March of the Librarians
4:59
Didn't you wonder where your librarians disappeared to last January? Ten thousand of them were in Seattle for an American Library Association convention, and I was there to capture the bizarre congregation on video.
Tags: march librarians ala convention midwinter 2007 seattle
Added: 6 years ago
From: nnnicck
Views: 192,351
March of the Librarians
Seattle, 2007
[various shots of librarians mulling about the Washington State Convention and Trade Center are shown]
NARRATOR: Twice a year, tens of thousands of librarians make a trek across the United States to a meeting of the American Library Association. How they know to congregate in the same spot, no one knows. They come to learn, to network, to collect free stuff, and possibly to mate.
[cut to a shot outside the Seattle Public Library, then to various librarians inside the building]
NARRATOR: They came to Seattle this year, drawn by the shiny new Seattle Public Library.
[cut to a LexisNexis sign hanging inside the convention center]
NARRATOR: They are also drawn to the library vendors, who occupy the exhibit halls of the Seattle convention center.
[cut to more vendor booths (such as WorldCat and ProQuest) inside the convention center]
NARRATOR: The vendors have several tactics for luring unwitting librarians into their clutches ...
[cut to a table filled with coffee mugs]
NARRATOR: They may use coffee ...
[cut to two people dressed in giant cat outfits at the Baker & Taylor booth]
NARRATOR: Mascots ...
[cut to Oscar (a talking robot at the Emery-Pratt booth) shaking a librarian's hand]
NARRATOR: Gimmicks ...
[cut to a woman dressed as a Jedi, followed by a man (?) dressed as an Imperial Stormtrooper]
NARRATOR: And even costumes ...
[cut to a man at one of the booths as a female librarian walks by]
NARRATOR: Here is a hungry vendor looking for a meal ... And here comes a likely-looking librarian.
[the man doesn't seem to notice her, and she walks right past him]
NARRATOR: But his attention is elsewhere. Looks like he goes hungry today.
[cut to more footage of librarians walking around the convention center]
NARRATOR: After observing these noble creatures for some time, certain patterns become apparent.
[cut to several shots of male librarians with beards]
NARRATOR: There are the male librarians, often sporting fabulous facial plumage, perhaps in an attempt to attract a mate.
[cut to several shots of librarians pulling rolling bags behind them]
NARRATOR: There are the tote-rollers, who use bags on wheels to collect their vendor goodies.
[cut to another shot of the crowd of librarians gathering around a booth]
NARRATOR: And, if you look closely, you might even spot a hipster librarian or two in the crowd.
[cut to more footage of librarians walking around the convention center]
NARRATOR: The convention is not all hustle and bustle. The librarians spend hours waiting in line for the necessities of life ...
[cut to a line forming outside of an espresso bar]
NARRATOR: Such as coffee ...
[cut to a line forming outside of a sub shop]
NARRATOR: Food ...
[cut to a line forming outside of an internet cafe]
NARRATOR: And email ...
[cut to more footage of librarians walking around the convention center]
NARRATOR: After four days of networking, dodging vendors, collecting goodies, and possibly mating, the librarians are tired and ready to return home. In six months, they will descend on a new city, and the strange ritual will unfold again.
Filmed on location in
Seattle, WA at the
American Library
Association
MidWinter Conference
2007
Created and Narrated by Nick Baker
Inspired by March of the Penguins
"I have always imagined that Paradise will be a kind of library" - Jorge Luis Borges
---
From davidrothman.net:
Short documentary film parody of March of the Penguins about the natural behavior of Librarians as they instinctually gather together twice annually.
Shot at ALA MidWinter 2007 in Seattle and put together with obvious care and good humor by Nick Baker.
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