due to his professional background. “Being in the military and playing football and kind of being around these different groups of people whether it’s here in the states or overseas,” he said. The producers believed him to, “be uniquely qualified to host the show and kind of be a part of this experience with us.”
The goal of the show is for people to be able to work together despite the differences and challenges they may face. “It makes it challenging and it makes it, for some people including myself you know there are lessons that I need to learn,” Boyer shared. “And we all need to kind of continue to challenge ourselves and look at different perspectives. Think about things from different points of view.”
He spoke specifically about the group, which he calls his “crewmates,” and how the people were specifically chosen to have different backgrounds from each other. “Boy this group, so different I mean you know from all corners of the country and very different, as you say, religion, sexual orientation, politics, hobbies you know just skill sets all of it, just very different.”
The cast has to face the problems they encounter on the raft. “You can’t just run away from it, you gotta face it head-on every day for 21 days and then you got to work together to try to earn some money,” he said.
Boyer mentioned that the most challenging part for him was helping people work through their problems, especially facilitating difficult conversations that not everybody wanted to address.
“We have you know a very organic conversation and I’m not only like fostering that, I have to kind of push that sometimes, you know what I mean. So that was really hard because I know there were some deeply personal things that people were struggling with and they were talking about it but maybe not with the people they should be talking about it with.”
He described this process as being a “conductor” to try to help people find, “about this and see if you can find some common ground you know.”
The most valuable lesson he learned from the entire experience was trying not to make assumptions about people when he first met them.
“I of course am gonna make judgments about each one of them,” he said. “I’ll bet that this is the one that just can’t handle the pressure and how about that’s the one who is going to be so stuck on being right and set in their ways they won’t be able to flex and they’ll be out there for themselves.”
While it is natural to make these judgments, he was often shown to be wrong later.
“I was proven wrong time and time again and I love that,” he said. “That’s one of my favorite things just in the human experience when people prove you wrong you know and you’re so sure that this person would make the “wrong” choice and they don’t, you know what I mean, and they rise above that and they show you that anybody’s capable of being a great teammate you know and changing.”
Escape the Raft is now airing on the Discovery Channel and Max.
