All language subtitles for Ellens.Next.Great.Designer.S01E01.1080p.WEB.h264-KOGi_Track03

- Anyone who knows me knows
how much I love furniture.

That's why I've created
my very own

furniture design competition.

Hey!
- Oh, my God.

- I have found seven
of the best,

most talented up-and-coming
designers in the country.

They'll be working
from their own hometowns

in their own workshops.

[dramatic music]

And they get a helper
of their choosing.

Who's gonna help me
find the winner?

My dream team of judges,
that's who.

Award-winning
contemporary artist

and designer,
Fernando Mastrangelo...

- I can't say I'm a fan
of this piece at all.

- And celebrated interior
designer, Brigette Romanek.

- These are absolutely
stunning.

- And one of my dear friends,
Scott Foley,

who loves furniture design
almost as much as I do.

- Oh, yeah.

- They'll only have a few days
to create furniture magic

before it's showtime
in Los Angeles,

where they'll be presenting
their pieces to the judges.

- All right, let's light it up.

♪ ♪

- As long as Scott
doesn't break anything first.

- I'm sorry.
I won't break the--

oh, shoot.
- Oh.

- I literally said,
"I won't break this one."

- I mean,
it's not gonna be easy.

- You're gonna finish it
your [bleep] self?

- No problem.
- You gotta be kidding me

with this bullshit.

- [cries]

- But we'll also
have some laughs.

- I'm gonna get here.
You step on my back.

[laughter]

This is happening?
[laughter]

- And we'll get to see some
really cool furniture.

I'm not looking
for any old designer,

I'm looking
for my next great designer.

I gotta go, 'cause the logo's
gonna be here in three seconds.

♪ ♪

I told you.

[mid-tempo music]

♪ ♪

[phone ringing]

- Oh, hello there.

- Hi, Scott.
How are you?

- I am fantastic.

I'm so excited
to be here with you.

- Well, first of all,
you look very handsome.

- Thank you very much.
As do you.

- I don't know where you are,
because I've heard

that you've--

looks like a house.
- It's my kitchen.

We just moved
from LA to Connecticut.

- That's--'cause I knew
you moved out of your house,

because I had neighbors
that watched you pack up

and leave town
in the middle of the night,

so I thought something
maybe was wrong with the law.

- I just didn't want
to bother them, so I did it

in the middle of the night.
- All right, well,

you scared everybody.
But I'm happy to see you.

- God, you got dressed up.
You look so much better

than I do.
- Well, you should see me

from the waist down.

Maybe not.

This show is going
to blow people's minds.

- I'm really excited to see
what these designers that

you've chosen
have in store for us.

For someone like me,
who is such a fan

of architecture
and furniture design,

I'm always looking.
We're driving around,

and I'm like, "Look at that
house, oh, you can see

"that piece in there.
Look at that table,

where'd they get that?"
- I have to say that it

sounds a little creepy
that you're looking

in people's windows
to see the furniture.

But I'm sure
it's the best intentions.

Here's what we're gonna do.

I am going to call them,

and I'm gonna tell them
that they are in,

and they'll freak out.
And then,

once I've called them,
you're gonna call 'em,

and you're gonna give 'em
their first challenge, okay?

- I'm so excited about it.

Yes.
- Okay.

Who's gonna hang up first?

- Well, you're Ellen,

so do what you gotta do.
- Okay.

Count to three
and hang up together.

- Okay.
- All right, ready?

- Yep.
both: One...

- Just hung up on him.

In the middle of a sentence.
It's the best.

[upbeat music]

[phone ringing]

- Holy shit.
- [laughs]

- Hi, sorry.
This is you.

- Yeah.
It's me calling to tell you

you're in
"Ellen's Next Great Designer."

- I'm jumping right now.
I'm a little,

like--I don't know.
[laughs]

[phone rings]

- Hey, it's Ellen.
Hi.

- Hi, Ellen.

- Hold on.
What?

You told me she was
in the competition.

Why would you have me
call her then?

I'm on the ph--

I'm so sorry.

That was a bad joke,

because you're in
the competition.

- I am?
- It's a little trick I do,

where I pretend
like you're not, but you are.

But why would I be calling you
to tell you that?

[phone rings]

Hi, Christina.
- Oh, my God.

- Hello, Mark.
- [laughs]

- Hello?
- How are you, Paul?

By the way, I'm Ellen.
- Yeah, I--

I can recognize you.

- This is Ellen DeGeneres
on my phone.

- I'm in your phone, actually.

You are one of the designers
that we have chosen.

- Oh, my God.
Like, this is amazing.

- I'm having a heart attack.
- Ah!

- I'm very proud of myself
for making the show.

I'm gonna be much more proud
if I can win it.

- Can't wait to see
what you come up with.

- I'm excited.
- This is insane.

Thank you so much.

- Congratulations, babe.

[laughs]
This is so exciting.

[soft music]

- Hi, designers.
How is everybody today?

- Great.
- I'm Scott Foley.

I'll be your guide
throughout this process.

And not only
will I be a judge,

I'll also be checking in
on you during the competition.

