Eight Minutes To Demonstrate The Art Of Bonsai

BonsaiMon

Hi Folks,
I recently received an invitation to demonstrate the art of Bonsai on a local cable TV station as a special interest segment shown on sat mornings. Here's the body of the email received..
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… Let me introduce myself, … I work for the City of Chesapeake in their Public Communications Department. I am a television producer for the city's municipal channel, WCTV-48. I produce a program called "that other show". The focus of the program is to share with the local citizens fun things to do/places to go/concerts, plays or movies to go see, etc. I'd would like to invite you to come on the show and share your knowledge of caring for bonsai's. I feel our viewers would find this very interesting. The program has 2 hosts and they would interview you and would also take part in demonstrating bonsai gardening tips alongside you. This means you would have to bring a couple of bonsai for demonstration purposes. The entire segment would be around 6 to 8 minutes long. I plan to tape the program next Friday, January 30th at 10am…..
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So I contacted this person and they seemed slightly knowledgeable as to what is Bonsai .. even referred to it as an art. This was good! Right, Andy? .. I have been teaching the basics and some low key lectures at clubs, local festivals linked with the agriculture area, and feel comfortable with a basic premise that Bonsai is what we do to these plants to create an illusion of age. This 8-minute time frame has me a bit puzzled. I know I have tell them the questions to ask, … So … my hope in this thread is to gather alternatives other than where I see the art.

Any thoughts on a guided 8 min ‘This is .. Bonsai .’

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peace,
tom stoute

http://bonsaiinsights.spaces.live.com/

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Bonsainut

Hey Tom,
Awesome, what a great opportunity! I have been involved in a couple of these kind of things. Every time what I have prepared to say etc. went right out the window as the Host takes complete control of the situation.

My advice is to get the best specimins you can, set them up on stands, polish your pots, groom the soil, basically like setting up for a show.

You know the usuall questions are coming. How old ?, how much water ?, hard to take care of ?, Blah blah blah.

Be excited about bonsai, express the benifits of the hobby and just be yourself. You will do great, You lucky.

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Not Affilialted with the forum of the same name...
The original.. like 'nut classic

Ralph

Wow Tom, that is really cool! What would a painter do to introduce people to their painting art in 8 minutes? You gotta plug your local clubs at the end for people who want more info (and bonsaitalk on the net if you are so inclined!). A little quick history don't hurt either. Of course have them ask you how long you have been doing bonsai, and how/why you got started, this is after all "your" 8 minutes, and a quick profile of the artist gives it that human side
And don't for get to videotape it, and get permission to put an .avi on your website, so we can all see it!!!!

BonsaiMon

Bonsainut.. you are so right, I am lucky. I get a feeling from my phone conversation that you are also right about any plans I may have to direct the 8 min will go out the window. Don't usually have a problem being myself.. lol ..especially when it comes to my favorite passion, living art.
Ralph.. local clubs plug is a must and one for BonsaiTALK .. after all this forum is a club of sorts too.
..thanks for the words of incouragement and I will definately be getting a copy...

__________________
peace,
tom stoute

http://bonsaiinsights.spaces.live.com/

David Yedwab

Mon: I do an annual talk at a horticulture class at our state university here in NJ (Rutgers). Here the students have basic horticulture knowlegde and interest. The two hour session flies and well I prepare to talk about the history and art and tools and ... it generally winds up being a talk about the trees I've brought with me.

Also, I've done a few short TV spots around my profession. Being prepared for wherever the interviewer wants to go is impossible -- the "host" will drive it.

So, prepare, repare , prepare, be visual, and do plug the local and Internet clubs (esp. BonsaiTalk)

Let us know how it goes. And think fast, speak slow!!!

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David Yedwab

Chip Smith

I think i would bring in a decent cheap piece of nursery stock ... Maybe a Japanese Holly, or boxwood or whatever you think you could do a quick and dirty style with, and have something a year or so old to show at the end. Kind of a "you can do it, here's how" and "it's not expensive or hugely difficult" ... of course steer them away from those awful little juniper seedlings ...

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Chip Smith
Nashville's Second-best Jazz Whistler

K.A. Rutledge

Great opportunity, Mon. The worst possible use of that blink in time would be to "demo" bonsai styling. The way to best present the art of bonsai is to do as "Nut" said and have a beautiful display set up - the whole works: specimen, stand, companion(s). Then, you're free to actually talk and be personable, rather than harried and messy.

This sort of feature would do several important and positive things:

- show the art (display is the heart of bonsai - the rest is technique and horticulture)

- get viewers interested/curious as to what happens to achive such a beautiful image/display

- Allow you to talk pleasantly with the host and leave the difficult stuff out of the picture (letting viewers seek and find out how all of that works...)

- You would not contribute to the parade of bastardization of "banzai" junk one finds, but rather depict a special and intriguing art.

In any even, best of luck to you and please do report how things go.

Kind regards,
Andy Rutledge
www.andyrutledge.com/palaver/main.htm
zone 8, Texas

David Yedwab

PS As Andy suggests, the trees I bring with me, and yours should be too, are actually displays.

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David Yedwab

RonMartin(deceased)

I have been on more of these things than I care to count. When I first started I was petrified. Went and wrote out what I was supposed to go over. Studied like crazy. Took a ton of things with me. Tools , pots, trees, books. You name it.
Got to the station, the reporter came out and selected 5 trees. I lugged them into the studio. The cameraman picked out three that were "photogenic"
The reporter spent a few minutes talking to me before the show.
The show started and I was asked questions that they knew I had answer to and it was over before I knew it was over.
I looked good because of the reporter. Trust me they are more worried about ratings than you are. They will make you look good. It is their job.
If you look bad then they look bad. Just enjoy the limelight.
Grab a couple of your favorite trees and just enjoy yourself. They will do all the work.