When I decided to take on the Earth Shelter Project, I was at a tough point in my career. I was terribly burned out from fixing other people's problems, dealing with difficult people, and from building so many houses. I had to dig deep within myself to see what I was really on this planet to do.
The idea to take on the Earth Shelter Project and to film every step of the project in HD video came to me one evening while in deep thought. My idea then, was to film the process of building the World's largest Earth Shelter project and let the story unfold as it was told. Recently, I sat down with a production team to discuss the real possiblility of getting this documentary on TV. For those of you who have seen the short videos that get posted on vimeo.com about this project have had a chance to see some of what the documentary will show. A goal with this documentary is to showcase a sustainable project in a positive manner, although, we will incorporate a number of moments where we were fit to be tied with the manufacturer of the Earth Shelter system we used for the project.
We have started to pick up sponsors to cover the costs of production, editing, and graphics that we will need to put this two part documentary together. We have been traveling around and filming segments that will be part of the documentary. In a month, we have a two week filming schedule that will take us to Colorado, Washington State, Oregon, and talks are in the works now to get us to Bayport Minnesota for a two-day shoot.
This documentary will be used to get our feet in the door, as the production team is discussing a weekly television show to start filming in the Spring of 2011. I wanted TV more than actual building for many years now. My point of getting into building in the first place, was because no one else was doing it. Now, there are companies that are stepping up to the plate and getting better at sustainable building. I am teaching builders and architects now how to build more sustainably and the majority of my schedule is filled with consulting, teaching, and filming for TV.
Why the transition so quickly? Well, when you get a chance to do something, you can't lose any momentum. Using television as a medium to put out my message is so much more powerful than what I have done in the past. The past few years have been so rewarding and educational. For those of you who have a Hybrid Home, enjoy it, and know that you have a home that helped change a generation. Those homes are so well built and for such a low price, that never again will anyone see such a generous offer to help lead a change. I made the decision recently to take on only a select number of hand picked projects for the sake of my continued desire to research cutting edge, progressive building techniques. I made that decision for no other reason, than to get back on track with my original goal of building for the sake of research so that I could teach others what I learned.
I am pleased to see more organizations stepping up and properly representing themselves in this green movement. For me, I need to always grow and improve. That is one reason why I have decided to lean more on consulting and building projects that continue to push the envelope.
The documentary is going to be incredible. Test marketing of the video content has gone over with rave reviews, and that is exciting! We will be offering the documentary to the networks later this year with the help of some connections that we have in the business.
I mentioned this before in this blog, but I challenged my self to not get caught up in one moment of life, but rather, to focus on an entire career. I feel strongly that those that ride certain waves are destined to reach the break, and that can be a very difficult thing to overcome. Living life all over the country during the past five years has connected me with so many amazing people. I have many mentors now, and they agree, living for a moment is fine for some, but for those who want to sustain in their personal and business lives, building a career rich in excitement and dignity is a sure fired way to check out with a smile on one's face.
I hope all is well with everyone, for me, I am smiling and living life to the fullest.
