A long time ago in a galaxy far far away…
some events took place that have zero relevance to me and my personal biography.
Before I started a life-long love affair with film and magic there was, duh duh duh, Star Wars. My first words were Luke Skywalker. I watched every film so many times I could quote every line by heart. And though it may not be my current obsession Star Wars still holds a very special place in my heart… but you’re here to read about how I developed my skills as a cinematographer and magician.
When I was very young I would watch the Star Wars films and the interviews of George Lucas for each film. I was fascinated with how George Lucas took an idea and created a world that could be put on film and bring you into it. One man’s idea captured millions of audience goers and his style of filming has continued to shape how films are made to this day. From then on I dod not want to be Luke Skywalker or Han Solo like my friends; I wanted to be George Lucas and create a suspension of disbelief in the work that I did.
I started shooting videos in middle school. At the time all I had was a tiny cheap camera that could only film 15 seconds of silent footage. Even with those limitations I learned how to cut videos together, add special effects (albeit very simple effects), and edit the footage. When I was 15 I got my first video camera, a Panasonic 3CCD HD, and began filming digital shorts for my church. As my passion grew I bought a Canon Rebel T3i and began watching online tutorials to better perfect my editing skills. At the time my sister was attending FSU and I would often visit her and work with the Master’s of Film Students. During that time I learned and perfected my skills as a cinematographer. On set I learned lighting, blocking, and how to direct actors. The directors let me work by their side and ask questions on break. It was the best learning experience especially since FSU’s Film Program is ranked third in the nation. You would think that the on set experience would be where I learned the most about filming but in reality it was the editing bay that I learned the majority of my skills. In the editing bay I learned how to frame a shot and how to properly cut a scene. I learned that I needed to let the story speak for itself by not being afraid to cut wordy scenes of long static shots. I realized I could trust my audience to follow the heart of the story without boring exposition.
I’ve used the skills that I have learned to make videos for small businesses as well as shooting all my own instructional videos on the magic I have created. To view my work click here.
The setting: Sea World
Age: 7
Time: Who cares
When I was 7 years old I saw my first magic show at Sea World and found myself immediately engaged as well as slightly frustrated. Where did that rabbit come from? How did he make objects appear and disappear? How did he know what card the person took? I had to find the answers!
So I did what any other poor kid had to do and I got a few books and started studying. I began learning simple sleights of hand, coin tricks and more. And I practiced for hours every day perfecting each new trick I learned.
At age 11 I performed magic for my family that left my older siblings speechless and my mother a bit freaked out. I realized then I had found
something I truly loved. My family was completely fooled and baffled and I enjoyed that experience of suspending peoples reality.
I continued to practice and perform for friends but my career as a magician really took off when I began working for the magic shop in Daytona, FL. I had the opportunity to fly around the US and go to different magic conventions. I began meeting people in the business and began to develop my own style and focus in on the type of magic I was most interested in.
At age 19 I released my first trick I created, The Poker Test. I realized I enjoyed the process of creating magic tricks more than performing. Since then I have continued to work and develop my craft and am continuing to create new tricks to release. Every time I create something new it just pushes me to start another project and find something else to create.
For more check out my interview I did with Void Live.