Interview: Ryanne Hodson

Ryanne Hodson has recently built a tribute to Videoblogging Week 2005.  This year there were 28 participants. So far, that is. New discoveries still pop up from time to time.  In fact, I was born to videoblogging myself that very week. Thus, I had little visibility as I started to learn the ropes about how to build my digital presence and interaction through a combination of blogging, participation, collaboration, video and syndicated newsfeeds.  As a result, I was one of the last ones added to the list (cool for me, as it puts me at the top of the Videoblogging Week 2005 blog for the moment!)

Here is my interview with Ryanne:

Spinflow: How did the idea for VBW2005 originate?   How did most people find out about it?

Ryanne: The original crew of vloggers did one last summer.  This is when there were under 10 people vlogging.  Adam Quirk of bullemhead.com suggested we do another one, why wait til the summer?  He posted a message on March 26th to the Yahoo Group list saying:

"-2005 UPDATE- Bullem Head proposes Video Blogging Week 2005 commence immediately."

Let's do it! Another one! I propose a theme: "Who Cares" where each day you post a video directed to an audience of ONE person. The videos can all be to the same person, or each of the seven can be to different people. Or, just post one video every day this week and pretend your audience is one very important person."

And so it began!

Spinflow:  Did any particular aspect of the 2005 event stand out as you put the VBW2005 retrospective site together?  Why did you put up the VBW2005 site?  Why is it important to document and share this?

Ryanne: The reason I created the blog was to showcase the power of collaboration that this community has the ability to harness.  With a day's notice we just picked up and went with it.  I happened to be moving my entire life from Boston to New York that very week.  So i got to document from packing my apartment to actually living in a new city. I know I wouldn't have been as adamant about documenting every day if it hadn't have been for Adam's proposal and all the other vloggers immediately and passionately jumping on board.  I am just amazed at the raw number of videos produced that week.  I remember being in art school and trying to get collaborative projects with more
than 5 people to happen; it was impossible.  To see almost 30 people from around the world document their week with such diligence is any artist's dream, so I had to create a document that people could link to that really said "Hey, look what we did!"

Spinflow: Rumor has it that you are coming to California for Blog Her Con.  Is that true?

Ryanne: Yes!  I will be presenting along side with podcaster Lisa Williams of http://www.cadence90.com/wp/.  We will be teaching people how to put video and audio up on the web; really it's not hard!!!  Every blogger who can post a Flickr image or change their header jpeg can do this. Get more info on Blog Her here:  www.blogher.org

Spinflow: If so, is there any chance you will have time for a little California Videoblogging Community meet up or dinner while you're there?

Ryanne: Of course!  I'm always up for geek dinners.

Spinflow: You've setup the Vloggercon2005 conference site, the freevlog.org sites and tutorials with Michael Verdi and now the VBW2005 site.  What collaborations lie ahead?  What collaborative projects interest you?

Ryanne: Jay Dedman, Michael Verdi and I are forming a non-profit organization to teach and spread videoblogging to the world.  We envision physical spaces, like classrooms, where people who don't have access to equipment can learn to videoblog.  Right now, the only thing besides eating and trying to pay rent that is important to me is to teach and spread videoblogging.  I spend much of my week meeting people in offices, houses, community centers and teaching them that they have a place where their voices can be heard, on the internet through video!  This is the collaboration that most interests me, working with others who want to spread the good word, that word being videoblogging.  Anyone who has started videoblogging will tell you: It changes your life.

Spinflow: Do you think there will be another VBW in 2006?  How will (or should) it be different from 2005?

Ryanne: Yes there certainly will be a Videoblogging Week 2006.  It will stand apart from VB Weeks of the past because of the sheer number of vloggers that will take place.  We see 2-3 new people start videoblogging A DAY.  By next year I expect more than a hundred vloggers to take part in more countries than we can think of.