Brave Wilderness Talks Their Scariest Video and More at the B&H SuperStore | 21 Questions[music and store background noise]
INTERVIEWER: Hey, it's the guys from Brave Wilderness!
COYOTE: Oh hey! What's goin on guys? MARK: How's it goin?
INT: What brings you to New York?
C: Well, we're in town doing a little bit of media touring.
And, of course, every time we're in New York City,
we have to stop by B&H to see what is the new greatest camera gear!
M: Yeah, all the new cameras are right here on display, so.
Any time we drop by, we get to check them out.
You see some of the older stuff-- C: Yeah!
M: --that we've used before. This is one of our original YouTube cameras,
the C100. This is what we're actually using now!
It's funny; they're, like, all the row here. C: Yeah!
M: This one we're using now--the XF500--
love this camera for the television series and the other YouTube videos.
But we're really intrigued by what's down here...
going on with the C300 and possibly even the C200. Between these two, I think.
C: Yeah! They're all pretty, pretty awesome cameras!
And the thing is, like, let's try to look at as much different gear as we can
in the time that we've got to walk through the store, so...
M: Yeah, what do we have, like 20-30 minutes?
C: I think so, let's go see what new products they got!
M: Yeah, let's cruise!
INT: Coyote! So, let's break the ice. I have to ask...
What's with the name? Is it your--were you born with this name?
C: Ah, Coyote is actually a nickname that I have had since I was 8 years old. My mom gave it to me
It comes from the Warner Brothers cartoon.
I used to chase road runners around in the desert, looking for lizards.
Ultimately, she started calling me coyote because, like the cartoon, the coyotes chases the roadrunner
and it helped me find lizards and I guess the name just stuck!
INT: And Mark. How did you meet Coyote?
M: Uh, Coyote and I actually met at Ohio State when I was a freshman
Coyote graduated before me, and I ended up going to film school for a little bit.
And meeting him again after college. And yeah, we started making all kinds of different projects together.
One of them was wildlife videos that eventually turned into Brave Wilderness.
So yeah, it's been a been a long journey for my friend Coyote and I!
INT: We see a lot of BTS in your videos M: Uh-huh
INT: What's your go-to gear?
Uh... the go-to camera actually is right here.
M: Why don't you come down, and I'll show you.
M: This is the camera that we're currently using on the television series Brave the Wild...
that's on Animal Planet, but right next to it
This is one of our original go-to cameras the C100, and is still a camera that we use from time to time.
It's an absolute powerhouse, and I love the form factor, and just the changeable lenses and then...
You know great XLR inputs, top handle, everything about this camera is great for YouTube!
C: Now, the thing that we're always looking for with cameras specifically is
how do we get these things into the environment?
You can't have big huge cameras when you're out there. M: No
C: So the smaller the form factor, the more rugged and durable it is, the better the shots we're gonna get!
M: Yeah, and great image stabilization!
We're always looking for that, and that's why particularly we like the Canon products because they have the great
image stabilization in the lenses, and on the camcorders, they actually have 'em in the bodies.
This is like one of the best image stabilization cameras out there right now!
INT: Coyote, what got you into wildlife education?
C: Uh... I grew up
having a love for animals.
And when I combined my college degree of screenwriting, producing and directing
with that love for animals,
it just made a lot of sense to bring those worlds together and try to share the same fascination I had as a kid
with the audience that now enjoys our content!
INT: And what inspired you both to put it all on YouTube?
M: Uh... We just started making all kinds of demonstration content for a television series.
It was originally the idea for Brave Wilderness, and we made a bunch of it, and we were like, "you know what?"
"Let's put it out there see people think of this!"
And sure enough, the YouTube audience started building,
and that was our lightbulb moment. We're like, "hey, you know what?"
"We can go out there with cameras like this and make our brand and the videos"
"we want happen for the audience that exists on YouTube."
INT: What was the first episode of Brave Wilderness?
C: Uh, Diving for snapping turtles is actually the first episode that was ever on YouTube.
My background is very heavily rooted in getting up close with these predatory reptiles.
And we said "hey, you got to go with what you know!"
And the first episode ended up being a test shoot that we never intended to be an episode.
M: Yeah C: But the way it turned out ended up being so perfect
We're like "well, might as well lead with this one!"
M: That's right. Yeah, one of the animals is right around our home Columbus, Ohio
Sure enough, first episode!
C: Yeah! Wanna go this way see what else we can find?
M: Yeah, having a hard time actually paying attention to these questions!
M: There's so many cool cameras and gadgets and lenses, and let me look at all these...
mounts, these are so cool.
[music]
INT: Have you seen a lot of growth in each other since the first episode?
M: Growth? Well, his beard has grown. My beard has grown!
M: What else? What other growth have we had?
Uh... going from 0 to 15.6 million subscribers, 3 billion views.
I mean, everything about the Brave Wilderness brand at this point over the course of the past five years
has gone from zero to where it's at, which is pretty crazy!
I mean in just five years we've managed to reach
a completely new generation and the existing generations with animal adventure content.
M: Here's a timely answer:
our camera collection has grown! Oh my gosh...
M: How many lockers do we have now? C: Quite a few and we have an amazing
trophy case of all the old cameras that maybe have sort of lost their power over the way--
and by "lost their power" I mean, maybe got chomped by an animal...
Dropped into something, and you know.
Just a couple weeks ago, I was filming, and we lost a drone into a river that we managed to
magically get back, but that will make it to the trophy wall.
All of our gear goes through all the rough and rugged
tests that you can put it through!
M: Yeah, always need to have the latest and greatest year,
especially when you're dealing with the environments that we do.
We put this stuff through the test for sure, and...
Sometimes they don't all make it, so we've been coming to B&H a lot for gear over the years.
INT: So what's your favorite part of your work?
My favorite part of the work is exploring and getting to travel with my best friends.
I mean everybody who works on the Brave Wilderness team, we're a family unit.
And that's like a reward in itself: getting to experience new places, new cultures with your best buddies.
And then on the side, we get to get up close with really cool creatures and make these awesome stories
for everybody to watch, so. I mean it's like, 360 amazing. Everything about what we do is a dream job!
INT: But do you have a least favorite?
M: Oh, least favorite. Uh... C: What was the question?
M: What's the what's your least favorite thing about what we do?
C: I don't have a least favorite thing.
C: Maybe when I've had to take bites and stings, I don't necessarily like that.
But I don't I don't have a least favorite thing. Everything about what we do is fantastic!
M: Yeah, I was gonna say insect bites.
But I can't really complain with this guy standing next to me cuz the stuff he does is pretty crazy!
[music]
INT: So you have over 15 million subscribers. C: Mhm!
INT: What sets you guys aside from the other channels?
C: Uh... what sets us apart from the other channels on YouTube?
I guess we are the largest animal adventure brand that's in the digital space,
arguably the entire world at this point.
And I think the thing that separates us is, you know,
production quality is something we pay particular attention to.
Not only the style in which we produce our episodes, but also the story writing that comes into the voice-over,
the editing, the music. All those things come together
to create a cinematic experience for people in the digital space.
And now that we've transitioned that concept into a television series,
you know, we're always looking for ways to advance our gear and the look of the show.
So that's of course why we end up at places like B&H
to see what's the next latest, greatest technology that's gonna help us advance
All of the content we produce. M: Yeah.
M: You can't make the content without the tools! C: Right!
M: And this is, this is like the Cathedral of tools!
Like everything you could possibly want to make any kind of production lives in this store.
That's why we love coming back. C: Mm-hmm
INT: Do you have any cool projects coming up?
M: Cool projects? C: Uh, cool projects...
M: Well, we just released a cool project! C: Did we? What project?
M: Uh, the television series! C: Oh! Yes...
M: I don't know if you've heard it? It's called Brave the Wild!
C: Yeah, I thought you meant a different project. [Mark laughing]
C: Uh, yeah! So our newest project that just debuted was Brave the Wild,
our new series on Animal Planet.
Tuesday nights at 8:00, if you want to tune in.
Pretty much the biggest undertaking we've ever...
M: Yeah C: Gone after at this point.
Not only from the production standpoint, but also the length of the stories and yeah!
We got a lot of stuff in the works right now! M: Yeah.
M: Yeah, it's interesting, like, whenever you talk about something that's actually released
and out for the public to look at, we're already like a year ahead on what's coming next.
C: Yeah.