- Oh, my God, it's Noel
from "Felicity."

- Looking at you all together
for the first time,

it's fascinating to see

everybody in your work spaces.

It's like a little window into
each designer's personality.

I can tell some of you
are already

sizing up the competition.

- Definitely.

- Now here's how
it's gonna work.

Each week,
we're gonna present you

with a unique challenge

designed to test your skills,

showcase who you are
as a designer,

and then you'll present
your designs in Los Angeles,

where we'll separate the very
good from the very best.

Each of you will have your own
hand-picked craftsperson

to help you bring
your creative visions to life.

Judging a group this talented

is gonna be
extremely difficult,

so joining me
on the judging panel

are two titans
of the design world.

First, we've got world-class
furniture designer

and award-winning
contemporary artist,

with works in museums
and exhibitions

the world over,
Fernando Mastrangelo.

- What?
Fernando Mastrangelo

is a phenomenal designer.

I have followed his work
for many years,

and it's incredible
to have him as a judge.

- And top interior designer
to the stars,

like Beyoncé
and Gwyneth Paltrow,

and one of
"Architectural Digest's"

top 100 designers,

Brigette Romanek.
- [laughs]

Oh, my God.
This is awesome.

Brigette Romanek,
she has done amazing work,

and I absolutely love her
use of color and pattern

and being bold and eclectic.

- Now, designers,
let me be clear.

We're looking for originality,

functionality, and of course,

great craftsmanship.

Ellen has created this platform

because she sees
so much promise in each of you.

But, in the end, only one

is gonna walk away
with $100,000

and the title of Ellen's
Next Great Designer.

- Whoo.
- We all know Ellen loves her

massive giveaways.
She's famous for it.

And she's arranged
for a sizable care package

to be delivered to each of you.

In fact...

you know, it should
be arriving right about now.

- What?
Oh, my God.

- You guys excited to see
what Ellen sent you?

- Yes.
- Ya!

- Yes and no.

But, yeah, like,
let's go for it.

- [laughs]
You're afraid already.

Don't be.
[laughter]

- This is your first challenge.

And it starts...

right now.
- Let's go get it.

- Let's go.
- Let's do it.

- Let's go see.

- And they've all gone away.

That was easy.

- Andale.

[upbeat music]

- There's an envelope here.

- Oh.
- Oh, shit.

- What is this?

- I want this one.

- "Open me first."
All right.

- Okay.
Oh, here we go.

- Hi there, it's me again.
To begin the competition,

I thought what better place
to start than the beginning?

Since the dawn of time,
man roamed the Earth,

and then man got exhausted
from all the roaming

and built something to sit on.
- Ha!

- I bring this up because
your first challenge

is to take basic materials

that have been around
since the beginning of time

and transform them
into a piece of furniture

that someone would use today.

I've seen
what's inside the boxes,

and I do not envy you
right now.

- Ah.
- Just thinking about it

makes my body hurt.

- Oh, boy.
- The good news is

you're gonna have
as much time as you want

to complete the challenge.

I'm kidding.
[laughter]

You only have four days

to turn these
incredibly raw materials

into a beautifully refined
piece of furniture.

And of course,
we want to see you

use your own unique,
signature style.

Open up the boxes.
Everything you need is inside.

And good luck.

- Shit.
- Man, let's open

this thing up and see.

- Whoo!

- Okay.

What is it?
- Oh, shit.

- Shit!
- Wood heaven here.

- Oh, my God, it's wood heaven.

Lots of walnut,

There's cherry,
there's ash, there's hickory.

All these slabs of hardwoods
are gigantic.

It's probably double
the size of me.

- Ah.

- Let's see.

Ooh, its rocks.
- Oh.

- Oh, my God.

This is amazing.
- Huh.

She wasn't lying
about the caveman thing.

- No.
- I've never worked

with stone before.

Ellen, what were you thinking?

- How do you make stuff
out of this?

- How you would break
that down?

You can't break that down.

- What the [bleep], man?

This is way outside
of my comfort zone.

- There's onyx,
there's alabaster,

there's marble,
red sandstone.

My first choice
would be the alabaster.

I'm excited about
the first challenge.

It's back to the basics.

Raw materials
in its purest form.

One wood and one stone.

How am I gonna do that?
That's the real challenge.

- I don't know I can
even move this.

[laughs]

- Watch out.
I don't know.

- We're gonna mess it up.
- Put it back.

- I can roll it to you.
- That's beautiful.

- Move away.
I got it.

[laughter]

Ellen wasn't kidding when
she said the Stone Age.

- [groans]
- This challenge is so hard

because the materials are raw.

[straining]

Usually, you need industrial
machines to get them

to a more polished look.

- Got it?
- Yep, watch out,

Watch out, watch out,
watch out.

- Workout of the week.
- No joke.

- [straining]
- Cool.

- Ah.
- This is tricky.

I think because the rock
is just so pure and natural,

I want the wood
to be super clean.

Like, super polished.
- Right.

Let's--up and then over.

I'm definitely nervous
for the competition.

