So here are my "Top 10 Most Impactful Experiences in 2010"...
10. It must be some kind of... Hot Tub Time Machine
I have the hardest time making Top 10 lists of my favorite movies of the year. This year I couldn't figure out 10, so I didn't make one. But if I had to pick a film that I enjoyed, bought on Blu-Ray and rewatched multiple times throughout the year, it would definitely be Hot Tub Time Machine. This hilarious comedy truly grasped the ideal Time Travel story, doing everything that we all wish we could do, had we the ability to travel to our past and fix out mistakes. Plus anything taking place in the 80s can't go wrong.
Other films that I also loved over the past year: Kick-Ass, Tron: Legacy, Iron Man 2, Exit Through the Gift Shop, and getting to see the Creature from the Black Lagoon in 3D!
9. The Quest for the Nike DeLorean
In preparation for Black Friday, an event that I do try and encompass every Thanksgiving, I stumbled upon the fact that Nike would be releasing a special Limited Edition shoe, based on the infamous 1981 vehicle, the DeLorean. Most famous for starring in the Back To The Future trilogy (Editor's Note: why does it seem like this list is focused on Time Travel in the 1980s so far?). Nike would only be releasing 1,000 of these shoes Worldwide, and after some investigation, I discovered that only 3 retailers in the state of Florida would have them, and 10 pairs per store. After calling ahead and actually being able to reserve a pair at the nearest location (Boca Raton, 3.5hrs away) I drug my co-hort Tim Anderson out, leaving at Midnight on Black Friday, to travel down and claim these magical shoes. Let's just say that successful can't even begin to describe it.
8. The aXis August Cover Shoot Video Controversy
In August of 2010, a month like any other. We prepped for our annual UCF cover shoot for aXis Magazine. This year Mike Anthony shot the cover in the UCF locker room, and I shot the Behind the Scenes video. Using our friend, former aXis cover model and newly crowned Miss July 2010 for Playboy Magazine, Shanna McLaughlin, the shoot went well, and without a hitch... until the Magazine came our and some parent must have made a scuff over the content of the video. Most likely just because a Playmate was attached. The video went viral, getting hundreds of thousands of hits and popping up in press all over the country from ESPN to Playboy!
7. Our Anniversary Trip/Last Vacation without the Baby
For Melanie's birthday weekend in September, we decided to take a Babymoon, one last vacation before the birth of our little dude. We traveled up to the Panhandle beaches, Pensacola Beach, Gulf Breeze & Destin. After shaking off the oil we had gotten on us, we drove up to Atlanta, where we hung out at the Aquarium, DragonCon and The Vortex! A great little romantic getaway; love, laughs and whale sharks.
6. The Epicness of Le Retour Der Mere-Terre
I got the opportunity to Direct, Shoot & Edit a most epic music video for my friends in the popular Central Florida Metal band, Empyrean. We shot this monster in 6 days, 2 states and 4 locations. It was definitely a challenge, battling the elements, travel and lack of crew. The video came out great and to a much hyped premiere at the House of Blues that led to another controversy, forcing them to have us censor over half of the video to play on Disney property. I still don't see what the fuss is about; hangings, drownings and sacrificing babies to false gods is totally Disney.
5. Photoshoot with the Lords of Acid
Working for magazines definitely has it's perks. While working on the final Layout for the Winter issue of Et Cetera Magazine, I discovered that Lords of Acid (one of my all time favorite bands) were going to be playing in Orlando after a 7 year hiatus. While in a conversation with the editor of the magazine, Daniel Alba, I made the notion that he should get an interview and photoshoot with the band. He said he'd see what he could do, and in a couple days, I received the call that I would get a chance to do an actual shoot with LOA. Definitely my biggest shoot of the year, and one of my favorites ever.
4. Discovering my Photographic Style
Something that every Photographer hopes for, a style all their own. This year I stumbled across what I wanted to do with my photography. After shooting for years, all different types, I realized that I was quickly getting bored with the basic commercial and fashion photography I was getting hired to do. Not that there was anything wrong with it, but my mind yearned for so much more. So this year I started streamlining my work to focus on the Fantastic, getting shots and adding elements that would be impossible to get in a single frame (or without a huge budget). I strongly enjoy Photographers like David LaChapelle, Matthias Clamer and Randall Slavin.
3. The Success of 2:22
Our little short film that could. 2010 was a big year for 2:22 (as was 2009). We played an additional 12 film festivals and won two more awards in Australia and Massachusettes. We played the Cannes Film Festival (something every young filmmaker dreams about). In the end, we signed a distribution deal with IndieFlix.com, leading to the streaming and DVD release, and eventually our deal with Hulu.com, allowing for the whole country to view it for free online. This short has had more legs and opened more doors then anything we have completed thus far... Luckily, that was the plan all along.
2. The Death of Judy Hansen
Judy Hansen is my wife Melanie's Mother. She had been diagnosed with Lung Cancer in January of 2009. She was a very strong, loving woman, and battled the horrific disease for over a year, before it finally took her from us on July 30th. There is nothing like loosing a parent. I had to go through it last year, and Melanie this year. There is nothing that anyone can say or do to make it hurt less or feel better. Death is a horrible thing that creeps up on you from time to time and rears it's ugly head, making you very aware of just how precious life is. We did learn to smile again, much to the assistance of #1...
1. The Birth of Victor
Remember, remember the 1st of November. At 3:50am, just a few hours shy of Halloween, our first born son, Victor Kiilerich Shea, came into this world. This little bundle of awesomeness was ready and raring to go. Now as I look back at the insanely quick 2 months he's been with us, it's amazing how fast the time flys when you have a child. I've been ranting about this gnarley kid constantly, so I'm sure people are getting sick of hearing about him. Unfortunately they are going to have to turn off my Tweets, because I don't plan on shutting up about him anytime soon!
Victor is definitely a help, forcing you to prioritize and get your schedule as streamlined as possible. I have a lot in the works for 2011. The potential release of 2 new features, more zany photography, and I have recently finished a new original screenplay, in which I am organizing a producer kit for. This new action/horror film I hope to Direct is titled “Fiend Fatale”, and is hopefully going to turn some heads. I look forward to all of the new challenges and adventures that 2011 will bring. See you on the flip side!
-Steven.
PS: To see more information about these most excellent adventures, look in my past blog posts.
Terrific List Steven. I'm am pleased to have finally gotten to work, albeit for only a few hours, on something this year. I only hope it happens again in the not to distant future sir. I wish you all the best in 2011!!!!!
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