Video Shoots and Conference Preparations

I have just returned from a four-day video shoot in chilly Cleveland for the Minwax Company, which I had hoped would give me a story to tell about a trip over to the popular Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. But that was not to be. I was up by five each day, memorizing scripts for that day’s shoot which started at eight o’clock. We generally broke around noon for a brief lunch before making our way back to the set, which had been built to mimic a garage workshop. It was there that we filmed four videos a day on various aspects of staining, filling and finishing wood furniture and hardwood floors. We stopped each day around six, then put any necessary finishing touches on our props for the next morning’s round of videos.

All of this was in sharp contrast to a Cleveland television show I did last Saturday morning before catching my flight back to Asheville. On the video set we shot each segment as many times as it took to get everything perfect: props, camera angles, close-ups, shadows, can placement, background sounds, brush strokes, hand movements, lighting, my clothes and, of course, my delivery. The director could often be heard saying to me, “That was perfect, Bruce, now can you say it a little slower?” Or faster? Or with more energy? Or with a bigger smile? Eventually he would shout from behind his monitor, “Great! That was perfect! Now let’s do a backup.”

For the Saturday morning television show, I arrived at the station at seven with my props, cans, brushes and rags. I had about forty-five minutes to set up my demo table, go over my outline with the floor director, and chat a few minutes with the show’s host, an attractive mother of two little girls who seemed genuinely interested in my home improvement segment.

But as the clock ticked down to my scheduled on-air time and the crew began wheeling three robotic cameras into position, all staring directly at me, a familiar nervousness returned. I had to remind myself that, unlike the previous days’ video shoots, there would be no second, third or fourth chance to correct any mistakes I made. If I reached for a brush, a rag, a board or a can, it had better be there. If the host asked me what color of stain I was using, I had better know it. And if the floor director signaled the host to wrap the segment up, I had better have finished each step of my demonstration. With live television, there is no going back for a second take.

But all went well, and so I have now returned to Asheville to help Alex put the finishing touches on the Arts and Crafts Conference packets of information that will be going out later this week. The sixteen pages of information cover pre-conference workshops, small group discussions, the Asheville Art Museum’s event, the Preservation Society house tours, name badge forms and much, much more.

Just so you know, we mail these packets to those of you who have registered for the Arts and Crafts Conference through either the Omni-Grove Park Inn or my office. If you have registered, but do not receive a packet by January 1, please call us at (828) 628-1915.

If you have not yet registered for the 30th National Arts and Crafts Conference, please call the Omni-Grove Park Inn at (828) 252-2711, asking for Kelly or Michelle in Group Reservations. If you are not planning to stay at the GPI, then call my office at (828) 628-1915 to register for the three-day seminar and shows package.

As always, updated information on the conference can be found at www.Arts-CraftsConference.com.

We hope to see you for this three-day celebration of everything Arts and Crafts.

Until next Monday,

“If you wait until you have enough time, it will never get done.”

Bruce