The other designers
are very capable.

They all have amazing skills.

But I'm excited
to get started,

because it's a competition,
and I'm very competitive.

My name is Arielle
Assouline-Lichten.

I studied architecture
at Harvard.

I've worked at architecture
firms around the world--

Japan,

Copenhagen,

New York.

Transitioning to furniture
design was a huge risk.

But to me, that risk is the
reason for making furniture.

My style is contemporary,
clean,

and a little bit of glam.

My helper is Lydia.

She's been working for me
for two years,

and we can kind of,
like, understand each other

without having
to explain everything.

I want to win this competition
because it would prove it

to myself,
to my family, to my peers,

that I've chosen
the right path.

Overall length.

I'm making a coffee table

using a live edge walnut

to create
an extreme cantilever.

And if I can attach
a brass bracket to that rock,

it'll hold the wood in place.

[sighs]

I would say I'm 90% sure
that this is gonna work.

I just hope nobody else
creates a piece like mine.

So I want to get, like,
a tracing of the stone.

- Mm-hmm.
- I think it's really

important to get everything
to fit perfectly.

- Okay.
Entonces.

So, the idea is...

a one-legged bench.

We're picking the elm
and the alabaster

to make a one-legged bench

that cantilevers and pushes

gravity to its limits.

This first challenge
is quite tricky.

I want this piece
to be so good

that Ellen wants
to take it home.

I'm really nervous about
how little time we have.

Every minute I'm not working
on that piece

can potentially spell failure.

[upbeat music]

- I'm thinking two end tables.
I know that's ambitious.

Like, one leg is a soapstone,

and then the other side,
the walnut, right?

- Anything is possible, just...
- Yes.

- It's a time crunch.
- Time.

- It's the first challenge,

so I want to create something

that nobody else
is going to do.

I just want to make sure
we have enough material here

to make an entire fireplace.
Is that crazy?

- [laughs]
- Do you think we--

I mean,
maybe that's too adventurous,

but I really want to try.

- I don't know.

Uh, I'm trying to think,
I'm trying to think.

Oh, my God,
I'm getting a bad headache.

- So, that's the--this
is the live edge.

That's exactly what I want.
To preserve the theme,

I need to keep
a couple of rough edges.

- Cut some of this
cut some of that,

and then the rest, we'll deal
with on the table saw.

- Okay.

[saw buzzing]

The shop
is really not equipped

to cut four-inch wood.

It does make me nervous,
but we're gonna figure it out.

- Yeah.
[laughter]

- So we're gonna have
to get a little creative

with our milling, but...

we've got about
80 inches this way.

- We're more than fine.
- Yeah.

- My strategy going into this
competition is just get moving.

We're gonna use this machine
over here with the laser.

That's gonna cut us
a straight edge--

cut this down,
make a straight line, because

we're dealing with a really
crazy live edge on this wood.

From the other contestants,
I expect to see raw edge stone

protruding out of wood.

But I'm all about refinery
and luxury.

That's beautiful.

[saw buzzing]

I think my individuality
in this challenge

will work to my advantage.

I'm gonna design an end table.

My piece is primarily wood.

It's very animated,
very humorous.

It has eyes,
which are the soapstone.

It's children's furniture.

We've got everything prepped
for a CNC.

A CNC machine does everything
that we don't have time to do.

Being in this competition,
it's fast-paced.

But we're in a good place.

We're in a good place.

[mid-tempo music]

♪ ♪

- Uh, I'm trying to think,
I'm trying to think.

We're nearing the end
of the first day,

and I haven't fully come up
with a good design.

Ah.

This is a very hard challenge.

It's trash.

My name's Urvi Sharma.
I'm 25,

and I am the cofounder
and owner of INDO-.

I was born
in New Delhi, India.

It's a beautiful place,
and is this, like,

endless pool of inspiration.

Everything I make or design

has something to do
with India.

I've been featured
in "Architectural Digest,"

"Elle Decor,"
"Dwell Magazine."

Now we can start cooking.

Manan is my partner
in both business and...

life.

[laughs]

Uh, winning "Ellen's Next
Great Designer"

would mean the world to me.
Having that

at such an early stage
of my career

is invaluable.

Okay.
Considering I've never

worked with materials
this big and raw,

I'm having trouble really
connecting my roots to it.

I still don't have a design
that I'm happy with.

I'm not feeling good
about the end of today.

I don't have a good start
to this competition at all.

[upbeat music]

♪ ♪

- Yes.
- Perfect.

- Good job.
- Okay.

My strategy to win
this competition

is to make things
that are ambitious.

I work a lot
in experimentation.

So this is the full soundscape
of the forest on fire.

The design I'm making
is two end tables,

based on sound waves
from redwoods on fire.

I was able to get
the sound bit from the fires

and turn those sound waves
into my surfaces.

The two end tables will be
a fusion of the walnut

and the soapstone together.

This is gonna be
the way to do it.

- Something tragic made into--
- Something beautiful.

$100,000 would be
life-changing for me.

I'm pretty broke
in my business right now.

