By Jodi Xu

One person, one camera, one day, no stand-up — just try to tell a story.

Michael Rosenblum, founder of Rosenblum TV, an aggregator of video documentaries, has been training thousands of Americans to shoot videos with portable cameras and edit with Final Cut. He believes everyone can become a video journalist, since technology has made it possible for everyone to access the tools needed to learn and master such skills

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In 2006, Rosenblum, a former CBS reporter, started his video training program in New York and Santa Barbara. People walking into Rosenblum’s studio with no video experience walked out with documentaries that were picked up by other Web sites and television channels. Most recently, Rosenblum teamed up with Jeff Jarvis, director of the journalism department of City University of New York and an advocate of citizen video journalism, to offer one-day workshop of video shooting for anybody who is interested.

Courses range from the basic “One-day Introduction” to the more intense “One-week Professional Training.” During a 4-day training program, students learn video shooting, scripting, tracking, editing, producing and uploading. The course costs $2,500 per person and is booked up through 2010, according to a person manning the registration desk at its New York office.

“It’s the public that wants to join in. It’s like blogging, video blogging, or vlogging, is becoming very powerful,” Rosenblum said.

Some critics say Rosenblum’s approach is to trade quality for lower cost.” What they are doing here is putting raw footage on the Web. It’s like making affordable housing,” Adam Najberg, video editor of the WSJ.com, said. He said it’s hard to produce high quality videos using a cheap $200 Flip camcorder.

Najberg said what Rosenblum is doing might be a jump-start for anyone hoping to get into the field, but even a godfather can only do so much. “It is like in baseball. Not everybody is good enough to play for the Yankees,” Najberg said.

Nevertheless, some graduates from Rosenblum’s workshops have proven their abilities to produce quality videos.  “The Healing Fields,” a documentary shot and edited by Alexandra Garcia, who took a Rosenblum TV workshop, has won this year’s Washington Post video grant. Web sites like Travelchannel.com have solicited Rosenblum to use its videos on a regular basis, with the promise to pay $250 for each minute they use.

“One-person production is soon to replace traditional TV production teams,” Rosenblum said. Two factors are making this happen.

First of all, the cost of a portable camera and editing software has decreased significantly. Equipment that traditional TV crew use costs about $1 million. Nowadays, anyone can get a decent camera and accessories for about $1,000. The old-school on-the-shoulder camera is not only pricey but also cumbersome. Therefore, it was necessary to have a production team with a cameraman, sound man, producer, reporters, and even a van. Secondly, technology has made the gadgets much lighter and easier to use.

“Times have changed. Any 9-year-old can shoot and edit a video now,” Rosenblum said. He has shown little sympathy for the traditional TV crew too. A few years ago, Rosenblum restructured BBC. As a result, the British Broadcasting Company laid off a bunch of cameramen, switched to portable cameras and cut cost by 70%.  After all the changes, the number of BBC cameras covering news has increased from 85 to 750.

“I keep telling TV cameramen that they were in an archaic job that doesn’t exist anymore,” Rosenblum said. It doesn’t make him the most popular person among the cameramen, but he said he couldn’t care less.

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