April 27, 2016. Rebecca Gerendasy came up with the idea to make a hybrid, documentary and how-to that became the barbecue DVD “Inside The World of Championship Barbecue”. A story intertwined with expert first-hand knowledge and experience from top competitors to help people improve their cooking and competition results. Above is the trailer for the DVD.
How Inside The World of Championship Barbecue DVD came into being
Back in 2003, Rebecca and I were living in Memphis and we were brainstorming ideas for a new video project. What’s big in Memphis? What subject could we tap into that might excite people enough that they would purchase the DVD.
Well, in Rome, do as the Romans do. And, there’s really nothing bigger than barbecue, not just in the Memphis area but throughout much of the South (the so-called barbecue belt). Initially, we had planned to do a local story but quickly our antennas turned to the world series of BBQ—the Annual American Royal Barbecue in Kansas city.
And so, Inside The World of Championship Barbecue was born. The first issue was on VHS tape and I managed to design the most dog ugly cover possibly that ever existed. Not only that, as though the title was not quite long enough, we called it, NOW YOU’RE COOKIN: Inside The World of Championship barbecue. The next reissue was on DVD and sometime afterward, another re-issue, this time without the “NOW YOUR COOKIN” and with a new professional redesign and 20 minutes of bonus video material.
The story synopsis: 2 teams, one veteran (2 Fat Larry’s) and one a newbie team (Northwood Mesquite-Toes) that never had before been in a competition, prepare and compete in one of the toughest barbecue contests in the country. Along the way, we talk to dozens of top barbecue cooks, many of them true legends of this sport.
The release was really a success and people wrote us to say how much they enjoyed the video and received lots of other accolades and reviews some of which on on the product page. Even spouses who watched it with their partner and had no interest in BBQ, said they enjoyed the story.
Rebecca produced, shot and edited the film, and Gaylon Reasons helped with the interviews in Kansas City. Dave Potter composed the original music and for the trailer above.
I should also say, this is an exotic sport that many people have still never attended or witnessed the passion that these BBQ hopefuls exhibit. We followed up with a new how-to DVD, BBQ Secrets: The Master Guide to Extraordinary Barbecue Cookin that’s all about the art of low & slow, authentic BBQ cooking from 3 world champion cooks who were also barbecue restaurateurs.
But that’s a story for another day… In the meantime, here are some of the folks in the film and other interesting images from the DVD:
