This past Christmas my incredible wife Sharlyn surprised me with the best present ever: a DJI Mavic Pro drone. Abject fear of slicing up an innocent bystander like deli meat with its propellor blades prevented me from unboxing the damn thing. A recent documentary production in Nova Scotia, however, forced my hand. We needed a drone for key aerial shots, and I figured this would be the perfect time to give it a whirl. Especially with a DP on-hand to show me the onboard camera's full potential as well as to document my inaugural flight. So, we waited for a nice sunset, which presented itself as we were driving past an old seaside cemetery. Turns out this drone is surprisingly easy to operate. I'm happy to report no one became deli meat.
Jeep Gives the middle finger to the car category during the Super Bowl `
That’s my headline. Not the press’s.
"Skellig Ring," Revisited
One of the most scenic drives in all of Ireland is the 179km-long and world famous Ring of Kerry around the Iveragh Peninsula in southwest Ireland’s County Kerry. The best section is, without doubt, the Skellig RIng. This past summer, Sharlyn and I drove the whole damn thing. Which, at the time, begged the question: How does one say "Yee-haa" in Gaelic? [Sponsored by the BMW M2 Coupé, GoPro, Smithwick's Blonde Ale and Sharlyn's infinite patience for my never-ending camera equipment shenanigans. Music by Motor City fetish rock band, CRUD.]
"Pub Via Horse," Revisited.
When in Ireland, there's really only one, proper, loin-chafing way to arrive at a pub: by horse. A few weeks ago, comely maiden Sharlyn and I had the pleasure of experiencing this truth first-hand in Quin, County Clare, Ireland. Suffice it to say the return trip to the stable after several pints was far more treacherous than our journey to the taps.
"Slea Head to Inch Beach," Revisited
Sharlyn and I just returned from an epic trip to Ireland where we explored much of the western side of the island. Here's the drive from Slea Head to Inch Beach, Dingle Peninsula. [Brought to you by the BMW M2 Coupé, GoPro and Guinness. Music by Irish-American band out of LA, Flogging Molly.]
Africa, Revisited
In 2005, my then-girlfriend/now-wife Sharlyn and I traveled to Tanzania to attend a wedding, which began with a private safari for the entire wedding party through some of the country’s most breathtaking areas, including the Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Crater. After the wedding, Shar and I spent a mythical week on the island of Zanzibar off the coast of East Africa.
Given the entire agenda in front of us, naturally I packed my Canon 310XL Super 8 movie camera with 25 Kodak cartridges (color and b&w) at the ready - along with my Canon digital SLR equipped with a bad-ass new lens just for the occasion. And a small Minolta point & shoot if all else failed (fortunately it didn’t). Plus a comforting oversupply of various insect repellents and antimalarial medications.
After all these years, I finally had a chance to load all that footage into Final Cut Pro and distill it down to this 4-part retrospection.
Claymation, Revisited
A few early Super 8 stop-motion claymation tests from my basement workshop.
"The Gutter Cleaner," Revisited
Scene from a Super 8 Buster Keaton-style “comedy” I made with childhood pal Chuck. (I totally stole the shtick here from The Benny Hill Show in which the “actor” is obviously replaced with a stunt dummy for the pratfall.)
"The Hickory," Revisited
Opening title sequence to a Super 8 “cabin-in-the-woods”-style horror movie I made with some friends back in the day. This footage was captured by strapping myself to the hood of my pal’s dad’s El Camino (dangerous and stupid, I know, but sometimes we must do these things for the craft). We were totally borrowing from the opening title sequence to The Shining, but this was back before drones (which would have allowed us to more closely approximate Kubrick’s aerial perspective approach), so we were relegated to the car POV.
"Massacre High," Revisited
Scene from a Super 8 summer blockbuster I made with friends senior year in High School (Not available on Blu-ray. Ever.). In this scene, the art class teacher (played by childhood friend Susan Owen) takes the life of a student in the most heinous of ways: with a spinning pottery wheel to the face. | Charlotte, NC, Circa years ago.
"Leap of Faith," Revisited
Atlantis, Paradise Island, Nassau Bahamas: A 60-foot near-perpendicular chute-douche that sends you hurtling at 30 mph through a clear acrylic, habitrail-like tube submerged in a man-made shark-infested lagoon. Plus one GoPro. Plus several fruity pre-leap cocktails. Plus a complete lack of age-appropriate decorum. Plus a high probability of contracting water-park chlamydia.
Storytelling vs Bite & Smile
Storytelling always wins.
