Video Story Idea: Graham Dickie and Brian Rolli

We want to do something with visual flair that represents a kind of underground cultural renaissance: glassblowing. While our contact with sources has been inconsistent - when I (Graham) talked to the head of Glass Monkey Art Studio in South Austin about a meeting time, she replied "Define morning" - this is our current idea. It is subject to change.

If our interviewees come through, then we plan on trying to document Austin's vibrant scene as best we can - through studios, their employees, glassblowing shops, and novice glassblowers who are trying to make a career out of it. And we could also explore the legal loophole the profession exists upon, what kind of stock they make, and how it is that somebody can make a living off of getting stuff really hot. 

The main visual interest of the story would be the shots of glassblowing; watching a rod melt, be turned inside out, etc. is mind boggling and beautiful. The gorgeous finished products, too, would be examined, which could add more magnetism to the shots. (Starting with that would be a nice lead into an interview with a quote about the scene at large, which would segue into more technical speak.) 

We could, for example, begin by filming a person in the studio with their starting piece, capture the whole process, then show the finished product. I envision getting a walk-through via sit-down interview, then laying that over b-roll of the person over the kiln.

The text portion would give a brief history of Austin fixtures, examine the economics of the work, and, maybe, fixate on a single person that ends up being the focal point of our story. I could envision one of the owners of a studio having an interesting story to tell. 

Here are some subjects we could interview:

1. Glass Monkey Art Studio or another studio: These businesses frequently hold classes, and they also host veteran glassblowers who do their work there. We'd try to talk to the owner and figure out a bit about their operations. And we would also show the equipment - before and during use.
2. Glass vendor: Smoke shops or head shops are what come to mind immediately. They would give us information about sales, how they get their inventory, and the relationships they have with studios. Also a great place to capture great glass.
3. Law enforcement: Technically something is not defined as paraphernalia until it has been used in conjunction with an illicit substance. You can see how this exists in a gray area. I'd like to talk with a rep about it.

The result would hopefully be a fairly comprehensive overview. We don't have a hook yet since we haven't talked to anybody, but from early impressions I can clearly tell that there are some strong characters involved with the scene. 

-Graham and Brian