SustainLane Media site launches
May 2nd, 2009After a fair bit of hard work, design back-and-forths and copywriting, we recently launched the SustainLaneMedia.com site, which explains the various properties inside the SustainLane family.
Green Gorilla Press
February 10th, 2009Been getting some good follow up to our kid’s show. Here’s a couple of interviews I did recently:
Green Air Radio, a nationally syndicated radio show all about green.
Your Green Life, a local Bay Area TV show all about, well, green.
Tales of Despereaux is Desperate
December 31st, 2008This past weekend my cousin Julie was in town and as we have a common interest in storytelling and film we decided to take in a movie…with Izzy, my 3 1/2 year old. As there was one “G” rated movie in town, we hit up “The Tales of Despereaux.” It looked fun enough, the story of a heroic mouse that befriends a princess.
Now here’s the thing. This was really Izzy’s first movie theater experience (since he first found out about movies…his last movie was “Good Night, and Good Luck” which he was wrapped to his mama and very expressive about his desire for another bite of the burrito during the dramatic opening scene). And mostly he’s only seen Disney classics and Bob the Builder on DVD. But he’s very into good story. He can retell most all of the movies he sees. We talk all about the Gorilla in the Greenhouse shows, too, and he never likes to turn them off until they’re done.
Tales of Despereaux was beautifully animated and the voices were terrific. But gee whiz there were so many plotlines I couldn’t keep them straight. The mouse who defies mouse rules of cowering and becomes a bannished adventurer. The rat whose curiosity kills the queen and gets him planted in the dungeon. The ugly maid that aims to be a princess. It just went on and on. After about 45 minutes of the ongoing perils of storytelling, and feeling like the lack of cohesion was just as confusing to my son, I warily tested my theory. I told Izzy we might need to be leaving in a few minutes–a very soft recommendation, one fully willing to relent if he was to push back. He usually always fights to watch a movie to the end. But this movie, it seemed was not headed for an end. “Okay,” he said. And reached for his jacket.
Someone liked it, however. The movie grossed $9.4 million this past weekend. Sigh.
Evil Mechanical Worm Explains Mountaintop Removal
December 11th, 2008This was the headline that the Huffington Post used to describe our recent launch of the next episode of Gorilla in the Greenhouse, called “Turn It Up Day.”
So it’s starting to get out there, our little Saturday morning cartoon shown everyday. Our mission is to make 20 of these in the next 18 months. To do this we’re going to need to connect with the right distribution…whether that’s on TV or the web. So…that’s the next step and now that we have two shows out there (also on www.earthdaytv.net and kids.nationalgeographic.com).
I’m really thankful for the help of so many people who lent a hand on this show, and to our CEO James for seeing the vision and letting me run with it. Yahoo!
It’s never a good time to remove a mountain
December 5th, 2008But even stranger timing on this one. Just before we release our movie about mountaintop removal. Here’s a shot of our kids finding out about what mountaintop removal looks like:
And here’s the real life version from the NY TIMES:
Mountains Are in a Heap of Trouble
EPA approves rule change making mountaintop-removal mining easier
By ROBERT PEAR and FELICITY BARRINGER
Published: December 2, 2008
WASHINGTON — The White House on Tuesday approved a final rule that will make it easier for coal companies to dump rock and dirt from mountaintop mining operations into nearby streams and valleys.
The rule is one of the most contentious of all the regulations emerging from the White House in President Bush’s last weeks in office.
James L. Connaughton, chairman of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, confirmed in an interview that the rule had been approved by the White House Office of Management and Budget. That clears the way for publication in the Federal Register, the last stage in the rule-making process.
Stephen L. Johnson, administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, concurred in the rule, first proposed nearly five years ago by the Interior Department, which regulates coal mining.
But a coalition of environmental groups said the rule would accelerate “the destruction of mountains, forests and streams throughout Appalachia.”
Edward C. Hopkins, a policy analyst at the Sierra Club, said: “The E.P.A.’s own scientists have concluded that dumping mining waste into streams devastates downstream water quality. By signing off on this rule, the agency has abdicated its responsibility.”
Mr. Bush has boasted of his efforts to cooperate with President-elect Barack Obama to ensure a smooth transition, but the administration is rushing to complete work on regulations to which Mr. Obama and his advisers object. The rules deal with air pollution, auto safety, abortion and workers’ exposure to toxic chemicals, among other issues.
Gorilla in the Greenhouse: Take 2
December 1st, 2008Excited to be getting our next Gorilla in the Greenhouse show up. Final (final final) cut time tomorrow, then into sound design. Then we’re coordinating a launch with Earth Day and Nat Geo Kids. Should be a busy week. In this picture, KJ shows the kids that “Turn it Up Day” isn’t all it’s cracked up to be…
WishingTown
December 1st, 2008The big guys are meeting in Wishingtown
Trying to draw a conclusion
A billion up and a billion down
All mired in confusion
Old guard members stroll the lawn
Accidently squashing roses
With flaring nostrils we hear the sound
Of roots upturning ancient poses
The younger guard is standing by
Unfettered by tangled pieces
It won’t be easy, it will take a while
To sort through all the fieces.