M: All the production elements that we put into these programs,
they take a lot of time to produce.
C: Well, we've had so many conversations today, we said next project--
my brain kind of scrambled as to like "the ones we talked about today?"
But yeah, the one that's current TV show.
M: Yeah. Just YouTube channel's constantly having new...
Content released on it on a weekly basis
M: Wanna go this way? C: Yeah, see what's over here!
M: Ooh!
INT: So, a lot of your fans are probably wondering
what are some five tips for filming in unpredictable environments?
C: Ooh, unpredictable environments and filming tips.
C: Mark, I'll let you kick that one off [Mark's dialogue inaudible]
C: since you're holding the camera most of the time.
M: Why don't I answer a couple-- C: Okay
M: And then you answer a couple? How about that? That sound good?
Uh...
You need to be nimble, so you want to think about size of gear.
Like, think about the situation that you're putting yourself into
and how quickly you need to move
because the last thing you want to do is put yourself in an environment
or on a film production and have to be dragging the gear behind you.
And it slows down all the creativity.
So for us, we want to make sure our gear is as light as possible, all fits in a backpack.
So that way we're not missing shots out there. When Coyote runs ahead and catches an animal,
I'm right there next to him, as opposed to like...
Coming up as a cavalry with a couple camera bags. [both inaudible]
So for us it's about being nimble.
The other thing is making sure you have high quality gear
because another thing you don't want to happen
is that go all the way around the world
and have your gear go down where there isn't a B&H Photo because...
That would be bad, right?
We'd lose a lot of money and plane tickets. [laughs]
C: Yeah! I mean that's definitely a fair statement!
I, you know, trying to keep a lightweight kit, but still a very effective kit,
I would say, is one of the most important things, especially when you're filming in the wilderness right?
You...
Can't lug a bunch of gear into the middle of nowhere, especially if you're carrying it all by hand.
The lighter you can travel, sometimes the better the opportunity for getting up close with animals.
Oftentimes people will be like "well, how crazy is your camera gear?"
I mean it ranges from something like a red camera down to a GoPro.
M: Yeah C: Honestly the GoPros sometimes get the best shots
M: Oh, for sure! It's like, you know, everyone who starts out, um...
Filming outdoor content, I recommend first camera you buy is a GoPro!
C: Yeah M: Because it really teaches you about lighting.
It teaches you about what your camera's gonna go through and so that you know,
when you're out here looking at some of the higher-end professional cameras,
like "is that the best camera that's gonna get muddy and wet? Or..."
"Should I maybe go something a little bit more durable and lightweight like..."
"One of those DSLRs that's weatherproof." C: Right...
M: So, those are things you wanna think about. C: Right, right.
[music]
INT: So, what do you do for fun aside from your work?
C: What do we do for fun? Aside from our work...
C: Um, I don't know I guess the work is so much fun
We're kind of always just living in the moment of what the adventure is.
When I'm home, and I'm not actually in production,
I guess I'm playing out the backyard with my dog. Uh, actually washing and detailing my cars.
Uh...
Strangely enough, I guess I like to vacuum. [Mark laughs] I vacuum quite a bit, I...
M: That is the most boring answer! C: I find it to be kind of, like...
Soothing to be like, lemme put some lines in the carpet,
you know, clean the house, those sorts of things. Just does everyday...
Sort of activities that, when you're traveling as much as we do, you don't do when you're on the road.
M: Yeah [inaudible]
C: I don't really go on vacations or anything like that
M: Yeah, you know, I mean our job is kind of like an infinite trip!
C: That's-- M: We're always going somewhere!
C: Yeah, that's what I mean. I mean, there's not necessarily a...
"What do I do for fun?" My entire profession is fun, I guess.
M: I know something we do for fun!
So one of the things, when we're on locations that we've never been to,
we like to scout the local markets and stores,
and we always play this game, like, who can find the best artifact.
In fact, Mario is here right now
He would probably be playing that game in the store.
M: Like, who can find the newest, coolest thing-- C: Right.
M: To take home because it's kind of like a competition,
but at the end everybody brings home something cool.
And that's, that's kind of a game we play
C: Yeah, I also like all these little things that are...
