Before New York.
Everything for the two days. Read it once now — then again the week before you fly.
The two days.
Day 01 is the room — everything between you and one client. Day 02 is the audience — how he finds you in the first place. A full hour-by-hour schedule goes out with your welcome packet.
The Room
The keynote, then a full men's facial demo on a model — filmed live on a single phone. The beard area, devices and back bar, the first sixty seconds, the extraction script, the debrief and the rebook. The treatment is the easy part. The room is the work.
The Audience
The avatar workbook, filled in. Finding him — the partnership map for your own city. A working CapCut session on footage you bring. Your menu, your space, your site. You leave with output, not inspiration.
The Bare Man
Guido Cuomo — founder, The Bare Man (@thebaremangrooming)
A two-hour instructional session on the male Brazilian, led by one of the few people teaching it properly. Hands-on, honest, and built for the room you're actually going to be standing in.
Exact session times land with your welcome packet — the shape above is fixed; the clock is being finalized against the two-day run.
What to prepare.
Two things matter before you arrive: the footage you bring, and the apps on your phone. Everything else we hand you at the door.
The footage — one men's facial
- Film one full men's treatment, start to finish, on your phone. A single phone is all you need.
- Shoot it unedited and continuous — don't cut it down beforehand. We cut it into protocol segments together on Day 02. That's the point of the working session.
- Wipe the lens first. Fingerprints are the number-one thing that quietly ruins otherwise good footage.
- Vertical, 9:16 — it's headed for social. One steady light source (a window is perfect).
- An overhead angle is a nice touch if you can rig it, but not required. One clean straight-on phone is enough.
- Anything from the last 90 days works. No footage yet? You're covered — you'll use Day 01's demo.
Phone settings for clean footage
Settings → Camera → Record Video→ set 4K at 30 fps (drop to 1080p/30 only if storage is tight).Settings → Camera → Record Video→ turn HDR Video off. Keeps color predictable when you edit and post.Settings → Camera→ turn Grid on for framing.- In the Camera app, press and hold the subject's face until AE/AF Lock appears — locks focus and exposure so it won't drift mid-treatment.
- Wipe the lens right before you shoot.
- Camera →
Settings → Video resolution→ UHD / 4K at 30 fps (or FHD 1080p/30 if storage is tight). - Turn HDR video recording off (Samsung:
Advanced recording options → HDR10+ off) for predictable color. - Turn Gridlines on.
- Tap the subject to focus, then long-press to lock focus and exposure (AE/AF lock).
- Wipe the lens right before you shoot.
One rule for both: pick a resolution and frame rate and don't touch it again. Mixed settings across clips are what make an edit fall apart three weeks later.
Download before you land
CapCut
The Day 02 edit happens here. Have it installed and open it once before you arrive.
Come ready with
- One real story about a male client — a moment that stuck with you, good or bad. We build from real rooms, not hypotheticals.
- Your current website and service menu, pullable on your phone. Day 02 audits them with fresh eyes.
- A first draft of the one man you're building toward — not "men," one man. We'll sharpen it live in the avatar session.
What to bring.
- Your phone, charged — plus a charger.
- A notebook and a pen you actually like writing with.
- Layers. The room runs cold under AC.
- Comfortable shoes — you'll be on your feet.
Coffee both mornings, lunch both days, and drinks on Monday are on us — no need to plan around food. Bring yourself and the footage.
Where to stay.
All within walking distance of the venue in Chelsea. Travel and lodging are on you, but these are the four we'd point you to first.
Reading — optional.
Not homework. Nothing here is required, and no one's checking. A few things that frame the room and the work, if you want them beforehand.
- Kristen Barber
- April Dunford — on positioning: saying what a thing is, plainly.
- Jason Fried & David Heinemeier Hansson — building lean, on your own terms.
- Austin Kleon — on making the work public without the pitch.
Questions.
Two doors, so nothing falls through. Use the correct one and you'll always get the fastest answer.
Anything about the trip — travel, the room, timing, dietary or access needs. If it's about the two days on the ground, it's Alyce.
(805) 624-1754 alyce@thegrainproject.coPractice questions — your skin, your protocol, the work itself. Save the logistics for Alyce and she'll get you sorted faster.
(626) 807-8426 jeff@thegrainproject.coSee you in New York.
Read this once now, once the week before. Everything else, we'll handle in the room.
Against the grain.