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2 friends, 48 hours, 1 terminal

I

itsbetteronamac

macrumors regular
Original poster
Apr 27, 2003
171
0
A project my friend and I are working on. Plan is to fly in, spend 48 hours in the airport, and create a photo/video documentary of everything that happens. Oh, and then we fly out of the airport when the 48 hours is up.

The point is to better observe what goes on in an airport and human nature. And, they real question is what do you do in an airport when you are not waiting for something.

Check it out if your interested and let me know what you think. my48hours.com

If you like the idea please Digg-Us
 
Isn't it hard to get permission from everyone to video/photo them, not to mention the airport/airlines themselves?
 
Being a frequent flyer, I'd say you'd get 47 hours of people walking around trying to make their flights, get to dinner, go to the bathroom, or waiting at gates, and 1 hour of any sort of interesting interaction. Especially since many airports are pretty deserted between 10pm and 5am.

You could also watch Terminal with Tom Hanks, or Airline about Southwest airlines.
 
I think it's a fun idea. Do you know the book Global Soul by Pico Iyer?

book-2515.gif


He does a similar experiment in writing... he decides to live for several days at LAX. It was really interesting, and I enjoyed reading it. I think your documentary sounds like fun. Do be careful on the legal issues....I think they vary from state to state, and I don't know how they work where you are (mmm, I don't actually know how they work where I am! :eek: ). And if possible, find some way for Gary to appear in your video. :D
 
I won't be walking around with a video camera and trying to sell a documentary. I will have a small high-quality digital camera. And, any media that I will be putting up will be designed for the web, so it should be just fine. The goal is to see what happens, and hopefully document it.

I have not read Global Soul, but it sounds like an interesting read. Yes, I have seen The Terminal, and I do watch airline. They are both somewhat inspirations for the project.
 
Just be careful about not getting mistaken as a terrorist who is video taping the airport for "special" reasons....
 
To be honest it sounds like a cheap project. Film what happens in an airport, maximum security capital of the planet for 2 days? if it was somewhere interesting and dangerous then it might be watchable. but it sounds a little drab. I spent 8 hours in an airport coming back from Spain once, it wasn't a filmable experience really.
 
Yes it is possible that it could be really boring, but the more I think about it the more I doubt it. I too have waited in airports for 8 hours, and I couldn't have been more bored. But, it's a totally different story when you are there for 48 hours and you are not waiting for something. I am hoping that it will be a fun, and very interesting experience.
 
itsbetteronamac said:
I won't be walking around with a video camera and trying to sell a documentary. I will have a small high-quality digital camera. And, any media that I will be putting up will be designed for the web, so it should be just fine. The goal is to see what happens, and hopefully document it.
Click to expand...

My point is.. if I was in the airport, I'd not want you taking my picture and putting it on the website without my knowledge.. so be careful.
 
Regardless of where you go you will need to coordinate this with the airport management in order to insure you won't be pestered by security. You may need to secure a press pass or some other item that will allow you to be in the secured area of the airport over night with nowhere to actually be.

Speaking of staying overnight, will you be sleeping on the chairs at the gates? Also, pick an airport that may potentially offer some reasonable amenities during your trip - like, say, shopping, food, games, etc. Pittsburgh is one of the nicer airports in the US as far as amenities go...

You may also want to try and find a good international hub that handles a significant amount of traffic, such as LAX, LGA, ORD, ATL, MIA. These will give you a good variety of "material" but may also be the most difficult to secure cooperation.
 
Yeah, I have thought about the security thing, and calling the airport to find out what I should do. But, I guess that could also lead to problems. The airport I am thinking about going to has tons of stuff to do and is really cool, so there should be no problem there.

As for the video; I don't know how I plan on doing it. I don't plan on running around with a camera trying to make a documentary. My goal is to document what happens, whether it be photo, video, or text.
 
Cool idea.

For the naysayers:

This is one of those cases where you'll only find out if what you're doing is interesting once you've done it. Saying "that probably won't be interesting" beforehand is utterly uncurious and boring. "That book is about Australia. That's all I know about it. Won't read it though, sounds like it could be pretty boring."

If something cool happens it could be a pretty long movie. If nothing happens at all it could be just few minutes long and still be really cool.
 
OutThere said:
Cool idea.

For the naysayers:

This is one of those cases where you'll only find out if what you're doing is interesting once you've done it. Saying "that probably won't be interesting" beforehand is utterly uncurious and boring. "That book is about Australia. That's all I know about it. Won't read it though, sounds like it could be pretty boring."

If something cool happens it could be a pretty long movie. If nothing happens at all it could be just few minutes long and still be really cool.
Click to expand...

Hey thanks man! That really just cheered me up. I have invested quite a bit of time, and money into this project, and I really would like it to be successful. Hey if you really like it and want to help, please spread the word.
 
virividox said:
good luck, a great airport to do this in would be in singapore or HK.
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I know... I was thinking one of those airports if I do this adventure again. So, if the first one is successful we'll see. :)
 
yellow said:
My point is.. if I was in the airport, I'd not want you taking my picture and putting it on the website without my knowledge.. so be careful.
Click to expand...

except that since you're in a public place, you have no recourse.
 
I always love stopping in new international airports. It's interesting leaving a normal U.S. airport then arriving in an airport that checks your bags and passport with men holding AK's and other intimidating weapons (from my trips to China and Egypt).

As for passing time in the airport, there isn't much to do. Eat, sleep, listen to the iPod and buy magazines you normally don't buy. I also enjoy looking at the beautiful euro women going back to their respected destinations :D.

jon
 
I think it's an interesting idea since the BBC have managed to get several series just on Heathrow although they do tend to follow a few people around and tell several stories during the half hour.

My only concern would be the security factor. Airports these days are very, very wary of people taking pictures even of things like the check-in desks. It really might be wise to drop a line to the PR dept at the airport you choose just to be sure that they're OK with it. Take a copy with you so if they don't come back, at least you can say that you got in touch with them.

I'd also perhaps plan it for a 'busy' weekend or a time of year where you know there will be lots of delays which would lead to more interesting stories to follow/watch.
 
Applespider said:
I think it's an interesting idea since the BBC have managed to get several series just on Heathrow although they do tend to follow a few people around and tell several stories during the half hour.

My only concern would be the security factor. Airports these days are very, very wary of people taking pictures even of things like the check-in desks. It really might be wise to drop a line to the PR dept at the airport you choose just to be sure that they're OK with it. Take a copy with you so if they don't come back, at least you can say that you got in touch with them.

I'd also perhaps plan it for a 'busy' weekend or a time of year where you know there will be lots of delays which would lead to more interesting stories to follow/watch.
Click to expand...

Yes I am thinking contacting them would be a great idea. If you had to choose what do you think would be the buisiest weekend in the summer. We were planning for July 18-20.... I doubt that would be a very busy time. I would love to go when there are lots of delays.
 
you could go during thanksgiving!!! no matter which airport you go to in the states, it would be delayed and packed!

you could call a travel agency and ask around which days on summer are flights the fullest (they normally coincide either with the end of classes or just before the start of classes)
 
This sounds really cool! Of course, it could turn out to be lame, but at least the IDEA would be cool. What airport are you going to?

And security will be a huge problem, just FYI. If you are stopped or detained or anything- any confrontation at all- just make sure you KEEP ON FILMING. I tape many protests and the most important thing you can have of a confrontation is video, because video does not lie. Other than that, good luck! I am excited to see the final result.
 
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