A change in gears...

 Side-F/X Creations is now moving in some new directions.  In an effort improve the overall quality of work, and elevate our standards to newer, higher levels, I've decided to greatly minimize our participations in the indie horror genre.  I hold great appreciation for the many experiences up to this point, and particularly from a standpoint of learning and experimentation, have no regrets for what has led us here.  My work in the indie horror circuit has been a fantastic means of professional establishment, and has allowed for a priceless palette of experience, exposure, and wonderful contacts. 

  One reaches a point in this area however, when everything has been done, or attempted.  When the creative challenge becomes a matter of "going through the motions", and the labor of passion is overpowered by the basic needs of making a living.  With a desire for grander, and greater challenges, I will be focusing my attentions full time in the areas of Drama, Dramatic Thrillers, Science Fiction/Fantasy, corporate, and commercial work.  Recent projects in these areas have proven tremendously rewarding on all levels, and have opened doors to some very promising future endeavors.   Things finally feel as though they have come full circle, and I…we, are once again becoming re-immersed in the qualities that made physical/character effects so appealing in the beginning of this great adventure.

  A few important points.   Outside of my more close, and respected collaborators from these past years, there will be no consideration for any under, or non-funded projects.  I will not be responding to any offers of deferred payment, or credit/free DVD offers.  Please understand, my dues have been very much over paid already.  I have a great deal of credits at this point which I'm very proud of, and my DVD collection is quite enormous as it is.  Also, accept under very special circumstances, I cannot commit myself to any offers that are not set in stone.  If you are serious about my collaboration, final script, tentative shooting dates, and adequate budget for requested services must be confirmed.  Regardless of interest, other projects will still be considered until confirmation is set.

  At the current time, there are only a few months over the coming year that are not already slated.  To ensure I have adequate time and energy to devote to each project respectively, I must be very selective in new projects to come.

  My deepest thanks to everyone.  Past, present and future.  I foresee some great things on the horizon, and Side-F/X will be meeting them full force.

7:35 PM - 0 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

A brief note on cinematic scoring...

Those who know me best, know that I am an obsessive connoisseur of cinematic scoring.  My collective database now consists of over 2000 individual pieces.  Films I like, films I dislike, films I’ve never seen, but the intended context of the piece is unimportant as each carries it’s own unique strength.
 

  I’ve often said that the language of film is the only language in which I’m truly fluent.  And within that language hides many distinct dialects.  Storytelling, performance, photography and lighting, art, make-up, costuming, construction, music, sound design, editing, and the organization of the whole.  And while quite varying unto themselves, all encompass with equal importance the creation of a singular vision.  It truly is a remarkable art form in and of itself.  

  One of the aspects that have always most drawn to the film is the symbiotic marriage of images and sound.  The power of each to manifest such separate emotion within it’s audience, and how when combined can take on an entirely new emotional meaning.  In my own opinion, an emotional journey of a story told through film goes through 4 stages of writing.  The first, of course, being the script as first produced.  The second being the manner in which it is photographed, and choices made through performance.  The third lies within it’s scoring, and the fourth relies on how these elements are pieced together in the edit.  But the score remains one of the most influential and often unrecognized pieces to the puzzle.

  The power a composer has in their choices to represent a moment through music is almost unlimited.  That a writer, director, and actor can approach a single moment from a particular emotional intention.  But the composer in only a brief combination of notes can either amplify, or completely re-write that emotional tone.  To watch a scene without music, then again with it.  If the composer has done his/her job, the experience can be black and white.  The unique and lasting impression a score leaves on an audience is so powerful, and almost subliminal.  There are so many memorable scenes that stay with people their entire lives.  That rouse heart pounding excitement, or draw us to the point of tears, so few people consciously realize what a part music plays in that memory.