The end tables--one of them,

I'm getting fully machined
by my vendor,

and the other one
is gonna be hand-carved

in the studio by me and Mats.

The significance
of the man-made one

is that we're supposed
to go back to basics.

The other one
is the complete opposite.

Two different processes.

The end result
will be the same.

Both the end tables will be
a fusion of the walnut

and the soapstone together.

They're unique.
They're fully custom-made.

You can't find that shit
in the store.

Definitely getting my workout.

- [laughs]

[upbeat music]

- Oh, my God, I suck at this!

♪ ♪

- Whoo, hoo, hoo!

One, two.
- Oy.

Yesterday, I did not come up
with a good design.

But I had an idea
in the beginning of the day,

based on a game
that I played as a kid

called pitthu.

It's a very traditional
Indian game.

- Okay.
- Okay.

- Good?
You have seven rocks.

It's a mix of dodgeball
and Jenga.

Yes!
- Ugh!

- Pitthu.

I'm making a console table
inspired by pitthu.

It's basically layer
upon layer of seven stones,

just like the game.

I'm a little bit
behind schedule already,

so I need to start working on
shaping out the stones.

I don't have enough marble,

and so I need to make them
out of the maple.

- Which, I think
the stagger is helping.

- There's no room
to mess up on this challenge.

- Okay.

[mid-tempo music]

♪ ♪

- Is someone here?

- Hello?

Hi, it's nice to meet you.
How are you?

- Oh, my God,
I'm freaking out.

- I'm freaking out
about it too.

It's okay.

- I'm okay.
[laughter]

It's kind of surreal.

And I'm overheating
a little bit.

I used to watch "Felicity"
when I was in high school,

and it was basically
one of the reasons

I moved to New York.

Um--
[laughs]

- So, uh, can you tell me
about your design?

- Sure.
So, the idea is to highlight

the supernatural beauty
of the rock.

- Yeah.
- And...

I'm making a coffee table,
so the wood

is going to basically
wrap around the rock...

- Okay.
- And cantilever off.

I have a mock-up, I don't know
if you want to see...

- I definitely want to see.
- My full mock-up.

I'm basically
gonna try and have

the stone hold
the piece of wood.

Actually, we have a scale here.

We were gonna weigh the rock

and get, you know--
- Let's weigh the rock.

- Do you want to weigh
the rock with us?

- Let's weigh the rock.

I'll see if I can
pick the rock up.

- How strong are you?
- All right, here we go.

- Can you--can you do that?
- I sure hope so.

- You can do it.
- All right, all right,

all right, all right,
all right.

[dramatic music]

125 pounds even.
- Wow.

- Oh, wow,
that's just a person.

- 125.
[laughter]

- That's, um--
- That's awesome.

I'm trying to create
a pretty extreme cantilever,

and I'm not sure if it's gonna
hold the weight of the wood.

It's definitely
an engineering feat.

- It's really, really cool.
I'm so worried.

- Okay, now I'm--

don't say worried, okay?
- Well, no, no, no.

I'm worried that
you're gonna have to put a leg.

- Yeah.
- You know?

If you have to put a leg,
you have to put a leg.

It's the way it is.
- Being able to pull off

the cantilever
is my number one goal.

- Thank you for having me
in your space.

Thanks for showing me around.

It was very nice to meet you.

- Thank you.
- Thank you, Scott.

- I'll see you guys.
- Bye. Bye, Noel.

- Oh, God.
- [laughs]

- You're aging both of us.
What are you doing?

- [laughs]
I know, right?

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- Rene, Rene.

- Hey, what's up?

- If I'm being very honest
with you,

I was quite concerned
when we walked in today.

I knew we had
a lot of detail work.

That's the stuff
that sucks up time.

- If I don't get the metal
back
on time to prove the design,

that it won't tip over,
I'm screwed.

- I'm feeling, at this point
of the process,

a little bit of pressure.

Yeah, this has to be sanded.
- Yep.

- 'Cause you can see
the tool path lines.

- Right.
- I still have a lot to do.

- But, yeah.
Time is of essence.

♪ ♪

- Today, we have to build this
whole thing and get it ready,

because if the painter doesn't
have this by tomorrow morning,

we're not gonna
have anything done.

It's two days left
in this challenge.

I'm feeling anxious
to get started.

I'm feeling anxious
to make some dust

and get these machines
going on,

make some noise, and start
gluing some parts together.

My name is Mark Grattan,
and I live in Mexico City.

My brand is called VIDIVIXI.

It's Latin for
"I saw, and I've lived."

It's basically
an interpretation of me

taking my experiences

and using those to create
the art that I express.

I've been
in "Wallpaper Magazine."

I was in "Architectural
Digest" three times.

I've been in
"Surface Magazine" twice.

It's not often you find
a Black guy like myself

in the top furniture
publications in the world.

I feel responsible
to speak up.

Winning is important,
because Black people

are not represented
in this industry.

I have to represent myself,
my art,

my Blackness,
and my gayness.

I have to win.

