Three years in the making, Craft in America is launching the first ever Craft Video Dictionary (CVD) this spring, www.craftvideodictionary.org. The CVD is a free online resource that gives the public a direct, close-up view of craft processes and techniques. Instead of words and images, CVD definitions are conveyed via video. Clear and concise, these videos are edited to focus strictly on the artists movements and the transformation of materials. The project was initiated with seed support from The Decorative Arts Trust through their inaugural Prize for Excellence and Innovation. The first rollout of the new reference tool includes an initial batch of 100 video definitions. This initial collection of videos begins to flesh out the ins and outs of art and craft making across a range of materials and media. There will be 200 videos posted in total later this year. The CVD has the potential to include hundreds of additional definition videos. The CVD includes technique definitions as demonstrated by artists with expertise in ceramics, metal, wood, fiber, glass and more materials. Each video captures an artist manipulating material with their hands and tools through methods that are traditional, historic, and also very much still alive. The CVD videos are intended to clearly define a craft technique, rather than demonstrate a how-to process. We hope this project will be useful to educators, museums, and everyone interested in craft, stated CVD Project Producer Denise Kang. Thus far, 14 artists were filmed across Southern California; many of them are teaching artists at colleges in the region. The CVD includes definitions of terms ranging from sgraffito, which is a ceramics process, to glass blowing, and from cabinet making and joinery to spindle turning and blacksmithing.By providing an intimate lens into the artists studio, CVD video definitions provide a sense of how the objects in our world come to be and what craft really entails. On creating the videos, CVD Project Director Emily Zaiden noted, Each artist during filming was able to take a step back from their second nature process and think about what someone unfamiliar with their craft might need to see and understand so as to appreciate their work. Craft in America is a Los Angeles-based nonprofit arts organization founded in 2004 with the mission to promote and advance original handcrafted work through programs in all media. The Peabody Award-winning, Emmy-nominated Craft in America documentary series first aired nationally on PBS in 2007 and has produced 31 hour-long episodes to date. These programs are filled with artists, techniques, and stories from diverse cultures, blending history with living practice. In addition to the series, Craft in Americas organizational efforts include extensive websites (pbs.org/craftinamericaandcraftinamerica.org), a YouTube channel(youtube.com/craftinamerica), multi-disciplinary educator guides that adhere to national standards, and the Craft in America Center in Los Angeles. All of Craft in Americas multimedia educational content is provided to the public at no charge.