  One of the strongest examples I’ve recently seen was within the final scene of ’The DaVinci Code’.  Regardless of how I, or others may feel about the film itself, this was such a powerful example of the perfect blend of narrative, imagery, and music.  Hans Zimmer, an artist who remains on the top of my list of great composers, wrote this enchanting, rising piece named ’Chevaliers De Sangreal’.  Now I had heard this piece before, and absolutely loved it in and of itself.  But here we had this brilliantly climactic story element.  A character, having concluded his journey with satisfaction, but having ultimately failed to discover the secret he had set out after, is suddenly pulled back into his quest as new clues begin to surface.  He begins his final walk towards discovery through the picturesque surroundings of Paris.  And the music, slowly building in force and complexity…  It’s driving beats amplifying as the clues set forth in this quest begin to piece together.  And as the discovery of his sought secret is revealed the score reaches a climax that just so perfectly amplifies the moment….I was just dumbstruck through the entire end credits.  And I was amazed at how much more powerful and meaningful this afore loved music had become within it’s intended context.  And can’t help but think how less powerful that scene might have been without it.

  The ability of a composer to watch a moment on film, recognize their own emotional reactions to what they are seeing and translate that to music.  And translate it in such a way that transfers that reaction to the audience is a talent I can only scarcely comprehend.  And that it is accomplished with such subtlety and accuracy that the audience is overtaken, but often so unaware as to why or how.  It’s this overall art of film to touch the senses of it’s audience, to release them their normal concerns for a couple hours and take them on a journey.  Often inviting them to experience moments and feelings they might not normally be able to touch is precisely why I chose to do what I do.  And I just wanted to take a brief moment to tip my hat to those too often unsung heroes that make our movie going experience the unique and powerful entertainment that it is…   

You’ll find Chevaliers De Sangreal on my page now, thanks to my technologically savy sister:p     

10:11 AM - 1 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

Body Count!!!
Current mood: amused

I thought it might be ….interesting, to take a head count.  Or rather, headless count of how many characters have met their end by my hands over the years.  And more amusing, some of the original ways in which they perished.  Athletes have career stats.  Lawyers have case counts.              I have thisJ

Male Pedestrian – Head crushed with parking meter

Male Gym Trainer – Close range gunshot to head

Male – Terminally devoured his couch?

Female Roller-skater – Impaled with a mop

Little Doggie – Unfortunate incident involving a machete

Female Witch – Tortured, shot with arrow, crucified to a tree

Male Barbarian – Throat cut

Male Barbarian – Gutted with a sword

Male Detective - Multiple gunshots

Male Soldier – Cut in half by tank tread

Male Soldier – Blown up by tank mortar

Male Soldier – Burned in Desert Storm

Male Crewman – Decapitated by African Guerillas

2 Male Guerillas – Blown up in speed boat

10 Male Soldiers – Gunned down by African attack chopper

7 Thespians – Eaten by Zombies

2 Male Pizza Boys– Crucified, murdered, burned, staked, decapitated

2 Female Clubbers – Drained of Blood

2 Male Jocks – Chest sliced open, dismembered, eaten by vampire

2 Preachers – Impaled in an alley 

6 Clubbers – Slaughter by vampire

2 Male Vampires – Beaten by a mob

2 Male Vampires – Decapitated with sword

7 Strippers – Slaughtered by Vampire

Male  – Disemboweled

2 Male Rednecks – Lip bitten off, murdered

Male – Used as dart board

Male Redneck – Impaled on cue stick

Female Scientist – Humped to death by fish monster

5 Male G-Men – Eaten by fish monster

Male Teen Punk – Decapitated by fish monster

Male Redneck – Impaled by creature's arm

Male Fishazoid – Shot by father

Female Wedding Guest – Wrapped in razor Wire

Male Psychotic – Beaten with Croquet mallet

Male Wedding Guest – Butcher knife in the throat

Male Psychotic – Carving knife through throat

Female Psychotic – Pick axe in head

Male Psychotic – Chopped up by daughter

2 Male Inbreds – Decapitated in woods

Female  – Decapitated

Male – Machete in face

Male – Decapitated with machete

Priest – Eye torn out, disemboweled

Male – Multiple machete stabs

Male Bachelor – Fingers cut off, knife through mouth

Old Man – Natural causes?

