ARCHITECTURE: MY SECRET WEAPON IN TELEVISION PRODUCTION
As you may know by now, ARCHCareersGuide.com provides guest essays from those in the architecture career; for some, they are in architecture while others begin with an education in architecture but will pursue careers BEYOND architecture. Today’s guest essay is by Mark Zukowski, Senior Challenge Producer for unscripted television shows such as Survivor, Floored, and Big Brother. Read his story from architecture to television production and become inspired. To read about others, read our publication, Careers in Architecture and Beyond.
I can only open one eye because I am covered head-to-toe in mud. I lean against the wall and hoist my teammates up one-by-one. Once they are up, I get a running start, scramble up the wall and grab a teammate’s hand who pulls me to the top. Then we get started on the puzzle…
Survivor
Survivor
That is a typical day working on building and testing the challenges for Survivor. I am a Senior Challenge Producer working in unscripted Television Production.
A Challenge Producer is responsible for pitching, designing, managing construction, mapping out gameplay, writing rules and judging competition segments within Television Production. That means anything from obstacle courses to puzzles to trivia to giant moving dance floors – and everything in between.
I have developed and produced over 30 seasons of television since pivoting from architecture to television production in 2018. I can confidently say that the pivot was the scariest but also the best decision I have made.
Throughout and after college, I worked at several architecture firms. I was never fired, but I kept quitting and trying new firms because without fail I found myself feeling burnt out and unfulfilled at each one.
“Well if I could be designing ANYTHING, what would it be?”
This is what I asked myself – and it changed the course of my career and my life. Instead of looking for job openings at architecture firms, I looked inside myself. I love design and architecture – but I also love sports, games, competitions, puzzles and television.
I reached out to established Challenge Producers and respectfully explained my background and my curiosity. Once I got my foot in the door, I moved to Los Angeles to give myself a shot at it and the rest is history.
My Television Production career quickly became everything I wanted my Architecture career to be.
So many architectural skills translate over to producing television segments. Pitching ideas, iterating designs, contracting work, managing budgets and project schedules, quick visual communication, structural and layout considerations… the transferrable skills I have taken over to my new career are innumerable.
The project timelines for television sets and architectural projects are shockingly similar.
Analyze the Prompt > Brainstorm > Refine Ideas > Pitch Ideas > Design > Iterate > Build
Pivoting to television production allowed me to still use the architectural skills for which I had been trained – but instead apply them to projects that excite me while using a short-form workstyle that I prefer. Instead of projects taking years, they take weeks. I’m constantly adapting designs, building, testing, collaborating and problem-solving.
Unbeknownst to me at first, my architectural skills set me apart from my competition in the television industry. I was able to quickly rise through the ladder of production positions due to my hunger to learn and succeed in a new industry combined with the secret weapon of an architectural skillset in my back pocket.
On Floored (2020) I assisted in the design and construction of a 20×20’ dancefloor that tilts, spins and drops. I learned how to operate and program the dancefloor to move along to songs and knock dancers into the foam pit below.
On Big Brother (2018-Present) I have produced a wide variety of challenges. From obstacle courses, to puzzles, to endurance competitions and trivia. Each challenge needs to stand on its own as a creative concept but also live inside a visually appealing world.
Every few months I am working on something new and tackling a new challenge with a new team. Every show allows me to learn and adapt my design skills to fit a new prompt – often simultaneously managing several projects at once.
Challenge Production lies at the intersection of design and fun. It’s rapid-fire creativity, construction and problem-solving. The prompts I’m designing for now are rooted in entertainment and fun, which remedied the unfulfilled and burnt-out feelings I was having at architecture firms.
Challenge Production lies at the intersection of design and fun…
In both architecture and in television production, there is no better feeling than seeing your design come to life. I live for the moments when the set is built, big money is up for grabs, contestants are in starting positions and the host yells GO!
(I am currently working on The Amazing Race Season 38, check it out Fall 2025 on Paramount+!)
Mark Zukowski, Senior Challenge Producer
After graduating with degrees in architecture/communication from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Mark has worked as a construction and design project manager at multiple firms in Chicago. Then, he pursued his passion of using his skills to create television and film.
Now, he has been producing TV for seven years and has an extensive knowledge of how to blend his architecture, construction and television production experience into creating valuable content.
If what you have read inspires you, Mark is willing to be contacted directly about his experience.
Instagram: @MarkZuko
https://markzukowski.crevado.com/