C: Zigzagging around above you, all the little gift baskets-- [Coyote's audio inaudible]
M: Do you guys sell this conveyer belt too? We could use one of those
INT: I don't, I don't think it's for sale...
M: No? Okay... [Interviewer laughs]
INT: So what's some of the best feedback you've gotten from your fans?
M: Um... All of it's appreciated. [Coyote's dialogue inaudible]
But I think when we meet our fans in person, just getting to like look at them in the eye,
understanding how much the nature content is appreciated by everybody around the world.
You know, all cultures, all walks.
Like everybody loves seeing animals and like just seeing that reaction
that Coyote gets when a fan comes up, like that's the reward for me.
That's like really, really meaningful. So... that happens all the time now.
[Mark laughs] Luckily!
C: So, all about the audience for the most part! M: Yeah!
INT: So Mark, what's your dream camera to use?
M: Oh!....
M: Hm, How to answer that?
Luckily, we're at the stage in our careers where we use a lot of really cool gear,
and I love cannon equipment. But if I had to say my dream camera?
Is it okay if it doesn't exist yet?
I would love for--if cannon is listening--
I would love to have a 5D that shoots internal 4K, 120p,
on an SD card. If we can do that...
That's gonna be my favorite camera!
M: We'll see, maybe one day!
INT: Coyote! C: Yeah!
INT: What animal are you dying to do a video with?
C: Definitely the big one for me this year, is going to be Komodo dragons.
It's always a place I wanted to visit,
the Indonesian islands, Komodo Island specifically.
And getting to film, dragged into the wild and finding a way to film dragons
like they've never been from before is a great challenge for myself and the team!
I mean even when you look at something like microphones.
We find in so many instances that animals want to attack microphones.
What would happen if a Komodo dragon attacked one of these microphones?
Will the microphone survive?
Will its little fluffy cover that looks like a mammal become something enticing
that causes the animal to be curious around it?
So, you know, we're always thinking about you know...
How is an animal gonna interact with a camera?
Or a piece of technology and does that play into the actual episode?
M: So here's a little--sorry top pause the questions, I just want to make a little pro tip right here.
We love this new RØDE
light mic right here.
The Ultracompact camera mount video micro.
That, that... This little microphone is amazing.
The quality audio that it gets. And sometimes that's the thing about gear:
Like you really have to try it, get your hands on it, get it in the field and test it.
I mean, you could just come up to this case and pick out the most expensive microphone,
and I bet it'd be pretty good, but...
For what we do, this seems to be our go to these days for YouTube, believe it or not.
It's one of the cheaper mics in this case, but it is one of the best!
[music]
[nosie from the store]
INT: Favorite video you've done and why!
MARK AND COYOTE: Oh!... M: We get that question a lot!
C: What's your favorite video?
M: That's such a hard question to answer because, you know,
we wouldn't make the videos if we didn't like them all. Uh...
But the one that always comes back around for me is the sockeye salmon
video in Alaska. Just because it had, like, all of the elements that go into what we do. I mean it had...
Traveling on a kayak across a glacial lake...
M: There were--oh, look at that! There we go. That's what we're doing today.
Hey, Coyote, look! A lemur, your favorite.
C: You're absolutely right!
M: Uh...
M: I like that video because it had the adventure element of like,
going across the glacial lake. It was absolutely gorgeous, like big Alaska.
And then, you know, the challenge of Coyote catching that sockeye just the
dynamics of how he had to film it by setting up multiple camps in multiple sites.
It took a lot, actually. Took three days to film that one episode and...
To me, that's one of my favorites just because of the challenge it presented.
M: Coyote what's your favorite episode?
C: Favorite episode. It's really hard to ever choose a favorite episode. For me,
it's usually what's the most recent video that we've produced. Recently, we shot one in
Colorado--worked with a place called the Colorado Wolf and Wildlife Center--
all about gray wolves and getting them reintroduced
out into the wild in Colorado, where they once existed. Now, they're not there.
So for us to go through post-production on that one,
that's definitely one that I'm most excited to come out soon
M: I think I saw some camera bags that way.
INT: Scariest and most dangerous video you've done.
M: Ooh! Oh...
M: Coyote, do you wanna go first on that one? C: What's the question?
M: Scariest and most dangerous video. C: Oh, scariest and most dangerous...
