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!

Family Run

A good friend of ours organized this charity run not far from our house. It was a 5k, but there was a 1-mile option too. Mackay ran the whole way and Beckett joined him for part of the run. Eme just enjoyed the ride. Good times!

I love how they were totally focused before the race started. No camera was going to distract them.



But let's be honest, we don't do it for the glory...we do it for the bagels...

And (from one of Andrea's old races)...we race for the cool Texas-shaped medals they give us when we're done! :-)

The Winners (2008) from Marc Strong on Vimeo.

Note: I can't say we're big PC fans (Macs only in this household!), but I'm sure my brother-in-law who works for Microsoft will appreciate the boys' shirts (he should, he gave them to 'em!). :)

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.

What it's like to have kids

I tried to summarize what it's like to have a kid by making this short video. It's entitled "Having a Baby: Simply Stated." Hope you enjoy it.

Having a Baby: Simply Stated from Marc Strong on Vimeo.

(For those who prefer YouTube, you can view it here.)

Mackay the Runner

Mackay decided he wanted to do a running race, so we took him to this one promoted by his school district. He was one of only a few kids in his school who had the cajones to take the challenge. It was a 1k cross-country race down by Town Lake in downtown Austin. The conditions were a bit challenging because it had rained that morning and there was plenty of mud present. Nonetheless, the kids did great and Mackay was a trooper, running through the pain to finish in 4 minutes and 58 seconds--roughly an 8 min/mile pace.

I decide to make his race into a video: en-dur-ance. Enjoy!

en-dur-ance (2010) from Be Strong on Vimeo.

Andrea's Officially Old!

Can you believe Andrea is 30 already! She's almost as old as me! I made this little picture montage in honor of her first 30 years. In case you're wondering, the song I set it to is her favorite--it's called Juliana and talks about what a bad girl Juliana is..."Juliana que mala eres." If you look closely, there's a chance you might be in it too. Love the new iPhoto '09! (Note that you should be able to watch the video in HD by pushing play and then clicking on the triangle at the bottom right of the video and clicking on the HD option.)

DaBoyz: Kazer and Beckett getting their groove on...

I know, I know...it's been way too long since I've posted something (only a month, but with all of the holidays in there, I should have been able to post something!). I just downloaded picts for the last month and expect to add a few posts soon. So stay tuned (note that I'll will pre-date them to the correct date). 

In the mean time, here is a short video I just made of the boys. It's not my best work (after all, I'm limited with iMovie 08--although the new version is much better!), but it was a fun process nonetheless. The boys LOVE to run around the couch like it's a race course and dance to whatever tunes we're playing. The "music video" should at least give you a flavor for their sweet dance moves and what it's like to run around the "track" that is our living room! Enjoy...

A Full Life

After going to Maui, we all headed down to Gulfport, Mississippi for a little shindig with my family to celebrate my parents 60th birthdays (they were born a day apart!). My sisters created an amazing book commemorating their entire lives. Check out Amy's blog for all the details. My contribution was this video of their lives...it's 35+ minutes of good times...called A Full Life!

A Full Life from Be Strong on Vimeo.

The Winners

Here it is...see the world debut...

The Winners...my movie about the half marathon.

It's better full size and full resolution, but hopefully you'll enjoy it anyway...

The Winners (2008) from Be Strong on Vimeo.

Chasing the Train

I made this movie of our trip today with Andrea's parents and her sister (and her boyfriend) and brother down to Kemah Boardwalk--the boys loved riding on the merry-go-round and the train. It's the first movie I've made with iMovie '08. Fun to make. Perhaps I missed my calling in life! :)