Creating an image

Every video/´`film project needs an image.  Something that a person totally unfamiliar with what you are doing will be attracted to and that will give them a basic idea of what your video/film is about.

Try coming up with something that lets people know your video/film is about traditional flamenco.

Sounds easy?  Well, it wasn't for me.

The image.

I had to create an image for our documentary-in-progress, Flamenco:  the Land Is Still Fertile (Flamenco:  la tierra está viva).  We´ll have a bunch of pretty famous performers in it, as well as people from the community.  The documentary will entertain (but of course!), will let people know what traditional flamenco is all about, and will show the connection between traditional flamenco and gitanos (Spanish Gypsies).

So why not just put an image of one of the famous people who is going to be in the documentary?

Because first of all, that would imply that the famous person in question was more important than the OTHER famous people that will be included.  In addition, we certainly don´t want to use the image of anyone who we haven´t filmed yet (which means most of them, because we don´t have the money to pay their fees yet).

We don´t want to use our famous flamenco singer co-director, Antonio de la Malena, because then it will look like the documentary is just a puff piece about him.

 
Couldn´t find anything of farm workers in Spain.  This has no sound but gives a good idea of farm work.

SO - I chose an image of one of the people from the community who we´ve already filmed, who is dancing, who communicates energy and enthusiasm, who is elderly and a little heavy (which shows that flamenco is not something that only the young and slim can dance).  And to show traditional flamenco´s connection to a way of life, I decided we needed the image of a garbanzo plant.

Many, many of today´s flamencos who are gitano and are middle aged or above used to work as farm laborers.  Many, many of those who are younger have parents who worked as farm laborers.  They worked in the vineyards, the worked in the cotton fields, they worked in the sugar beet fields, and they worked in the garbanzo fields.

Garbanzo plants have a shape that works better for my design idea than the other plants, so garbanzo was my choice.

Garbanzo plants growing.

But where to find a correctly but also appropriately shaped image of a garbanzo plant?  Not on the internet.  I tried.

So to make a long story short, I ended up growing a bunch of garbanzo plants, then photographed (and PhotoShopped) the one that suited me best.

NOTE:  You are encouraged to send me any comments you might have about the design (see top).  Send to info@palominopro.com.