“The precision required is mind blowing, this is a video you have to see. Thanks Frank Nicotero” –Chad Youngblood via Frank Nicotero
I don’t know Frank Nicotero, but I went to elementary school with Chad Youngblood. Chad posted the above on Facebook and I spotted it last Tuesday morning. Since the socks I wear are rarely if ever matching, a description of mind blowing precision sounded like it might contain useful information.
Two minutes into the video, I paused it and used it as an excuse to get my night owl, ten-year old daughter out of bed. She sat on my lap and we watched more of the video. About half way through, she said, “What city did they make this in? It looks nice.” We pointed out the parts that seemed near misses, where the timing slipped a bit and a dancer needed to briefly pick up her pace. Sophia wondered if the couple were really getting married. I was impressed with the timing of the kayakers. Only at the very end was the purpose of the video revealed.
I have never been to Grand Rapids, MI, but from what I saw on the video, I would pass this judgment on the city. The streets are clean and the grass is green. The people are creative and have impressive organizational skills. They also aren’t too uptight, and are okay with looking a bit silly. They throw good parties and are friendly. They are also super cool under the pressure of a steady cam video camera. These are all things I think are true of Reno, well, except for the streets and grass.
The video was made in response to a Newsweek article published in January that listed Grand Rapids as one of the US’s top ten dying towns. They filmed it in one take with a budget of $40,000, all of the money was donated. While I will not say Reno is a dying town, it could and should come up with something smart and clever like what the folks in Grand Rapids thought of. (But maybe use a shorter song).
The view count for the video on YouTube is approaching 2 million, and the story of the video got four plus minutes of airtime on “All Things Considered.” That is a whole lotta media love, for not much cash. Congratulations to them, they have set the bar high. I can only imagine the sighs of relief and the high fives when someone yelled, “Cut!”
-Leilani]]>
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