Week 1 – What is this all about?

For my first effort in blogging, I thought it would be worthwhile to give some background on my endeavor and explain what this website is all about. In January 2000, Conservation International and the World Conservation Union’s Species Survival Commission released a report that highlighted twenty-five species of apes, monkeys, lemurs, and other primates at risk of disappearing forever. In an epiphany worthy of Archimedes, I hatched a plan that would combine my background in film production and finance and the work of my sister, a wildlife artist specialized in primates. My idea was to create a documentary series that would show a wildlife artist traveling to the locations of the extremely endangered primates in an attempt to locate and paint them.

Thus, Brush with Extinction was born.

The plan was to produce a short series of four, 60-minute documentaries about the most endangered primates in the world and an artist’s journey to paint these rare animals before they become extinct. I spent the next year creating a comprehensive documentary proposal for the project, which included a story synopsis, project overview, background research, artist biography, proposed production schedule and budget, market research, and income projections. Once the document was complete I shopped it to a couple of wildlife documentary companies in the United Kingdom, Tigress Productions and Green Umbrella Productions. After a couple of emails back and forth, I received the standard “we don’t accept unsolicited scripts” response and the wind was taken out of my sails. At that point, life intervened and the project was moved to the back burner.

To use a bit of film terminology, fade to the present day. While moving houses I unearthed my original proposal for Brush with Extinction and got all fired up to reinvigorate the project. I resolved that I would put all of my energy in 2007 making the project happen. Around the same time I was reading some personal finance blogs that talked about the utility of a blog to keep focused on a goal and I had another epiphany (naked Greek mathematicians have nothing on me!). I would set up a blog to track my progress in putting Brush with Extinction together and use the online journal to celebrate the successes and motivate me to keep going through the inevitable low points. Which brings us to this blog and this first of many entries. Enjoy!