After I got the call
from Ellen,

I knew I had to find
a wood shop to use,

since I don't have one
in Mexico City.

I called Will Fagan,
one of my great friends.

He works out of a wood shop
in Bucks County, PA.

We have an amazing facility.
The sky is the limit.

What the [bleep]?

I don't know
how to turn this on.

I have no idea.

No one ever showed me
how to turn these machines on.

They're not on.

- No, they killed the power.

The electrical company
shut the power off.

- Why?
- Just now.

They have to work on something.
- Are you kidding me?

- But we don't how long
it's gonna be.

- Are you [bleep] kidding me?

But this is the shop.
We need--we can't do--

that means everything
is shut off?

[suspenseful music]

♪ ♪

- This either makes us
or breaks us.

[mid-tempo music]

Well.
- Surprise.

- Surprise.

I went all-out

and decided to make a bench.

The single most important
aspect of my piece

is that the stone and the wood
fit together perfectly.

There's a handful
of architects in my family,

and design and architecture
have always been in my blood.

♪ ♪

I've designed stuff
for the mayor of Los Angeles,

Megan Rapinoe, Jessica Alba.

I'm so happy
that this is my life--

to design beautiful pieces
of furniture.

I want to win this competition
for my kids.

I want to win it for my wife.
I know I'm capable.

I know I am that good.

And this is the perfect
platform to prove it.

Wait, this thing doesn't fit.

What?
What did we do wrong?

There's a problem.
It doesn't fit.

The metal is gonna need
to be cut,

and the top is gonna
have to be routered.

It's gonna take time that
I really can't afford to lose.

Okay, let's get to work.
Enough of this.

I cannot fail
on the first challenge.

Is there anything
more embarrassing?

Okay, let's go.

[drill buzzing]

[mid-tempo music]

[dramatic music]

- Will!
[laughs]

The [bleep]?
The power is back.

In order for me
to get back on track,

I'm gonna have to do
a lot of scrambling

to get everything done.

[buzzing]

I'm gonna have to have
everything assembled

before tomorrow morning.

And water.

[whirring]

♪ ♪

I will probably
be here all night.

♪ ♪

- ♪ This was always
my vision ♪

♪ Let me show you
how I'm livin' ♪

- It's my last day
of the challenge.

I gotta bring
all the pieces together.

We are so close
to having this piece done.

Well, I don't have much time,

and I have a handful
of problems right now.

- The last day.
I don't have much time.

All the pieces are here,

but I haven't seen them
all together yet.

And so I just want to make sure
that they fight perfectly.

We're so close.
Oh, wait.

- Did it--did it just go in?
- It just went in.

- Wait, really?
- [laughs] Yes.

- This is right now.
This is the biggest issue.

The wood has to come
a little bit of an angle.

I'm spending hours going
through a chiseling process

between the stone and the wood
to make them fit together.

I decided to go
the most difficult,

time-consuming route,
but the rock

has to hug the wood

in perfect unison.

- It doesn't fit.

Will!

Shit.

It didn't fit, because
the paint added thickness.

It's a lot to do.

I feel like
I need two more days.

- Should we drill this?
- Yeah.

[drill buzzing]

[dramatic music]

Yeah?
Oh, shit.

Mats, what the [bleep]
did you just do?

Get that out right now.
Get that out.

We didn't have to go
that [bleep] deep.

[bleep].

- The soapstone cracked.

- We should have just
Starbonded it.

Oh, my God.

We have now
one more thing to do,

on top of all the other
finishing stuff we have to do.

We have to just let it sit.

- Slow, slow, slow,
slow, slow, slow.

The first piece
gets anchored to the stone,

and then we just stack
the rest of them on top.

Ah.
What are you doing?

- I'm aligning.

Push it down.
- All we have to do is

make sure that it's level,
and then we're set.

In high school,
I would finish the tests

in, like, ten minutes

and then play games
the rest of it.

Yeah, it's perfect.
Now what?

- Now you walk away.
- I'm done!

- We only have an hour left.

Gonna have to do
some very fast sanding.

- We got this.

[upbeat music]

- When this fireplace
is finished,

your eyes are gonna be drawn
to this focal point.

We just need to handle

everything really carefully.
Like, no breakages.

- Yeah.
Boy, everything goes smooth.

- I'm stressed,
but it's good stress.

I haven't gone
into a negative cycle yet.

- How much time we got?
- Not much.

- We never had the opportunity
to assemble

these three materials

with these different
finishes together.

This is new.

So there's a bit
of stress here.

And there's no time
to change it.

[dramatic music]

[saw buzzing]

♪ ♪

- I'm feeling the pressure.
$100,000 at stake.

I'm trying to stay chill,
but, like,

I can only stay so chill.

[drill grinding]

♪ ♪

- Do you think it's worth
adding that?

- No.
That looks so stupid.

- No, that's right.
- No, it's not right.

- Here we go.
- Let's go at it.

- Yep.

♪ ♪

- I'm very pleased
with myself.

And now it's in the hands
of the judges.

- Thank you.
It got a little crazy

towards the end,
but we did it.

