User:Breithaupt

Inspired by Star Wars at a young age (as many of us were), I had the realization that filmmaking was what I wanted to do in life. By age 10 I was enrolled in classes, and made my first film "Trick or Treat", a disturbing portrait of one child’s hallucinogenic-induced homicidal rage on Halloween night. With a competitive streak ever-present in my character, as well as a high level of energy, I was involved in many sports including swim team, soccer and skate boarding. Skate boarding became my passion. As my skills grew, followed by my trophy collection, I decided to attract the attention of sponsors by renting a home camcorder and filming my incredible tricks, which no one was doing at the time. My brilliant idea worked, and under the sponsorship of such companies as Independent Trucks, Skate Rags Clothing Co., Stylized Sun Glasses and Walker Skateboards, I went on to win more skate competitions, bigger trophies and even more sponsors. I began my career making videos: music, modeling, wedding, corporate and extreme sports, you name it, I have probably caught it on film. None of that compared to the footage I began capturing in 1999 when I was invited to by a friend to attend and film the annual Burning Man Festival held in Black Rock City, Nevada. What started off as fulfilling a friend’s request for a souvenir video of the event became a passion for me. I passed out the edited footage to friends, who passed it to friends, who gave it to their friends, etc. Stoked by the floods of compliments, I began his own tradition. It was in the year 2002 that I made my breakthrough film "Aqua Burn". AquaBurn is an award-winning documentary film by director Bill Breithaupt showcasing "The Floating World" theme of the 2002 Burning Man Festival. AquaBurn features many of the incredible Burning Man art installations, the imagination and originality that went into their creation, and the artists who conceived them. Unlike conventional documentaries on the Burning Man Festival, AquaBurn captures the true feeling and excitement of the event itself, transporting the viewer to a hot, dusty wonderland without ever leaving home. AquaBurn introduces you to artists like Peter Hudson, who created Sisyphish, a life-size 3D zoetrope of a swimmer, Nate Smith, who conjures a 20 ft. fire tornado, David Best & his crew’s 78 ft. Temple of Joy - a tribute to 9/11, Deirdre DeFranceaux’s beautiful sculpture of singing sirens, Shane Rogers and the Sky People show off their sky diving skills over Black Rock City, Terry Shreck’s glowing metal sculpture Beacon, and Kiki Petit’s incredible fire waterfall Egeria. Although not the first Burning Man film by Bill Breithaupt, AquaBurn has become the most popular. Breithaupt is a ten year Burning Man veteran, having attended and filmed the festival every year consecutively since 1999, when he ventured out to the playa for the first time and was blown away at what he experienced. www.aquaburn.com