Archives for October 2011

Editor’s Note: There are lots of travel blogs out there, so setting yourself apart can be a difficult & creative endeavor. We asked Mehdy Ghannad from The Hostel Life, to share with us a behind the scenes look at what it takes to put together an episode of his show.

People always say, “You have the best job in the world,” and I can’t deny the truth in that. I love every bit of it. But — and I would have to say a big BUT — it hasn’t been easy and it continues to have as many downs as ups. When I took on the endeavor of The Hostel Life a few years back, I had no production, film or media training whatsoever. But for some reason, I didn’t think it would be very difficult. I said to myself, there are so many shows on TV that I think are just plain terrible and yet they are on TV and continue to get picked up year after year. Really, how hard could it be? I took a look at shows like Jersey Shore and I was flabbergasted as to why is this show so popular. Anyone could easily do something better than that. Right?

Once again, so I thought!

My original concept was more a “Choose Your Own Adventure” style theme, which was great in theory. I would travel and we would post videos daily and have people help me make decisions along the way. Talk about an idea that was great on paper. During our Colombia shoot we were averaging 3 hours of sleep as we were editing, loading, filming, dumping and hoping the connection was strong enough to load an entire video. This is very difficult in some remote locations and hostels. The video content suffered a little as well, we were too worried about getting something out there instead of getting something out there that people want to watch. We were spending too much time editing instead of capturing the surrounding sites and attractions. The new version of The Hostel Life is a lot less stressful, but still very demanding on the entire crew.

Most shows in The Hostel Life’s genre — Travel Channel, Discovery Channel and National Geographic shows — usually have at least an 8-person travel team/crew. The Hostel Life has 2 maybe 3 people at the most as part of the crew. I personally hold many of the roles from host, producer, director, writer and cameraman, and I also do a lot of the post-production work. Another huge difference is that the shows on the travel channels have itineraries and plans set well in advance before production begins. It’s very common that a producer and a camera operator go out a few days ahead of the crew to do scout locations, film shots, check out the attractions, and make sure the activities are set. So pretty much the talent shows up and does the activity or interview, and that’s about it.

The Hostel Life is at most 40 % planned and the rest just happens. So we are literally a run and gun guerrilla-style production. We have no idea if something is going to be show-worthy until we get there and film it. Like I said, some things we organize beforehand, but 9 times out of 10, what makes it into the show are the events that organically happen. Just like when you travel, the best situations that occur are the things that are unplanned.

Let me give you a few good examples of this. From our recent release of the Chicago episode, the whole Wieners Circle Hot Dog segment was not planned at all. We literally went there one day, as a referral from one of my friends, and then came up with the idea to get one of our new hostel friends to order the infamous “Chocolate Milkshake” (highly recommended if you get the chance to go to Chicago). Another great example, and one of my absolute favorites, is during our shoot in Jordan I was able to ride on a chariot going 25 mph in the ancient Roman city of Jerash. Trust me, this is only 5% of the cool random things that happen on the fly. The rest you will have to wait and see in upcoming shows!
I can’t emphasize the fact that we are working constantly every day during our productions. We are usually in 5th gear for 16 to 18 hours a day consisting of shooting, some basic post-production, and a little planning for the next day. During one of our shoots, I had food poisoning and was vomiting like crazy, another crew member was limping as he fractured his foot, and the other broke out into a severe rash. But the show had to go on. So at the end of that trip, we took a few days to catch up on rest, decompress, and visit the doctor! Also during all these shoots, we are constantly trying to stay connected with our followers and fans. Using all the social media outlets from blogging, Tweeting, Facebooking, and posting photos and small videos, we try to keep our fans and followers connected as much as possible. This is a huge undertaking in itself because the crew is so small on location.

The rest of the time when we are not on shoots is managing all the post-production work.

Since once again things randomly happen, it takes time to weed through 3 to 7 hours of video to make a 22-minute show. I personally watch everything we film from start to finish and start putting the story together just like a jigsaw puzzle. So a lot of the time the actual way the story is told comes after the shoot. I am always looking at ways to tell the story the best, in the most entertaining and visually stimulating way to the viewer. I know that most other producers cringe when I tell them this is how I run the production. I know that my approach is really an unorthodox way of doing things, but that’s the essence of our show — traveling with little planning is the best way to travel. So why shouldn’t the production reflect that as well?

Our goal as a production is to get people to really see the world. If they don’t think they can do it, maybe the show will convince them that they can. We can be that nudge to show them that it’s safe to travel, it can be done economically, and maybe point out a few things they have to check out if they plan to go to some of these locations. I personally love it when I get emails or comments from people saying that they never thought of that country as a place to take a vacation and how it has moved to the top of their list. For me, hearing that or reading those emails is the ultimate compliment and what we want the effect of The Hostel Life to be.

What I personally want aside from being able to see more of the world is really to take people along with me into what I love doing most, and that’s meeting people. What better way to experience life than meeting people from all walks of life? It’s easy to get lost in the daily routine of our lives, but I hope that with The Hostel Life, it will give people the escape they need and ultimately help people view the world a little bit differently as I continue to do.

Mehdy Ghannad is creator, producer and writer of The Hostel Life. The Hostel Life is an eclectic bunch of open-minded, adventure-seeking travel junkies, looking to spread the word of backpacking and the joys of staying in hostels. You can catch up on all the episodes on YouTube, or preview the latest news on Twitter and Facebook.  All of the photos are courtesy of The Hostel Life.

Thanks to Mehdy for today’s post. If you’re an adventurous traveler interested in writing for IShouldLogOff, contact us at info [at] ishouldlogoff.com or check our submission guidelines. We received no compensation for this guest post, we just thought it would be interesting for you!