Male Fast Food Clerk – Brain removed

2 Male Inbreds – Machete slaughter

5 Wedding guests – Various horrific acts

Male Camper – Chopped up by Witch gang

Female Coven Leader – Stabbed in throat with broom handle

Female Witch – Drowned

Male Camper – Internal bleeding

Male Camper – Drowned

Male Camper – Mutilated in Ritual

Dog – Hit by car

Male Clubber – Beer tap in forehead

12 Clubbers – Killed by Zombies

Female Clubber – Murdered by brother

Male Clubber – Devoured by Zombies

Male Redneck – Beer can in chest

2 Male Cops – Throats bitten out

Female Redneck – Shot in chest

Female – Shot by moron

Female Student – Pulled into trees and decapitated

Male  – Self inflicted gunshot

Female Zombie Hunter – Self inflicted head shot

Male Zombie Hunter – Eaten by child zombie

27 Zombies – Chopped, stabbed, shot, everything!

Male Apple Farmer – Hung from tree

Male Peddler – Murdered by apple farmer

Male Clubber – Tongue bitten out, murdered

Female – Car accident
Male Peddler - Stabbed in back

Tally of 157 souls……and counting!

11:04 PM - 2 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

The Digital Age

  There is a common misconception that those of us who work in practical effects are in competition with, or otherwise threatened by the digital age.  But this could not be further from the truth.  The fact is that make-up effects, animatronics, even miniatures will always play an essential role as long as films continue to be produced.  The digital revolution, if anything, has only enhanced the physical arts.  And not to embrace them collaboratively could only hold us back.  There are, of course, the George Lucas' of the world who are taking this digital obsession to purely unhealthy and irresponsible levels.  Of course I admire George, as every effects artist of my generation owes their career to Star Wars in one form or another.  But I'm also the first to admit the man has totally snapped his cap!  This is the man who once said "special effects are a tool, a means of telling a story.  A special effect without a story is a pretty boring thing."  And yet his recent Star wars installments were pure and laughable video games start to finish.   This is the man who now says that we will do away with all physical locations and use purely digital sets from now on.   ?!!!!  Not only is this a clear sign the man needs serious medication, but it also will never happen.  So we'll leave him to his fantasies.

  Now I appreciate and greatly admire the amount of design and effort that went into those new films.  The approach is different, but still a tremendous feat.  Now, if they were released as "digital films" like Shrek or Robots I would have been more accepting.  But asking an audience to accept them as live action films is what made them such a visual disaster.  The Rodney character in Robots, looks fantastic…..in Robots.  But if we took him out and placed him in a live action film, it would suck.  It would be….Attack of the Clones?

  As with any art form, one needs to accept it's limitations.  Digital software as it stands is unbelievable in terms of surface textures, lighting, landscapes, and subtle animations in combination with live footage.  But the total creation of a character from top to bottom is just not ready yet, plain and simple.  The biggest concerns, and areas that attention needs to be applied is physical believability, particularly in movement.  They are lacking in an understanding of weight, kinetics, inertia, gravity…  Performances are physically over dramatized and exaggerated, and regardless of how artful their appearance, the human eye detects even the slightest fault in naturalism.

  Example: A 20 ton Transformer, when tossed onto the pavement, does not bounce as though it's made of rubber.  Nor can a 100 square foot robot transform into a 60 square foot automobile.   Watch that Bumble Bee character.  There is no way in this physical universe all of that character can fit in that tiny car.  Certainly not allowing room for two passengers.  King Kong, holding a woman in his hand, swings his hand from point A to point B in a period of half a second.  Taking into account his size, the distance between those points is roughly, say, 60 feet.  A human being, getting swung back and forth over a 60 foot span that rapidly. It would break every bone in their body!  I realize I'm getting a bit technical, but these things occur to an audience on an almost subliminal level, and tell them that something is not right.  The human eye is not stupid.

  The Weta workshop did one of my favorite renditions in their creation of the Gollum character.  Again, the surface texture, lighting, coloration, and incorporation into it's surroundings was truly impressive.  And yet, once he begins to move, the laws of physics seem to go out the window.  These characters move as though they are filled with helium at times.  Bouncing and floating, hitting the ground with no paletteable sense of impact.  Getting knocked around, thrown into rocks in ways that would kill any living organism.  A four-foot tall character cannot spring from one spot to another at the speed of a fly.  You need to consider their weight, body mass, higher center of gravity. 

