I think I have now danced with seven television production companies.
Lots of people really wanna be on tv. So they will jump through hoops to meet their tv needs.
I want to infect brains with my
permaculture stuff. So I have tried to get things to work out.
I think, in the end, I have a physical beauty that is perfect for radio. Setting that aside ...
They first have an hour long phone call. Then they do about five video skype sessions. You have no sign a document saying that you will play with only them (I now insist that this document be simple, fit on one page, and be limited to 90 days). Then they send out a camera crew (might be two people, might be three). They take lots of video for two days - so you gotta jump through their hoops for two days. Then you have three more phone calls. You get paid zero. Everybody on their end got paid really well.
If the show takes off, they might give you some tiny coin. But odds are you get nothing.
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At the same time I have appeared in about nine documentaries. It was easy. Somebody asked if they could stop by on a very exact date about three months in the future. They arrive, I sit in a chair and
answer questions while they video. They leave. No contracts. They did their research. Easy.
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The television company says stuff like "we want to make a show about you" or "about what you do" or "about permaculture" or something. And I think I will infect brains and get something like $100,000 per year to put toward my projects. One company even put up an idea of how I might spend $2 million on projects.
I think it could be worth it. But I now feel like it takes a LOT of time away from my other stuff.
Another production company called me today ... I found myself directing them to the people at ant village. Maybe somebody there will be tv worthy.
In the end, it seems like to make it work I needed to make a show for them. I need to do the work to make a great show. They then show up with cameras, do their thing,
feed it in to their tv engine, and then it is done.
I just don't seem to have it in me to carry such a show. Especially since it seems that "the deal" is that they get paid millions, but I get paid zero. I feel my current path is to come up with the money to keep projects moving forward.
Maybe when the ATI test is done, and is a success, then the tv people will want to do a show, but THEY will carry the show. I can just show up and it gets done.