Our Exclusive One-On-One Interview With Joe Martin
From Martin Bros Customs Iron Resurrection TV Show
On The Velocity Channel
Use this link to share: goo.gl/W6PnWV
Martin Bros Customs
|
Visit MartinBrosCustoms.com
|
Interview From October 2017:
Joe, how did Martin Brother's Customs get the top rated television show Iron Resurrection on the Velocity network?
It went back to the days when we did a series for the Discovery channel about 10 or 12 years ago called the Bike Build Off. I had gotten into the motorcycle business by accident and I was doing a lot of the cars. In the mid 1990's I got into the motorcycle business on a whim and started doing a lot of bikes in the Dallas area - a lot of paint jobs as they weren't a lot of people doing them at the time. Then one thing led to another and I started building my own bikes and as the tv stuff with Jesse James was coming into play really strong, those same producers asked me to be part of the series called the "Bike Build Off". So I did that for about 2 or years and we had some pretty good success. After we went through that, we kept in contact with the producers and then the Velocity channel was born about 6 or 7 years ago and my producers were kind of looking for some new material. My brother had a little bit of video equipment and had interest in it - so we put together a teaser reel that followed us all around the shop and then they bid off on it and really enjoyed it. Everything at that point kind of fell into place for the Velocity network.
There are so many talented guys and shops - (including yourself and Martin Brother's Customs) in Texas restoring and customizing some incredible cars and trucks. We all know Texans love their cars - but why do you think that is the case?
Well you know what? I don't really know because I am originally from Illinois and I have lived in Texas since I was 10 years old - pretty much my whole life. I don't really know what it but I have always wondered that too - what is the deal with Texas? What I have heard from the television producers is that people get a kick out of listening to the accents and all. I would hate to be defined by an accent but I guess that I have developed a little bit of it. But I really don't know what it is. I have been fortunate in doing the bike stuff and going to the shows and hitting the show circuit in order to gain some new customers - and we also received a lot a lot of support from the magazines - and that is how we got noticed. I don't know what it is with these people coming out of the woodwork. I know Richard Rawlings was trying to get on tv for a while and he had a production company hired to do some teasers and they kind of liked the idea - but then shelved it for 4 or 5 years and then pulled it off the shelf to give it a shot and then it stuck.
How long does it take to film a season of Iron Resurrection?
It takes about 11 months and we continue to film new shows even when the shows are airing on Velocity.
The camaraderie that the viewers see on Iron Resurrection is so strong and genuine that people want to just hang out and work alongside with you guys.
Well you know we get a lot of turmoil but fortunately the production doesn't like to cover that stuff. Generally we all get along well. Like in any shop, you are always going to have some problems and that sort of thing. But we don't like to focus on it. We don't think it is necessary for the viewers to see all the drama - we just don't care about it. We just want people to see what we do and focus on the fun of building a car and maybe inspire the guy who has a car sitting in his garage for 10 years for a while to go out and start working on it. We don't care about any kind of dramatic crap. We wouldn't go for it even if they suggested that - that's one thing. I have also known my crew for years and years and you learn who your best guys are, who you get along with great and who you don't and then weed you those guys out over the years and you build a little team up which we have been very fortunate enough to do that. You get what you see.
How has the tv show Iron Resurrection on Velocity affected your personal life? Do you and your wife Amanda get noticed and asked for pictures and autographs?
Yes we do - especially when we are kind of in our own crowd - like SEMA or at car shows. If we are in an airport, we get a lot of that too. There are also a lot of people who don't even necessarily have cable tv anymore - they have Netflix or are watching shows online - so that is a constant battle to keep an interesting show enough to keep people wanting to subscribe to the channel. We get noticed which is kind of strange to us and we are regular people and we are like, well we have been like this all our life so why do people want us to sign something now. Wayne Carini is a great guy who has a tv show that appeals to everyone - he is a cool guy. That is what we want to strive for - to inspire get someone to work on the car and learn something. We love what we do and are fortunate enough to do so - we are really lucky.
Are your artistic skills of sketching out a car concept and drawing your natural ability or did you learn it over time?
Well you know, I started drawing when I was a little kid. My mom said I was drawing on the walls and got me a big sketch pad and I would just draw and draw. I can just remember when I was really young sucking at it real bad and I got Hot Rod Magazines and I tried to copy a car and draw it on paper and over the years. I have always liked drawing - whether it is cars, bikes, trains or anything mechanical. I have always just enjoyed it and practiced and practiced. And then as I got into my mid teens, I tried to learn some mechanical things and picked up ideas from guys around my neighborhood as I didn’t have any type of formal training or anything. The local guys in the neighborhood were a lot older than me and let me hang out and learn things and kind of watch and that is how I picked it up. I was always interested in that and I would look at Boyd's (Coddington) stuff and say I could never afford that – so I have to try and learn how to do it myself and everything that I could and hang out with folks who could teach me something. I was never born with it - I just kept at it.
