[howard38]

Originally Posted by drcy

It's like those documentaries about someone who survived on his own in the mountains, and you realize "If you're only your own, then who's filming you?"

Though there was a case where it wasn't staged. There is a documentary made up of films of legendary naturalist Dick Proennecke, an older retired gentleman who lived by himself in the most remote Alaska mountain wilderness for 30 something years where most people wouldn't survive one winter (People have literally frozen and starved to death trying). People asked if he was there by himself, how did these of him films exist? Turns out someone gave him a camera and he did indeed film himself, along with keeping a detailed written diary. He'd set the camera on a tripod and do his daily stuff. "Alone in the Wilderness, the story of Dick Proenneke" is an excellent and unusual documentary by the way. The anti-'Reality Television' show, because it's real and unstaged. Expect a detailed, quiet and often meditative film-diary of a different life in a different world, rather than action packed and drama filled-- though he does on occasion encounter grizzly bears, wolverines and wolves, and often carries a rifle on his back for safety. The documentary has proven popular because the details of his daily solitary life are fascinating (including how he does stuff) and the film itself is quietly different.

Aside from natives he met or stayed with Les Stroud was alone during each episode of Survivorman. He and his team did reconnaissance and may have pre-set some things up but during the week or so of each episode he was alone.