I posted a brief teaser a few days ago on my facebook.
That post was right on the tail end of a workshop that changed my life, but it wasn't the workshop itself that changed my life, it was the MASSIVE perspective change of my life I received in taking the workshop, and the people within it that I had met.
For so long I had questions about my life and my career path and how I was going achieve my various life goals, and out of nowhere I suddenly had a clarity and single minded focus I had only experienced once before; in 2011 when I created with my friend Joe Bagtas a vampire martial arts flick.
It wasn't terribly good but we poured our hearts, blood, sweat and tears (literally, there were a couple injuries during production).
Matt Granger, the instructor facilitated the workshop where I met a number of people from all sorts of backgrounds and skill levels and the camaraderie that came from us all having a single goal, in this particular case, learning lighting for photography.
I later found out that there had been a shooting at an event called "Art All Night", and event that I had almost attended if it weren't for the workshop with Matt Granger.
I never, ever, expected my entire life and my perspective to change so completely, so utterly, in just one weekend.
On the picture (on facebook) the gentlemen I met in the class who I was with for most of the workshop, all from totally different backgrounds and all of them helped enormously throughout the class, and of course my instructor Matt Granger from the faraway land down under (Recent expat to the states).
And Stephanie Pham, actress and martial arts enthusiast (and assistant to Matt Granger) who made me realize I was by far and away not the only person out there with very similar film making goals.
I haven't felt like I was in full form in years, and taking this workshop, highlighted by the fleetingness of life courtesy of the shooting, made me reevaluate my myself, my life, and my perspective on virtually everything.
When I was at the workshop, and in the zone, it felt like every fiber of my being was reverberating, singing with joy, a feeling I haven't experienced in a very long time. I mean of course I have experienced happiness in intervening years, but not nearly as intense as this.
I was in my element, again, finally.
And after every day of the workshop I felt light, as if a weight was lifted off of my shoulders, a sort of relaxed high making me float down every street, everything seeming brighter than it actually was.
I'm back baby, and goddamn does it feel good.
Matt Granger (Pictured)
I was in complete shock when I came back from the last weekend and realized that my entire life had changed by two events. Two. The workshop, and the narrowly avoided shooting.
Onwards and upwards to greater things!
If you want to see more of my work hit me up on YouTube @ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClyE56cYC8_Xk0vPOSHqCvQ
Or on Instagram @markianbek
