Creative Inspiration from Unexpected Places
If somebody traveled back in time and told my ten-year-old self that in the future I would manage a video production business, I would have thought they were crazy. It is mind-boggling to think about how my journey with filmmaking began versus where I am now. It just puts into perspective how life-changing opportunities can manifest from unexpected places and inspiration can strike when a person least expects it to.
My passion for editing videos originated from my childhood fascination of making the impossible seem possible. This idea captivated me after watching a stage magician perform extraordinary feats of illusion. The feelings of wonder and amazement I experienced are what inspired me to learn tricks of my own. Magic became a major part of my life throughout elementary school; I performed in talent shows and showed my classmates tricks during lunchtime. However, as time went on, my interest in it slowly faded. Something about getting older and taking on more responsibilities made it seem not fun or interesting anymore. That is, until I found a way to take it to the next level.
The year was 2011, and for the first time, Vacation Bible School at my church was going to be led by a group of four students from a Bible college in Plymouth, Minnesota. My family volunteered to host the girls on the team, Courtney and Janna, for a week. These girls were two of the most inspiring individuals that I have ever met, and they instantly felt like family.
Pictured left to right: Myself, Camryn (my sister), Courtney, and Janna
One evening after dinner, Janna showed me a video that she and her brother made a long time ago called a stop-motion. I was immediately intrigued, and she explained that a stop-motion was basically a sequence of pictures played back very quickly that could make impossible feats like flying or walking through walls possible through the power of movie magic. The following December, I received a red video camera for Christmas and immediately got to work.
Above: My very first camera that I used to create my stop-motion animations.
All I did in my spare time was teach myself how to make videos. It wasn’t long before I posted my first stop motion online and received overwhelming amounts of positive feedback. From that moment on, I knew what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. This story truly goes to show that anyone can find their calling in the places they least expect.