There definitely been a lot of... Dangerous videos that we have filmed before in the past.
Again, it's subjective based on are we working with lions or we working with bears? Is it a venomous snake?
So it's tough to gauge exactly WHAT is the most dangerous?
I say, of all time,
the craziest encounter happened with a mother grizzly bear and her three cubs on the side of a river in Alaska.
Good news for us, it that the mother bear took her cubs in the opposite direction
because if she hadn't we might have been attacked...
INT: If you weren't video creators, what would you be?
M: If I wasn't a video creator, what would I be? Well, my... My mom really wanted me to be a doctor
So, I don't know if I would have gone back to school to be a doctor, but I think I could see myself being...
Somebody who helps folks in health care industry, I think so!
Is that a good answer?
I don't know. I don't really think about that. I've got the dream job!
I get to hold cameras for a living. It's great!
INT: Hey Coyote!
INT: If you weren't a video creator, what would you be?
C: Ooh, if I wasn't a video creator, what would I be?
Probably a paleontologist.
I really enjoy going out looking for a prehistoric treasures,
like fossils and you know anything that is...
Takes it quite a bit of work to search for,
but then ends up being something really cool that you can celebrate and educate people with.
So, yeah, I'd say paleontologist if I wasn't a video maker
INT: What's one thing that makes your job easier?
C: Ooh... Well, I would definitely say camera bags, and I'm always on the lookout for what's the next...
smallest, sleekest designed camera bag
that has a lot of great compartments and a lot of places to easily access your gear.
Uh, especially what comes to GoPro. So, when you're out there in the wild and you're moving fast pace,
you can't necessarily take off your bag and then get a camera out.
It's like what can you reach for?
Right out in the middle of the action sequence?
And so I'm always looking to see what is the new latest greatest technology
when it comes to how we keep our gear on our person to be able to utilize it as quick as possible!
I don't know what this one does but...
it looks like it's got a lot of hoops to hold on to things.
INT: Do your friends and family understand this line of work?
C: Oh, definitely!
Yeah, my friends and family completely understand what it is that I do.
Uh, it's actually my family that really encouraged me to get outside and explore as a kid!
So when it came to producing this kind of content,
I get all the support in the world!
INT: If there were to be a movie about Brave Wilderness-- M: Ooh!
who would play you?
M: Who would play me? Uh...
That's a tough question. I don't think about that ever!
C: Nah! M: Uh...
You know, I get the uh... Have you seen the Tom Cruise comment?
C: I have seen that. M: Yeah, I guess I'll go with that.
[inaudible]
C: Tom Cruise to play you?
M: I mean... You know, it depends how epic we take this thing, but I think maybe one day!
C: That's a, that's a pretty big ask. [Mark laughing]
What if it's like brave wilderness in the future? Maybe I could get Bruce Willis to play me.
M: Oh, I like that! C: That be a good one
M: Is that cuz you both shave your head? C: Yes
[Mark laughing] C: I don't have any hair; Bruce doesn't have any hair.
Although Bruce doesn't have a beard either
So we'd have to maybe throw one on his face.
M: I bet Bruce can grow a mean beard!
C: Yeah! Maybe the future of Brave Wilderness is, like.
Two old dudes, runnin' around, out in the wilderness trying to film stuff.
C: Probably a comedy M: Okay!
C: I would say M: Oh yeah, for sure!
C: Definitely an action-comedy!
M: Yeah, I like that.
INT: And who should we interview next?
C: Ooh! M: Interview next...
M: I'm trying to think, YouTube friends! Uh...
M: Have you guys interviewed Devin? Devin Graham from devinsupertramp?
C: Ah, devinsupertramp! That'd be a good one!
M: I mean he--when you talk about like who knows their cameras,
nobody knows cameras better than Devin!
C: Yeah, he just shot a couple of really incredible documentaries!
The camera work that he manages to do out there in the wilderness similar to what we do--
M: Yeah C: Bar none, top-notch!
M: And I know he comes to this store every time he's in New York
C: All right, well I think we gotta get to the event
M: Is it time?
C: I think it's about time, so we should probably head over there.
Leave the cameras behind and meet some audience members!
M: All right, cool!
INT: All right. Thanks so much for answering!
M: See ya!
INT: See ya
[music]