Starting a New Video Series

Hey guys,
I am in the beginning stages of production for a video series that interviews pipe smokers, makers, and pipe visionaries that will be featured on YouTube and other media. I'm hiring a professional musician and we met this weekend to go over the idea, and we created a demo song for the opening theme. I'll be sitting down with him this week in the studio to record, master, and copyright all the music that will be featured (to buy and use a copyrighted song is maddeningly expensive).
When I'm not doing that, I'm buying an HD camera, professional mic, and will have to teach myself how to do video production. My goal is to have a video done before the NASPC show on August 22nd. So that means it's going to be a very busy month.
The end goal is to provide a nearly professional product that allows for a 'fly on the wall' aspect for those who can't listen in on some of the really fascinating conversations that happen at pipe shows and the like. While the production will be professional, the interview is going to be as far away from that as possible. Yup-- i'm aiming for an unscripted almost 'hang out' that is On Topic about the pipe community and some of the neat goings on. Almost as if three guys got together on someone's patio or smoking room to smoke, drink, and shoot the breeze.
So here is where you gents come in:

What do you all think?

Are there any people you would like to see interviewed?

What sort of content do you think would be relevant to cover on a video by video basis?

What are you expectations for the videos given my theme and boundaries?
And also-- I wanted to call the video series "PipeChat", but it seems there are plenty on YouTube who already use that title. What should I title it? I'm stumped..

kevin: Yup, it sure is! I don't have a travel budget. I am isolated locally as far as getting interviews is concerned, so I limited myself to a 7 or 8 hour car trip in a given direction. I live in the southwest part of Michigan which leaves me pretty wide open in terms of some potential interviewees. There are quite a few people within the tri-state area that would help fill the gaps and make the video make sense on a semi-regular occurrence basis. I think bringing the setup to pipe shows will help me with that as well. If I were to get some shoots in at places like the NASPC or Chicago Pipe Shows, it will broaden my spectrum considerably. I don't think it would be untoward to ask some of the friends I've made at those venues if they would like to sit down for a bowlful and be interviewed. And yeah, it'll be a ton of work as well, but it will be a fun part-time hobby to pursue and give me an excuse to go out and have a little fun every once in a while and take away the monotony of my full-time work schedule.
theediabeticman: Is this still a project you're working on? When you mentioned the hermits breaking out of their shell, that really struck home for me in this endeavor and was part of my intent for doing this thing. Feel free to PM me if you'd like to start a conversation, swap notes, experiences, etc. My wallet has had to leash my ambition in many respects, but in doing this I'm going to try and make it the best I can within my means.. and if it means drastically cutting down on many things to afford to do so, then that's something I can embrace. :lol:
sablebrush52: Some very valid points! Thanks for the input. "Fly on the wall" will pertain to the viewer alone (haha, obviously right?). I feel like many pipe smokers 'miss out' in so many ways by not attending pipe shows and being a "fly on the wall" to some of the conversations that happen there. I've sat in on some really mindblowing conversations, and intend to keep that at the lifeblood of the whole project. The video will have a loose skeleton to keep the conversation on topic as much as possible, as the video has to keep the viewer's attention and so on. Looking at some of the Radio Show interviews, Brain really captures a laid back interviewing style which I'd like to keep at heart when moving forward. I know it's going to be a challenge to capture the best from my equipment and skill, I have my work cut out. As far as the music is concerned, it was taking that leap that took the idea of doing this from a brainchild to a "Wow, I'm really going forward with this" project. Things just happened to line up that way for me. I have ordered the rest of the equipment i'll need and it will delivered before the music is even close to being finished, so that should give me the time to read up and do some video demos before I move ahead with scheduling an interview. At the end of the day, i'm doing this because it sounds like a neat side-hobby and should provide a few laughs at least!
goinslow: Thanks for the input and support! I might have stumbled upon the right name this afternoon at work. I was thinking maybe "Pipe O'Clock" could work. It has parallels to some of the slapstick adages like "Beer Thirty" or "Five O'Clock Somewhere" that I think most pipe guys could understand. Just try it next time you go to load a pipe.. it may be 2:17 in the afternoon when you happen to load a pipe, but it's always Pipe O'Clock when you get down to it, right?
smokeybear: I get what you're saying. However, I wanted to start at a point that if it was good enough to serve the purpose, why change it? And if things change in the future, I'm hoping as a young guy that I'll have a bigger budget if and when that comes around. As far as small videos... holy whoah is YouTube already smattered with them! The videos will be approximately a half hour to forty five minutes long and will feature full interviews, not solo 'how to-introduction to the hobby' sorts.
Thanks for all the input, folks! I'll be sure to check in on this thread to address any other questions or points that may come up as well as keep you guys in the loop.