  Another travesty of movement involves this element of overly fluid motion.  ILM especially seems to have a difficult time in which characters' joints move as though they're made of jello.  Computer programs will naturally and mathematically transition a movement of key points as smoothly as it can.  It's left to the artists to tell this software that organic tissue doesn't work this way.  Bones rub against one another.  Muscles twitch and hesitate through streams of impulses.  There seems to be such a focus on perfection, we're forgetting that it's the imperfections that sell an effect.

  It seems apparent that the teams of animators flowing out of these tech schools are brilliant technicians.  But there is an element of art that is not translating.  And a true understanding of physical reality that is lacking.  And until these areas can be improved upon, and until these techniques are fine tuned……I beg you, all of you, please keep it off my screen.   I happen to know and work with a great deal of digital artists, and their work blows me away.  And they too go on and on for, believe me, hours about these same exact issues.  The fault ultimately lies with these studio executives who are so intoxicated with the speed and versatility of this new technology, that they demand more than it can offer at this time.  So I can't blame the filmmakers or the artists themselves.  Thankfully we have this wonderful family of independents who still place importance on quality over the bottom line.  And it's within the independent world I believe the digital artist will be allowed the time and input to eventually perfect this amazing craft.

  What we all need to remember is that special effects are here to sneak in those elements which would be impossible, or too dangerous to achieve otherwise.  And at the end of the day, the effect that goes unnoticed by the viewer, is the one which has achieved it's purpose.  Only when the viewer is unable to pin point the crossover between fabrication and reality have we done our jobs.                    

1:47 PM - 4 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

Resume 2008

                                                Ben Chester
                                Resume 2008 - Entertainment arts


Film Credits__________________________________________________
Dr. Dolittle (1998) - Special animal effects./ On-set tech
Star Trek Insurrection (1998) - Prop effects
Being John Malkovich (1990) - Co-creator on marionette costume
The Pogie King (1999) - Special body effects/props
The Cross (2000) - Production Designer
Kermits Swamp Years (2002) - Locations P.A.
Pretty Dead Things (Version 1 2003) - Key make-up/Effects Supervisor 
Raving Maniacs (2004) - Key make-up/Effects Supervisor/Extra 
Creature From The Hillbilly Lagoon (2005) - Special creature effects/Actor 
Wedding Slashers (2005) - Key make-up/Effects Supervisor/Set design/Actor
Ballast (2006) - Key make-up/2nd AD/Ass. wardrobe
Pretty Dead Things (2006) - Key make-up/Effects Supervisor/1st AD 
Bairstow and Miller (2006) - Special make-up effects 
Witches' Night (2006) - Special make-up effects/Actor
Detour into Madnes Vol.2 (2006) - Special make-up effects
Bubble Trubble (Screen Test 2007) - Alien make-ups/Set construction
Polycarp (2007) - Body prop effects
Bubble Trubble (Film) (2007) - Character pieces/Prop fabrication
ScatterBrain (2007) - Body prop effects
Slayer (Trailer) (2007) - Make-up/body prop effects
Orbis Romanus (2008) - Special make-up effects
Dozers (2008) - Special make-up effects
Banshee (2008) - SFX Insert (Exploding head)
One Glass short of a Bottle (2008) - Camera operator

Television Credits_____________________________________________
Star Trek Voyager (1998-2000) - Costume/prop effects
The Drew Carey Show (1999) - Creature/character effects
Star Trek DS9 (1999) - Animatronic creature effects
Sheena (2000) - 2nd unit set P.A.
The true story of Troy (2004) - Special make-up/pyrotechnics
The trial of Jesus (2004) - Set dressing/transportation
Brotherhood (2005) - Locations P.A.
The Curse of Micah Rood (2007) - Special prop effects 

Commercial Credits___________________________________________
Claritan (1998) - Costume creation
Budweiser (1998) - Miniature fabrication
McDonalds Superbowl promo (1999) - Animatronic character
Autos on-line (2003) - Make-up artist
Gem Plumbing (2004) - Make-up artist/prop creation
MDOT "Hot Momma" (2007) - Facial morph effect
MDOT "Litter Bug" (2007) - Animatronic bug costume        
Greenbytes (2008) - Set decoration, grip
Rhode Island Blood Bank (2008) - Key make-up
The Connecticut Sun (2008) - Grip
Greenbytes (2008) - Key make-up, grip 