I'm excited to see
what the judges think.

- I have done everything I can
to make this as perfect

and well-thought-out
as possible.

- Okay.
Done.

It looks okay, man.
You did good, you did good.

[upbeat music]

♪ ♪

- Hey, hey.
all: Hey.

- Hi.

- Welcome, you guys.

- Hey, guys.
- How are you?

- Welcome.
- Oh, my goodness.

How are you?
- We're great.

- So good to see
everyone in person.

- Yes, it absolutely is.

- Wow, you guys.
all: Hi.

- Everybody's here.
- Hey.

How are you guys?
- Hi.

- Before we get
into everything,

I want to introduce
my fellow judges here.

So, designers,
this is Brigette Romanek.

- Hi, hi.

- And on the other side of her,
Fernando Mastrangelo.

all: Whoo!
- Yes.

- Welcome, designers.

- Okay, so your first challenge

was to go back to the basics

and use the natural elements
of wood and stone

to design a signature piece.

All right.

Alejandro,
why don't we start with you?

Let's see your piece first.
- Let's do it.

- The rest of you guys
can go on backstage,

and Alejandro and I
and Fernando and Brigette

will have a conversation.
Thanks, guys.

- I am nervous,

but my bench is beautiful,
and I trust it.

- When you saw that pallet

full of stone
and the crate full of slabs,

what--what
was your first thought?

- I mean, my first
thought was, "Wow."

I got incredible materials...

- Mm-hmm.
- That are primitive and raw.

And I wanted to honor them,
most importantly.

- Well, what do you say
we take a look at your piece?

- Yeah.
- All right.

Let's light it up.

[music swells]

- The concept behind it is,
"How true could it be

"to the original stone?

How true is it
to the original slab?"

Though I chiseled both
and made it stand

in a way that it shouldn't,

it tries to levitate,
it tries to be weightless.

[suspenseful music]

- When I thought about this
challenge, Alejandro,

I literally thought,

"I hope no one does a slab
with a rock through it."

- Mm-hmm.
- I feel like I've seen

this piece so many times.

What this piece is about

is that moment
where the rock meets the wood.

A little bit rough
around there, so for me,

the illusion of it is gone.

- I get that
you've seen it before.

I think was
an interesting choice,

but there is something
really powerful about it,

because it's so simple.

- I absolutely like it.
I could see this

in the middle of a big,
wide open space,

and almost like
if it were in a museum,

the title of it would be
"Back to Basics."

- All right,
well thank you, Alejandro.

We appreciate your time.
- Thank you.

- We appreciate your piece.
Thanks, man.

- I really wanted to wow
all three judges.

I have Brigette on my side,

I have Scott in the middle,

and Fernando
didn't like it at all.

And I'm nervous
I could go home.

- Hi, Urvi.
- Hi, Scott.

- Hello, hello.
- I'm very excited to show

the judges my first piece.

I think it's relevant
to who I am as a designer.

- Hi, Urvi.
- Hi.

- Did you have a design idea
right away?

- Absolutely not.

A part of going back
to the basics

is that you have to let
the material be.

- Yep.
- I was listening

to the material and using it
in the best way possible.

- Gotcha.
Should we take a look?

- Yeah.
- All right, let's light it up.

[sweeping music]

♪ ♪

- I decided to create
an entryway table.

I weave personal narrative
into designing an object.

What came to mind
was a childhood game

that I used to play.
You stack up seven stones.

So, all of the stones

that connect the top
to the base are the maple.

♪ ♪

- You've made a sculpture.

It's a cool combination,
leaving the live edge of this,

but then your mark-making

on the other stones.
- Mm-hmm, yep.

- I would have this in my home.

- Just as a sculpture,
just as a piece unto itself,

it is really beautiful.
And listening to your

story--which is important
to me,

'cause I do love pieces
with soul.

- As a piece that goes up
against a wall,

I would have maybe taken

one of the live edges
and squared it off.

- I thought it added to the
piece, and it really connected

the top and bottom,
in terms of edge treatment.

- I think you did
a really good job, Urvi.

Thank you so much.
- Well done.

- Thanks for your time.
- Thank you so much.

I'm feeling really happy

because I've
set myself up as a contender.

- There she is.
Hi, Arielle.

- Hi.
- Hello.

- I'm super nervous.

But I'm so excited
about my piece,

and I hope the judges love it.

- You know, when we're looking
at these pieces,

I think, "Does the piece
make a statement,

or does it move something
in us emotionally?"

What do you think?
Did your piece do any,

or all of those?
- I hope so.

- Yeah?
- I think so.

- Well, what do you say
we take a look, huh?

- Sure, great.
- All right.

- Let's get right to it.
- Let's light it up.

[soft music]

♪ ♪

- I wanted to create something
that's timeless,

so I chose to use primarily
the two materials given--

the wood and the rock--

and add a little bit
of hidden bling

that you have to kind
of walk around to see.

There's a polished brass side

that has a bracket
that holds the table in place,

and it also just really frames
the rock itself.

- Look at that.

- Whoa. Ha.

