Combining Passions

As some of you know, I've been taking some film classes lately in an attempt to pursue a passion of mine. Of course, taking the time away from my family is never fun and always makes me feel at least a little guilty. In an effort to combine the two, I decided to make this fun little video with the boys. It's a Star Wars-inspire film (although Batman and others make some debuts!) using action figures. Mackay was of course the main actor and Beckett was his side kick in our home audio recording "studio" (i.e. my closet!). I played a few voices as well, including that of Yoda. Andrea was the girl voice at the end.

Unlike other short films I've made, I went into this without any real script or storyboards. It was more of an interactive process with the boys (they were the ones who actually came up with the idea of doing a scene with Yoda). After we had a general story shot, I made up a dialogue and then we recorded it. Of course all of the sound effects were also added after the fact. Long story short, it took longer than I had hoped, but it was a fun little project that I hope the boys will remember with fondness.

For those who are wondering...the fire is real!

Disney Rocks!

Back when Andrea and I went to Maui, we bought some points/option for a time share dealio. With those points we were able to stay at a sweet place in Disney World and another less-sweet place on the beach in Destin, Florida. We definitely would not recommend wasting one's money on the time share option like we did (lesson learned!), but we did enjoy a super fun time at Disney World. We went with some of our friends who have similar age kids. It was SUPER fun! Here are some pictures from our trip.

Day 1 - Animal Kingdom

They weren't really diggin' the Bug's Life 4D show. We left early after things started hitting them (I think it was just air!).

We rode this about four times because there was no line! Sweet!!!

At the end of a long and fun first day.

Day 2 - Magic Kingdom

Good times with friends.

What a cute family! ;-)
What a great big brother!

Faces of FUN!

This car ride always seems faster when you're young! But it's still fun at my age! We got to go around twice because I had two drivers.

Like mother like daughter...cute!

More cuteness.
Hanging around. Waiting in line.
Bros before...never forget it guys! ;-)
Mom with her cute kids.

We got to have dinner that night with my Grandma and Great Aunt. We had a fun dinner at the T-Rex Restaurant. It took a while to wait in line, however (love that Mackay is asleep in this).
UPDATE: Unfortunately, my Aunt is no longer with us. She is missed.

Day 3 - Hollywood Studios

What a cute family! (Is Eme crying?) ;-)
Be honest, what boy doesn't love Star Wars? Show me one and I'll show you a neglectful parent! :-)
A little rain came just as we were calling it a day.

Day 4 - Chillin'
I asked the kids if they wanted to go to the Disney parks for a fourth day, but I think three was good for them. They were happy to swim at our hotel and go shopping.

At least the hotel had a nice pool...even if it was overpriced!

We stopped at the Lego Store before leaving Disney and picked up a few things. Legos = a slice of heaven for these boys!

Day 5 - Beach

Eme loves the beach!
Eme doesn't love sitting on alligators!

Note that I'm planning to make a home movie combining all of our clips, but haven't gotten around to it. I will finish it! In the mean time, enjoy these clips of Mackay and Beckett on their first roller coaster rides.

Mackay's First Roller Coaster Ride from Be Strong on Vimeo.

Beckett's First Roller Coaster Ride from Be Strong on Vimeo.

UPDATE: Since uploading the roller coaster video of Beckett, a Disney representative contacted me to include it in a video montage they showed on the side of Cinderella's Caste for part of the month of February 2011. It was part of some promotional they were doing. I'm still trying to get a copy of their final video, but I doubt they'll send it.

BroWars: Duel of the Padawans

I made this for a film editing class I'm taking. Hope you enjoy it. I was time constrained, but I'm pleased with it nonetheless. Enjoy the show!

BroWars: Duel of the Padawans (2010) from Marc Strong on Vimeo.