Music Video Credits__________________________________________
Daft Punk (1999)  -  Animatronic dog mask
Rocket from the Crypt (1999)  -  Ape make-up appliances    
Lisa M  "La Suprema" (2000)  -  Sculpted costume accessories

Acting Credits                                                                                                
Raving Maniacs (2004) - Bartender
Creature From The Hillbilly Lagoon (2005) - Rex, The Creature
Wedding Slashers (2005) - The Mortician
Witches' Night (2006) - The Old Crone
Dozers (2008) - Italian Pedestrian

Theming/Prop Sculpture________________________________________
The Nassal Company (Orlando) - Theme park character sculptor
Universal Studios Orlando - Walk-around character heads/costuming
Big Nazo Puppetry (2002-2004) - Puppet fabrication/performance
Confreda farms haunted hayride - Creature prop creation
The Bates Motel haunted hayride - Creature prop creation
The IMAX Corporation (Providence) - Display Sculpture/scenic painting

Skills__________________________________________________________________

- Special make-up FX (Prosthetics, build-ups, mechanical make-up, body casting)
- Sculpture (Oil/water based clays, polystyrene, rigid foams)
- Mold-making (Plaster, epoxy, fiberglass, RTV/Silicones)
- Prop casting (Latex, urethanes, plastic, silicone, fiberglass, plaster, wax)
- Special costuming (Custom sculpted and fitted body and creature suits)
- Dental FX (Tooth casting, fangs, dentures, replacements, enhancements)
- Animatronics (Basic under-skull supports, R/C mechanics, cable mechanics)
- Airbrushing (Auto, creature/prop, make-up)
- Miniature fabrication (Plastics, foam, wood, plaster, cardboards)
- Architectural drafting/Photoshop rendering and alterations