- What you've done
is you've taken

these back-to-basic materials

and made something so elegant.

It's absolutely beautifully
done, every detail is there.

The creativity,
the functionality,

all of these things
that are important to me,

are in this table.
I'm in love.

- You're in love?
- Really?

- I'm in love.

- We're on that same thing

of the slab
with the rock in it,

and I'm like--
- I understand.

- But there's something
different about this one.

- It's scribed
really well here.

- Yes.
- You did a good job.

- That looks like
a sheet of water,

and then this, you know,
monolith is coming out of it.

That shows your chops
as a designer, as a thinker.

I wish there wasn't a rock
through a slab.

- But if there's got to be
a rock through a slab,

this is the way--
- You've done the job.

- This is the way to do it.
- Yeah, beautiful!

It's a good piece, Arielle.
Thank you so much.

- Awesome, thank you.
- You got it, have a good one.

You too.
Brigette loves it.

Fernando loves it.
Scott loves it.

I am so relieved.

- Alejandro made
the same piece.

However, Arielle's
craftsmanship was great.

- Looking at Alejandro,

it's a little bit
of lack of craftsmanship.

- He should have scribed around
the rock instead of cutting

in straight lines.
- And we know that it can

be done--
- Yes, because Arielle

did a great job.

There she is.
Hi, Christina.

- Hi.
I chose a fireplace

because I've never
made one before.

And now I'm thinking,
"Oh, gosh,

"is this going to be okay?

Is this going to work for me?"
I took a risk,

so that does make me
a little bit nervous.

- Was this a challenge for you?
I mean, is this--do you

usually work with big stones,
large slabs of wood?

- When I saw the alabaster,

it was like a visceral--

like, "Yes,
that's what I'm using."

I was quite adventurous
in choosing a fireplace.

- All right, well,
on that note,

let's--let's light it up.

[soft music]

- The reason why I chose
a fireplace

is 'cause it's such
an alive piece.

You know, you have the sound
of the crackling fires.

You have sound.
You have light.

You have all of these elements
playing together.

And if you look
at the alabaster,

you see all
those beautiful patterns.

They actually emulate fire.

- Okay.
- Oh, my gosh.

- Look at that.

I have never thought of this
as furniture.

- This is architecture.
This is interior design.

This is lighting,
which is furniture.

There's nothing here
that I don't love.

- No, me too!
- Which is--you know--

- It's finished beautifully.

I love the raw materials,

how you matched the grain.

- She did not let up anywhere.

Anywhere your eye goes,
it's done really beautifully.

- Thank you for showing it
to us,

for making it
and bringing it here.

I appreciate it.
- Thanks.

It's so validating to be told
that your piece is original.

It's a great way to start.

- Hey, man.
- Well, hello.

- How are you, Paul?
- The best-case scenario for me

is that the very first
challenge, you know,

I just wow
these very esteemed judges.

- So, wood slabs, stone--
are these materials

you're familiar with,
comfortable with working with?

- It was a bit of a gut
check for me.

It was like, "Holy cow,
Ellen really put me

in a--you know, in a box
on this one right here."

- Well, I'm excited to see
what you built.

- We should take a look at it.
- All right, let's light it up.

[soft music]

- You know,
I picked out this slab,

and it had all of
this character in it.

And I said, "This thing
has got a story to tell."

It requires support.

Stone actually represents
principles.

Well, it's not really a bench.

- Oh, shoot.
- But that's okay.

That's okay, I hadn't thought
about it like that.

But, you know, hey.
It's a coffee table.

- Oh, it is?
- Ah, see, I saw a bench.

- I saw a bench as well.
- Yes.

It's a--it's
a--it's a coffee table.

- We have seen a slab
with a rock through it.

What we have not seen is

the rock with a slab
through it.

And I think that's what
differentiates your piece.

I love the angles here.

It's almost like a wing.
- I like the piece.

It's, like,
technically well-executed.

It looks like something
that should be

in a catalogue already.

- But I'm struggling
a little bit.

- Yeah.
I'm not, like...

- I'm struggling.
- Wowed by...it.

- I'm concerned

because this
is definitely narrow.

There are--not rules,
but there are some things

about, like, a coffee table
that you're gonna make,

that really functions well.

Scale.
Scale is important--

that it make sense
for someone's home.

- You know, in a railroad
apartment in New York,

this works really well.
- There you go.

That's where it's going.
- I appreciate

you showing it to us,
making it and bringing it out.

- Thank you.
- I appreciate it.

- Okay, does that mean I, uh--
- That's it, my friend.

- Exit?
- Thanks, buddy.

All right, thank you.
both: Thank you.

- I'm feeling very good
about my work,

so I took it
with a grain of salt.

I'm hoping that I did enough
this week to make it

to the next challenge.
It's a long road.

- Hi, Erica.
- Hello.

- Hi, guys, what's up?
- How's it going?

- I'm nervous, but I
definitely want to wow

the judges immediately, I want
them to see my hard work.

I think I really pulled it
together quite nicely.

- All right.
Let's light it up.

