opinion

Sunny & Gnocchi - New York City Workshop

I recently discovered an enterprising and original marketer in the Xbiz.net Community. I love pure marketing and am always on the look-out for someone packaging something particularly creative. Photographer/Webmaster Gabrio Linari has been active in the Xbiz.net discussions since I started networking myself. His posts caught my attention about the same time I noticed he was participating in the Barcelona Summit with the presentation of a Boot Fetish Workshop featuring the stars of PRIVATE.

Gabrio’s next workshop will feature star Sunny Leone in New York City on October 4th, 2009. The workshop is his original concept where he tells me his goals are to do something really new, including mixing the best adult stars, photography, education, and *GREAT Italian food! In search of a business vehicle that makes people happy, includes them right at the heart of the action – and results in real interaction – talk about some awesome feedback, just wait for the raves from NYC, everyone’s favorite city…

I spoke with Gabrio and asked him to tell me a little bit about what participants might expect:

Gabrio:
“Participants in the workshop can expect to spend a truly unique day. They’ll meet me and my staff, and of course they’ll also meet the lovely Sunny Leone, the supermodel for this special gig and she'll also be having dinner with us! I like to make things cool and easy, a kinda family thing you know Joe; that's what usually happens at my workshops, everybody feels within friends, having fun and at the same time learning new things. I hired a very talented make-up artist, Nefertari Beauty, and I have also decided to have a PC at the workshop, inside the venue so that the participants can check in real time (since some will wait as the others shoot) how their photos are looking. We'll be shooting in RAW so this is yet another good reason to participate and I will teach them how to do some basic editing in case they are not familiar with the RAW format; that's what PROs always use when shooting - and finally at the end of the day we'll choose the best portrait. We'll first do headshots, and then tasteful black and white full body shoots. The venue I have chosen is the classy 420 Bar & Lounge in NYC and it will offer many spots for capturing amazing images - bars are always great as studio photography can be boring after a while! The whole workshop will be streaming live thanks to our hosting partner Oxeo Hosting, and the lovely Sunny is going to wear lingerie from Passion Online.”

I have to admit, the really unique aspect of this workshop that initially intrigued me was the inclusion of dinner and the talk about your special gnocchi. This addition gave the whole event a real-life homey quality that seemed at first out of place, but the more we’ve talked the more I see it as a reflection of your attitudes toward life and work…

Gabrio:
“Being an Italian, you can easily guess that I am in love with food, and it was natural that I thought to add to the workshop - the food element. As I was saying before, I am in fact going to cook my personal specialty - handmade gnocchi. It's gonna be a big preparation since there will be lots of people at the workshop, but I’m not scared and I usually cook for 10-15 friends easily! What makes my gnocchi special? Well, I can say that there's a secret ingredient but in reality there's not, it's just the fact that they are handmade, so there is passion in it and you have to know how to blend together all the ingredients; it's a fine art that a special person taught me many years ago - I am so thankful to her for doing that and you know what? My dream is to open a gnocchi restaurant one day, so we'll see!!”

Who do you encourage to attend, and what type of attendee do you expect to attract?

Gabrio:
“This event does not have any restrictions when it comes to the participants; this is just going to be the first of many workshops that I want to host on a worldwide scale. Yeah, I am an ambitious person indeed! So anybody can participate - I had in my mind to have at the workshop: amateur photographers, fans of the porn stars, and in general people that want to spend a different type of day while learning something new. That's what a workshop is all about, and besides, where will there ever be a better chance to meet gorgeous porn stars having fun, doing photos and having great food too? I think that it can't get any better than that. Downloading and watching videos? I say shooting and talking with a live model --- much better! In theory PRO photographers can also participate, but PROs usually want a more relaxed and private environment, this is going to be loud and fun!”

“After these events, when people come to me with a big smile after spending a great day; that's what makes me happy as well and gives me fuel to squeeze out new ideas like this. Not the money, period. We are allowing a max of 30 people for this event so people better hurry up since openings are already filling fast.”

I don’t know about you, but the whole idea just grows on you – it sounds like a fun day just as Gabrio recommends it, and I think he’s going to find some real traction with this concept. Funny thing is, it’s actually the homemade gnocchi dinner that sold me on the day…it's always great to have Sunny at the dinner table, and there are some things that cannot be duplicated - I just have a feeling his claims are based in fact, not bravado!

For all the details on the Glamour Nude Workshop in NYC with Sunny Leone, visit: www.pornstarworkshop.com

For more info about Gabrio Linari Photography, please visit: www.gabriolinari.com

For great industry networking, visit: www.xbiz.net

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