10:53 AM - 2 Comments - 4 Kudos - Add Comment

A weekend in Hollywood

It was the winter of 94'.....I think. My recollection of time and space has weakened with age, but as best I can figure it now, that sounds about right. I was a sophmore in highschool, obsessed with fantasies for my then....so clear future, and basically miserable with life as I knew it. Which, at that age, I suppose is pretty much par for the course. It was one of those ever spectacular weekends when I got the chance to veg out and live the life of a pampered prince at grandma and grandpas house. The one place that over the years, shielded me from the dramas of adolescence. A blanket of comfort and security where I was never judged, never restrained, and love was always unconditional. (No matter how many fires I started in the bushes.) I can remember the moment clear as day. Walking into the living room as the nightly news played on tv. Typically my brain would trip into an automatic defense mechanism at the sound of Pamela Watts' voice, and shut down. Blocking out incomming audio like a repressed memory. But tonight three bits of information managed to permeate my outer defense. Arnold Swartzenegger.....Newport.......James Cameron. Well, as a painfully pethetic teenage movie geek you can bet your sweet ass my attention was hooked, but to me this combination of words meant only one thing. That with Arnold and James filming together, that meant that somewhere very nearby, there must be special effects artists at work! After all, the probability of this particular duo working on something subtle and romantic just didn't seem to fit the bill. And as an aspiring effects artist myself, then at the peak of my passion and inspiration, I knew I just had to find my way there on even the slightest hope I could find someone to steer me in the right professional direction. Or really any direction at that point. So the following weekend myself, my father, his significant other and my sister piled into the old Beamer and headed for the set. Granted we had no idea where it was per-se, but one could only deduce that if you head towards the mansions.....and look for the lights.....you're bound to find the promised land. And so we did! The line of production vehicles and crew was about as clear a sign as one could ask for, and my heart pounded at the sight of what I had only imagined for many years. Of course at this point my resolve began to weaken with fear. Now that I was here....what was I planning to do? Who would I talk to? What the hell would I say? I was just about to tell my dad to speed on by when he suddenly pulled to the side of the road directly in front of the main gate of the location. He pointed to a security guard watching us from the wall, and I figured it was now or never. If I wanted this as bad as I did, now was the time to pocket that timid nature of mine and take that first step. So I took a long deep breathe, stepped out of the car, and went right up to the guy. I explained to him that I was not there to catch a glimpse of Arnold, but that I had long dreamed of working in special effects and was only hoping to talk to someone, and had no intention of getting in the way. The man looked at me for a moment, and I was certain I was about to get my first introduction to the inside of a paddy wagon. But instead he smiled and said...."tell you what. Come back in a half hour and I'll take you in myself." Back in the car I was bracing myself for what promised to be the longest half hour of my young life. We decided to take a drive and grab a quick lunch, but all I could think about was that in just a short while, I was going to be escorted into an actual hollywood film set. My mind was racing, my heart was pounding. I couldn't keep a single thought straight in my head. As I sat there fighting to maintain some vague grip on reality, we rolled to a stop at a traffic light near the water. It was only a moment or two when I hear my sister's holler from the back seat "There he is! It's Arnold!" By this point I'm thinking that pretty much anything is possible, so I look to the SUV beside us and sure enough, there is Arnold in the passenger seat. Wearing a brown fedora hat and chatting on a cell phone. Now even my father was excited, and as the light changed and the SUV sped off towards goat island, my father decides to floor it, illegally traversing two lanes of traffic and following in hot pursuit. All I could think was.....if we don't get arrested, and do catch up to the guy....again....what the hell am I supposed to do here?? My father reminded me that my portfolio was in the trunk, in which I had a pencil drawing of (for those who know me....what else) the damn Predator! We spotted the production car at the front entrance to the hotel as Arnie and his boys headed towards the front door. We screeched to halt and I flew out to the trunk for the drawing. I had only barelly made it back in the car when a body guard was standing outside my window glaring at me. I rolled it down and said "I just wanted to give him this." He waited a moment, then we watched as he made his way over to Arnold. They chatted for a brief moment, both looking down at my scribbling, then over he came! I think my family was more excited than I was, in fact this was probably the closest to an anurism I had been before or since. He was shorter than I had imagined as he approached the car, but that was the least of my concerns at this point. He asked if I drew this and I managed to gurgle some pointless response I'm sure. He then asked if I wanted him to sign it. I smiled since the thought never entered my mind, and explained that it was for him to keep if he would like it. This, I think, he appreciated very much, and of all the compliments that drawing recieved, his was certainly the most memorable. He shook everyones hand, and was very accomidating to our unannounced intrusion. We chatted for a while about what I intended to do with my life and he shared his admiration for those of the F/X pursuation. Then as if it had never happened, we said our goodbyes and he was gone. I recall brief flashes of lunch, but all things considered the event was a bit of a blur. I still had a tour ahead of me and could only imagine what was still to come. Like Charlie Bucket about to be lead into the Chocolate factory, I had no idea what I was about to encounter, but knew that whatever it was, it would be a day I'd never forget. After lunch we headed back to set where Angus, my knight in shining security rags, was waiting to escort me through the gates. He was very kind, very patient with my youthful, nervous commentary, and was so nonchallant about everything that it put me at ease in a way. We walked around the craft service tents and the grip trucks. I watched as lights were hauled into the mansion and cables dropped from the balconies. It was like a perfectly tuned machine the way everyone moved. As if they had rehearsed every action a million times and now executed without a thought or a pause. The extras were dressed up in their tuxedos and evening gowns, and the p.a.'s scurried around with that all too familiar "holy fuck, what's happening" expression. Before I left, Angus extended an invitation to come back the following evening and watch the filming for a while. An offer which I eagerly and gratefully accepted. Those two nights on the set of "True Lies" were among the most magical of my life, and no matter how many films I've been on, or how many stars I've shaken hands with, none will ever top the excitement of my first. My only regret was that I never managed to meet the effects crew that night. Our paths just never seemed to cross. But the irony is that three years later I found myself in North Hollywood, walking into my first day on the job in an actual effects studio. And there on the display was the horse and two foam doberman's that were used in the film. It was then that I realised my new boss was the one who was there that night, and although it took a few years, our paths finally crossed. I always wondered what happened to my drawing. In fact on numerous occassions I found myself regretting giving it up!...lol I always swore that Arnold and I would meet again on set, and on that day I would remind him of that little boy who ambushed him outside his hotel. And only then would I inquire what became of the drawing I had given him. Of course I suppose now that his career has taken a turn, the likeliness of our meeting again is slim. There's about as much chance of my giving two shits about politics as there is of my cat becoming a certified public accountant. But you know..........stranger things have happened.