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- I ended up deciding
to make one piece

that's fully done by hand
in my studio,

and the other piece
exclusively done by machine.

By doing that,
I used a 3D modeling program

to model both my forms

that were based off of sound
waves of a forest fire

that happened
at Big Basins, California.

- Oh, my goodness.

- Yo, I just want to say,

these are badass.
- Thank you,

Fernando.
- These are badass pieces.

- That means a lot.
- They're doing something

that I think I've been
wanting to see

through this competition
so far.

They're unique.

- I love just the idea
of turning sound waves

into a visual medium, right?

- Only issue with these...

is that they are not
at my house.

- Wow.
[laughter]

- Okay.
- Because...

these are absolutely stunning.

- Okay, I definitely nailed
this round.

I don't think this judging
could get any better.

Thank you, judges.
I appreciated it.

See you later.

♪ ♪

- Here he comes.
- Hey, hey.

- Hello, hello.
- Hey, Mark.

- I'm hoping the judges
will think my piece is original

and thought-provoking.

- What was the most
challenging thing for you?

- The power went out...

- What?
- For, like, half the day.

- Yeah, but, you know,
you gotta roll

with the punches.
- I like your attitude.

You gotta roll
with the punches.

You do, indeed.
Well, we're excited

to see what you built.
- Okay.

- All right, light it up.

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- This was sort of my way

of communicating
the fact that,

like, yes,
we might be different colors,

but we still can fit together.

And one of the other concepts
I have for this piece

is sort of my emotional state.

So, I have these expressions
on this form.

It is a side table.

- This is really,
really a memorable piece.

- I immediately felt like this

is a kind of piece that you
would find at a retail store.

Like, it's lacking a bit
of luxury aspect to it.

I would love to see it
on the ground.

- It's really fun.
On either side of a kid's bed.

You know?
That just would be so joyous.

- Why didn't you make two,
by the way?

[dramatic musical sting]
- The color, for me,

I don't love,
and I'm missing the stone.

- Well, it's the eyes.
- No, I see that.

- Right.
- I see this is the stone,

and you milled it down,
and you--

it fits beautifully in there.

I don't know.
I want more of the stone

because it was--stone
and the wood, the slab.

- It's like
a very contemporary language.

And--
- Jesus, mother.

- All right, well, that makes
me a little nervous.

- Yeah, that would make
me nervous as well.

- You know, there's some issues
with the craftsmanship.

- Mm-hmm.
- I'll be honest.

I'm not sure
how I feel about it.

But Mark, thank you so much

for showing it to us.
We appreciate it.

- Yeah.
- Yep, thank you.

Emotionally, I think I'm just
flat-out disappointed.

I fudged it up.

I think I might go home.

[upbeat music]

♪ ♪

- Hi, guys.
- Hello.

- Hey, designers.
- Hi.

- Hi.

- Designers, if you guys
were trying

to not make this easy on us,
congratulations.

You did a great job.

You know, this first challenge
was a tough one,

not just for you guys,
but for us,

because you all delivered
incredible design.

There were three of you

that really knocked it
out of the park.

That was Arielle,

Urvi, and Erica.

Congratulations, you guys.

- Thank you.
- Congratulations.

- Now, the hard part.

There were two of you that came
up a little short this week.

- Alejandro.

We know that you
are an incredible designer.

Again, we have slab and stone.

But the originality
wasn't there,

and the craftsmanship
really wasn't there.

And that's something that
I have to think about intensely

before I put it
in front of a client.

- Mark.

I love that you did
something original.

That was the best part
of the piece.

The problems with the piece
were the execution

of the craftsmanship.

It just is not
to the level that we

expect from this competition.

- Unfortunately,
it is a competition.

Someone has to go home.

This week...

we're sending Alejandro home.

♪ ♪

Thank you so much
for your time here.

- Thank you.
- You're a great designer.

- Yeah.
- I'm so sorry.

Someone has to go first.
I'm so sorry it's you.

But we appreciate your time
and everything you've given

to this competition.
- Thank you.

Thank you.
- Thank you.

- ♪ It's been fun ♪

- Completely shocked by this.

It's devastating to go home,

because I put everything I had

on this competition.

I gave it everything.
- ♪ Start a new war ♪

♪ Hear the march
of hearts beating ♪

♪ I can't seem to breathe in ♪

- But I get to go back to
what is an incredible family

and keep doing what I do,

which is, I get to go back
and design tomorrow.

♪ ♪

- Mark, we actually
really respect

that you took a big swing,

that you did
something original.

Um, I just hope that next week,

your piece is a little bit
more successful.

- You guys just put
a lot of fire under my ass.

- Good, man.
I'm glad to hear it.

- [laughs]
In the best way.

- Good.
- Listen,

we know we design
for hours and hours,

and I go to see a client,
and they'll go,

"Oh, I hate it."

And that's what we do.

But here's the thing.
We have to use it as fuel.

- Yeah.
- You know,

if you're passionate
about what you're doing,

it is only gonna make
you better.

- Thank you, guys.

♪ ♪

- Anyway.