Joe, how did Martin Brother's Customs get the top rated television show Iron Resurrection on the Velocity network?
It went back to the days when we did a series for the Discovery channel about 10 or 12 years ago called the Bike Build Off. I had gotten into the motorcycle business by accident and I was doing a lot of the cars. In the mid 1990's I got into the motorcycle business on a whim and started doing a lot of bikes in the Dallas area - a lot of paint jobs as they weren't a lot of people doing them at the time. Then one thing led to another and I started building my own bikes and as the tv stuff with Jesse James was coming into play really strong, those same producers asked me to be part of the series called the "Bike Build Off". So I did that for about 2 or years and we had some pretty good success. After we went through that, we kept in contact with the producers and then the Velocity channel was born about 6 or 7 years ago and my producers were kind of looking for some new material. My brother had a little bit of video equipment and had interest in it - so we put together a teaser reel that followed us all around the shop and then they bid off on it and really enjoyed it. Everything at that point kind of fell into place for the Velocity network.
There are so many talented guys and shops - (including yourself and Martin Brother's Customs) in Texas restoring and customizing some incredible cars and trucks. We all know Texans love their cars - but why do you think that is the case?
Well you know what? I don't really know because I am originally from Illinois and I have lived in Texas since I was 10 years old - pretty much my whole life. I don't really know what it but I have always wondered that too - what is the deal with Texas? What I have heard from the television producers is that people get a kick out of listening to the accents and all. I would hate to be defined by an accent but I guess that I have developed a little bit of it. But I really don't know what it is. I have been fortunate in doing the bike stuff and going to the shows and hitting the show circuit in order to gain some new customers - and we also received a lot a lot of support from the magazines - and that is how we got noticed. I don't know what it is with these people coming out of the woodwork. I know Richard Rawlings was trying to get on tv for a while and he had a production company hired to do some teasers and they kind of liked the idea - but then shelved it for 4 or 5 years and then pulled it off the shelf to give it a shot and then it stuck.
How long does it take to film a season of Iron Resurrection?
It takes about 11 months and we continue to film new shows even when the shows are airing on Velocity.
The camaraderie that the viewers see on Iron Resurrection is so strong and genuine that people want to just hang out and work alongside with you guys.
Well you know we get a lot of turmoil but fortunately the production doesn't like to cover that stuff. Generally we all get along well. Like in any shop, you are always going to have some problems and that sort of thing. But we don't like to focus on it. We don't think it is necessary for the viewers to see all the drama - we just don't care about it. We just want people to see what we do and focus on the fun of building a car and maybe inspire the guy who has a car sitting in his garage for 10 years for a while to go out and start working on it. We don't care about any kind of dramatic crap. We wouldn't go for it even if they suggested that - that's one thing. I have also known my crew for years and years and you learn who your best guys are, who you get along with great and who you don't and then weed you those guys out over the years and you build a little team up which we have been very fortunate enough to do that. You get what you see.
How has the tv show Iron Resurrection on Velocity affected your personal life? Do you and your wife Amanda get noticed and asked for pictures and autographs?
Yes we do - especially when we are kind of in our own crowd - like SEMA or at car shows. If we are in an airport, we get a lot of that too. There are also a lot of people who don't even necessarily have cable tv anymore - they have Netflix or are watching shows online - so that is a constant battle to keep an interesting show enough to keep people wanting to subscribe to the channel. We get noticed which is kind of strange to us and we are regular people and we are like, well we have been like this all our life so why do people want us to sign something now. Wayne Carini is a great guy who has a tv show that appeals to everyone - he is a cool guy. That is what we want to strive for - to inspire get someone to work on the car and learn something. We love what we do and are fortunate enough to do so - we are really lucky.
Are your artistic skills of sketching out a car concept and drawing your natural ability or did you learn it over time?
Well you know, I started drawing when I was a little kid. My mom said I was drawing on the walls and got me a big sketch pad and I would just draw and draw. I can just remember when I was really young sucking at it real bad and I got Hot Rod Magazines and I tried to copy a car and draw it on paper and over the years. I have always liked drawing - whether it is cars, bikes, trains or anything mechanical. I have always just enjoyed it and practiced and practiced. And then as I got into my mid teens, I tried to learn some mechanical things and picked up ideas from guys around my neighborhood as I didn’t have any type of formal training or anything. The local guys in the neighborhood were a lot older than me and let me hang out and learn things and kind of watch and that is how I picked it up. I was always interested in that and I would look at Boyd's (Coddington) stuff and say I could never afford that – so I have to try and learn how to do it myself and everything that I could and hang out with folks who could teach me something. I was never born with it - I just kept at it.
Special Thanks To Joe Martin, Amanda Martin & Shag Arrington For All Of Their Cooperation