The story of how PVMedia was born

My middle son Jaz was making films with his film maker friend Kauya Tembo who both gave me the confidence to start PuritanValuesMedia. With no budget but the best cameras in the industry. Jaz and I began filming the start of the restoration of the chateau, and Tembo began editing what we had filmed. We started by learning from each other exchanging our skills, ideas and trying out lots of different ways to film. I had been presenting for almost twenty years by then, and over that time I had been carefully watching and learning how cameramen filmed, how the directors directed me, and slowly but surely I began to understand how film is made from the inside, and being a presenter I was in the best position to see it all at first hand. With further help and direction from our friends in the TV and Film industry, we really began to see some great results.

A year in, and two very close friends of mine Vinny and his partner Ruth, their daughters Betty and Maddy, and son Josh came to visit us at the Chateau. Unbeknown to us, Josh was a professional filmmaker who over the next few days gave Jaz and I a crash course on filmmaking, a real insight into how to handle and steer the camera, angles to film from, and moving with the camera. He taught us how to use the main settings of the camera and tricks of the trade that we could immediately see dramatic improvements which turned out to be such a godsend that we still implement today the direction Josh sent us on, the right one.

Another year on and Josh's younger brother Ty was up for learning how to become a cameraman. Ty was 19 years old at the time, 6'3" tall, with the strength of two men, bounding with enthusiasm he just took to it like a duck to water, a natural born cameraman.

I had always wanted to film and present a programme on Art, Antiques and Architecture something I have been passionate about all my adult life and after much thought and deliberation I decided we would start filming Art Nouveau Architecture across Europe, and the mission was set we just needed to book the dates and tally ho. Coincidently I had been storing for over a year a large collection of Aesthetic furniture purchased by a wonderful client Marco who worked for Gucci. With a keen designer's eye for detail, he and his wife had been restoring a period Artists house with original frescos decorated to the exterior, nestled on the shores of Lake Como where the furniture was to be delivered. The date was set for July 2nd 2022. Ty joined me at my Chateau in Northern France on the 1st and we jumped in the van and drove 12 hours to Lake Como. Arriving in the evening we met up with Marco and settled in for the night. The next morning, came the long awaited moment to begin filming, and we never looked back. It was Ty's first day filming, thrown in at the deep end, with the camera set up on the stand, we called Jaz via FaceTime in front of the camera, where Jaz took Ty through the camera settings and gave him the basics of how to start filming and with what I knew about the camera the two of us began filming the unloading of Marco's beautiful Aesthetic Movement furniture, walking it up a long path and into his house which he had decorated in the high Aesthetic Style. It was a hot sunny day, and as we moved the furniture into the house piece by piece each room just came to life, a perfect blend of Aesthetic Movement furniture within the Aesthetic Movement style gilded interior that Marco had decorated his house in, it was a sight to behold, and the first days filming went as smooth as a reel. We stayed the night at Marco's and I slept in Marco's grandma's original Italian brass and iron bed comfy as a cat on a mat, listening to the waves of Lake Como gently lapping to the shore, dreaming of our adventure ahead.

We had a hearty Italian breakfast and bid our farewells and drove to Milan to pick up Jaz from the airport. We booked in a hostel for two days where we planned our route across Europe. The three amigos were set, and we tucked ourselves into the front of my trusty van, each of us with a complementing skill and a deep passion and desire to film something historically artistic, something that had never been done before, an adventure through Art Nouveau in search of the seed and the sinuous lines of design that left its roots firmly in the foundations of some of the most beautiful Art Nouveau architecture that was ever built.

Against all odds, cameras at the ready, all for one and one for all, we went for it, and in that moment The Best of Art Nouveau Architecture Across Europe was born. It was our first outing, we filmed in seven cities, driving through nine countries in just twelve days. Below is a list of where we went and what we filmed which we will be bringing to you in the New Year....