7:53 PM - 5 Comments - 7 Kudos - Add Comment

It came from the Deep!!

So here's a funny little story I was thinking about this morning....thought I'd share:) Now bear in mind this story has no deep moral to it, nor does it express any personal views, or inspire any sense of romance. However it does end with me fainting.....yes, I said it....which is why I haven't shared this much:p But now I figured what the hell!!!! I guess it was about two weeks after my 21st birthday, early January, and I was flying into the Tampa/St. Pete airport to begin my first indie film project. We were shooting in the city of Tarpon Springs which was actually a beautiful place to be, even in January which, as a New Englander, is usually a miserable time of year. And even though I was young, and working a film which really had no need for a Production designer at all, it was still a great time. Anyhow, we were scheduled to shoot the local Greek "Epiphony" festival for which a gathering of small wooden boats had been aranged in a half circle in the center of the lagoon. Each boat was owned by different local businesses, I suppose for advertisement more than anything, and had been left out there after the festival so we could shoot some fill-in footage later on in the week. So one morning we get a call at the office that one of the boats was taking on water and starting to sink. And naturally this boat just happened to be owned by a local man who was also a huge contributor to the film. Being that everyone was at the mornings location elsewhere, I decided to take a walk down there to see what...if anything, I could do. When I got there the boat was overturned and almost completelly submerged, and while I wasn't sure it would do any good, I figured I had to at least attempt flipping it over. But that would require swimming out to it which I wasn't thrilled about. Thanks to Steven Spielberg and his early work with Sharks, I had developed a strong....... discomfort for dark murky water. And this was the darkest, murkiest, and deepest pit of liquid I had seen, and the thought of getting in was terrifying. However my sense of duty seemed to overpower my fears and I got into my bathing suit, and made my way into the lagoon. It was cold, it was dark, and my imagination was.....pardon the pun....swimming with thoughts of the horrible creatures that might dwell beneath me. After a valiant attempt at flipping the boat, it proved far too heavy to budge, and being in the water I had no leverage on it whatsoever. So I started back. Though I was a little more at ease now, the idea of reaching the edge again was forefront on my mind. But then, no less than 10 feet from safety.......it happened. This enormous, rough skinned creature suddenly rose from the darkness and slowly rubbed along my underside. So huge and powerful it seemed to lift me a bit as it passed. My heart instantly stopped, and I yelled out words I would be best not to repeat, and all at once I started swimmming like never before. But my heart was pounding so fast I started to loose strength. It felt like I was swimming through molasses, I could barelly hold my head above water, and my every thought was on this hideous prehistoric creature that would grab me at any moment, pull me down into the blackness and slowly chew the flesh from my bones!!!!!!!! I'm an optimist. After what seemed an eternity I finally reached the edge of the lagoon and fought to pull myself out of the water, as I could hear the breathing and spraying of this monster coming up behind me. I crawled onto the sidewalk in a panic and then.....everything went dark. I woke up lying on my back, the blue sky above. A man was walking past to find this half naked wet kid lying on his back on the sidewalk, trying to catch his breath and wondering how long he had been lying there. Dizzy and weak I pulled myself up and tried to explain what had happened. I was a little pissed off as the guy started to laugh and said that my close encounter was with a Manatee, and that they were as harmless as they come. Harmless or not, I didn't know what a fuckin' Manatee was, much less had I ever had one bump up underneathe me!! This thing was huge!! And not to mention decidedly unattractive!!! So I just sat there for a while, waiting for my mind and body to re-equalize so I could at least walk back to my room. And all the while this creature kept swimming in circles before me, popping it's head up to breathe and.... I have no doubt, laugh at his naive new bathing companion. Of course now we're good friends. We IM all the time:p

8:06 AM - 0 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment