Cigar documentary

Grahamcracker

Hey guys,

I am a young Writer, and filmmaker, and a new cigar enthusiast. After talking with the owner of my local B&M I got to thinking, there really has not been any form of documentary to show tobacco products in a positive light. The social benefits of cigar lounges, conventions, trades ect. All that is thrown around in the media is how smoking anything will kill us all and how gross it is. It seems to me that in moderation cigar's, pipes, and even cigarettes are completely fine. Not to mention they are a great way to meet people and an excellent hobby, just like collecting wine's. So I got to researching and I would like to inform the community that to fill some down time while I finish writing my next film, me and my small crew of guys are going to embark in creating a documentary that will show the social benifits to tobacco products primarily pipes and, cigars.  We have all the equipment and crew set up, and the support of a large cigar lounge in Southern california.

What I would like to find out from all of you it:

1. Would you be interested in this idea if you saw it come to a film festival or to dvd in a store near you?

2. What would you like to see in this documentary things that you think would help us really show the positive side of the cigar world.  example (conventions, trades, collections)

3. If we came to your area do you have any recomendations on cool hot spots for cigar enthusiests? Where we could get some interveiws?

4. Who would you be most interested in seing us interveiw? What would help us connect not just to cigar enthusiests but the general public as well?

Thanks guys we appriciate your help,

Graham Robbins

bigharpoon

That sounds like a great idea for an independent documentary. I'd be interested in watching it for sure. I'd also like to see some interviews with the families that grow and produce the cigars. I think it would be great footage to see the land where it all comes from and the heritage involved in family members learning a trade that passes down through the generations as well as the art and skill involved in producing cigars. Good luck with the filming.

Garen B

First and foremost, you have to bust down the idea in people's minds that cigars are lumped together with cigarettes, if you mention them being lumped together, then people will automatically shut down and stop listening due to the way the media has portrayed cigarettes. Aside from that, I think it would be a pretty cool idea, it'd be nice to stop hearing about tobacco being thrown in a bad light.

Try asking Alex or one of the other guys at C.com for an interview, maybe through Skype or something akin to that.

madurofan

Garen B:

First and foremost, you have to bust down the idea in people's minds that cigars are lumped together with cigarettes, if you mention them being lumped together, then people will automatically shut down and stop listening due to the way the media has portrayed cigarettes. Aside from that, I think it would be a pretty cool idea, it'd be nice to stop hearing about tobacco being thrown in a bad light.

Try asking Alex or one of the other guys at C.com for an interview, maybe through Skype or something akin to that.

Great idea Graham. I agree with Garen here. The first step in showing cigars and/or pipes in a positive light is to eliminate the idea that they are even related to cigarettes. Cigarettes are an addiction, a drug, cigars are a hobby.

I personally believe aside from this idea, which is a great one, that people need to understand how many latin american countries are dependant on this industry.

Grahamcracker

awesome ideas guys, so what I gather is this,

-Break the bond people have in there minds putting cigarettes and cigars together. Explain the differences.

-Shoot the rollers and the art behind making cigars. Also the family life style.

-Show how foreign economies depend on the industry.

This is good stuff for me I have added it to my punch list, keep them coming. Thanks a lot guys

PuroFreak

Grahamcracker:

awesome ideas guys, so what I gather is this,

-Break the bond people have in there minds putting cigarettes and cigars together. Explain the differences.

-Shoot the rollers and the art behind making cigars. Also the family life style.

-Show how foreign economies depend on the industry.

This is good stuff for me I have added it to my punch list, keep them coming. Thanks a lot guys

The one thing I would add is that showing the growing and harvesting before the rolling would be very informative. Show the families working the farms, the people that harvest the leaves and show what Ligero and Viso really are. Show the fermentation of the leaves, the aging of different kinds of leaves. Maduro, Oscuro, Corojo, Connie...etc..etc... I think this would be a very interesting idea.

kuzi16

this would be a very difficult prospect. the market for it would be small, and an anti smoke leaning public will disregard it before they even sit down to watch it.

im still all for it because i personally think it would be cool. But be prepared to not make money on it.

Krieg

If you are interested in going to some conventions, CA's Big Smoke in Vegas is about to happen in november. I'm sure you can get tons of interviews from the leaders/makers of the cigar industry, not to mention the regular joe the cigar lover.

Grahamcracker

Ok so show the whole cigar making, and farming process can do.

As for money, I plan to make nothing on this little piece, I am actually doing a documentary to fill some down time between feature films that I make. I own a lot of nice equipment so I decided to go ahead and shoot a doc, because I did one last summer for the national guard and had some fun.

Though it will likely make nothing, I happen to know a thing or two about film festivals, and quite frankly controversial gets you a prime time showing during festivals. And a pro tobacco documentary would definitely get controversy. Just so you all know I do not plan to make any money, documentaries rarely do, but for me this project would just be done for fun. It is also a way into some festivals to gather crew and more funding for my 2 upcoming feature films.

Anyway keep them coming guys, all suggestions and support are welcome, if you have something you can offer. You know a roller, or someone like this that would not mind being interviewed im open to it.

As for the cigar convention in vegas is there a website? Also would they let, press or media in?

Thanks,
Graham Robbins

nightmaremike31

I don't know how the hell I missed this.

First, Welcome Mr. Robbins.

Second, I too am a film maker, and I also enjoy making documentaries. A few years ago a friend and I made an exciting documentary on Michael Moore when he was touring colleges making his speaches. Also a few "indies". I can't get enough of the film industry and all that is involved. All my work has been "out of pocket and non-profit", but that's the same with cigars, I recieve a great feeling of satisfaction when I'm finished.

Now, this documentary about cigars. That would be really cool. The traveling, the variety of people and lifestyles all intermingling and centering around cigars. You have my attention. And it would indeed be controversial enough to be an attention grabber. I live here in Utah... the Sundance Film Festival is at my finger tips... but this is Utah... Now the Cannes Film Festival, that would be the "coupe de grace". I know Cali has quite a few film festivals as well. But I love traveling, and the experience alone would be worth it for me.

But I digress, welcome aboard!

Garen B

Here's a link to the Big Smoke website.

Grahamcracker

Yea Cannes film fest is always the cherry on top haha, you make it there with a doc you make it to the academy awards. However thats just a pipe dream.

Yea my crew has a lot of equipment and experience mostly in feature film, we just came off of a 100 thousand dollar feature. We have a I own a full grip, lighting, and camera package, and a good amount of audio. While we finish writing a script that will be shot next summer I have decided to utilize our expensive equipment to shoot a doc so it does not just waste away until next summer.

Anyway, If you are interested in helping out I am sure we can fined a way to utilize you to make this film. The goal is obviously canne, the owner of my local B & M would produce this project he actually is a distributer for films, and use to be a producer, he worked on numerous films that went to Canne, and distributed films like the original Hills Have Eyes.

So if anyone is intested in helping out or contributing we will find a way to make it work.

Thanks,

Graham Robbins

andrewh

I think this is a great idea, as I think any cigar enthusiast would. I agree with the others on destroying the pairing of cigars and cigarettes. I also think that it would be really interesting to see the farmers and there families and how they are able to survive because of the cigar industry. I think there are lots of great things that could be done with this and I can't wait to see it.

Grahamcracker

Ok Guys I will save this thread for now if I can, and make a photo blog with progress on the documentary. Ill post photos of all the rollers, manufacturers, and people we interview. So you all can see our progress on this project.

Thanks for the support,

Graham Robbins

Renaissance_Man

If I can help with anything - I'm down too... I have interest in film-making as well and have participated in a film festival back home (Bulgaria hahaah). I am also from New York and am pretty talkative so I can find stuff around ... But in any case -

The idea is great! It will be quite TOUGH though and will not work well unless you GO TO Latin America and film stuff there on the spot (most of the movie actually)..

You should definitely touch on the ban on Cuba and the import of Cubans here - the illegal aspect of it will be interesting ... And you should look at the communities in the US - smoke clubs and lounges and most recently and most importantly online communities! I have a suspicion that the Internet and online communities have helped a lot for the revitalization of cigar smoking in the US... Anyway.. my 5 cents...

Of course there is a lot more and a lot that can be said/filmed about cigars... You gotta stay very focused though and choose some of these things. I guess you have your major theme so some things will be more important than others. If the theme is to present cigars in a positive light and differentiate them from cigarettes then some things like extensive talking about production and different types of leaves and all will be pointless... Anyway

Cheers and good luck!!!

T. Gervais

What would be ideal to me (if possible) would be to somehow interview a master blender like DPG or Fernandez or something, they could probably bring some very interesting and compelling points to the table for the benefit of cigars. And I can't imagine they wouldn't admire your efforts to improve the general view of cigar smoking.

T. Gervais

I also think that you should bring up the recent (somewhat) success of the Verdadero Organic and how it is the first step towards a future of healthier tobacco.

Grahamcracker

Great news guys, we are putting together some interviews, and we should have a short teaser to show everyone what we are trying to do in the next 2 weeks! Keep the suggestions coming in the mean time we have a long way to go!

Thanks,

Graham Robbins

Luko

Two aspects that I'd be interested in seeing...the making of a cigar...and the culture of cigar enthusiasts...before July 2008, I had not an inkling of a clue what an interesting and complicated way of life this is. Frankly I would not be as interested in watching interviews with a bunch of cigar talking heads. I'd rather watch footage and interviews with someone like cabinetmaker making his own humi, as an example. Just my two cents.

andrewh

I would love to see a short thing done a master roller that formerly rolled in cuba but not rolls in somewhere likes miami and how it's different after leaving cuba.

Lasabar

andrewh:

I would love to see a short thing done a master roller that formerly rolled in cuba but not rolls in somewhere likes miami and how it's different after leaving cuba.

So basically an interview with Don Pepin.... that'd be cool

Lasabar

I'd actually like to see a different side of this...

What is the Daily life of Rocky Patel... (or anyone of the big names... but I think Rocky has shot to stardom really fast)

Just pick a big name, that most people, even if they aren't into cigars, have probably heard of and then just follow that one person around... I don't really want a documentary about the rollers and the leafs and the intricacies... I can get that online or in a book or here at these forums...

What I'd like is a journey with one of the cigar's industry's big wigs and how he eats breakfast, shaves, when he smokes, what a month to him looks like, the politcal stress he deals with where his tobacco is grown, the many and countless flights, the many cigar shop visits, the promo things, the quality control, how he is fighting the smoking ban etc....

I'll probably learn all the little things anyway, but I'd just like to see what goes into a leader of the industry's day

nightmaremike31

Lasabar:

I'd actually like to see a different side of this...

What is the Daily life of Rocky Patel... (or anyone of the big names... but I think Rocky has shot to stardom really fast)

Just pick a big name, that most people, even if they aren't into cigars, have probably heard of and then just follow that one person around... I don't really want a documentary about the rollers and the leafs and the intricacies... I can get that online or in a book or here at these forums...

What I'd like is a journey with one of the cigar's industry's big wigs and how he eats breakfast, shaves, when he smokes, what a month to him looks like, the politcal stress he deals with where his tobacco is grown, the many and countless flights, the many cigar shop visits, the promo things, the quality control, how he is fighting the smoking ban etc....

I'll probably learn all the little things anyway, but I'd just like to see what goes into a leader of the industry's day

... And it should capture the nitty gritty of them too. What do these Cigar Tychoon's do to kill time or relieve stress? Have another cigar? Do they even have down time? What do they like to drink? Eat? Mannerisms or characteristics that make them unique?... Am I starting to sound like a stalker?

Oh, and in the special features it could have a "Meet the Maker" and could go in to video bio's of a variety of makers.

andrewh

Lasabar:

andrewh:

I would love to see a short thing done a master roller that formerly rolled in cuba but not rolls in somewhere likes miami and how it's different after leaving cuba.

So basically an interview with Don Pepin.... that'd be cool

Yeah or even one that struggles economically there and here and what are the differences.

Grahamcracker

Update our crew, and equipment is all in place to start shooting, we begin primary interviews and broll shots next week!

Our primary goal, is separate the cigar enthusiast from the cigarette smoker. We will also be touching the history of tobacco products, and the rich history of cigars, and cigar rollers, leading up to modern day.

We will touch on a few political issues like a smoking ban, and then get into how the cigar industry is doing today.

I do plan to interview a few master rollers. We do have a lot of funny satire in our questions and our b roll footage to keep the audience awake.

*What is the likely hood of being able to film at Big Smoke Las Vegas Does anyone know how we can get a press pass, or who I need to contact? *

Renaissance_Man

Whatever happened to this?!?! Is it dead or did my gut feeling prove right and its a project too big for college grads ? Where r u Graham Cracker? There were updates promised, links....

4bob4

Maybe (and i hope) that he's off in central america somewhere in a factory interviewing folks and not able to get to a computer because of all the awesome footage he's getting.

TatuajeVI

Hmm, sounds awesome. Wonder where he went...

Renaissance_Man

4bob4:

Maybe (and i hope) that he's off in central america somewhere in a factory interviewing folks and not able to get to a computer because of all the awesome footage he's getting.

He better be! He sure got my hopes up! lol

phobicsquirrel

madurofan:

Garen B:

First and foremost, you have to bust down the idea in people's minds that cigars are lumped together with cigarettes, if you mention them being lumped together, then people will automatically shut down and stop listening due to the way the media has portrayed cigarettes. Aside from that, I think it would be a pretty cool idea, it'd be nice to stop hearing about tobacco being thrown in a bad light.

Try asking Alex or one of the other guys at C.com for an interview, maybe through Skype or something akin to that.

Great idea Graham. I agree with Garen here. The first step in showing cigars and/or pipes in a positive light is to eliminate the idea that they are even related to cigarettes. Cigarettes are an addiction, a drug, cigars are a hobby.

I personally believe aside from this idea, which is a great one, that people need to understand how many latin american countries are dependant on this industry.

Yeah, I am sick of hearing people compare cigs to cigars/pipes. They aren't even close to the same. Good idea btw.