Shadows in the Understory - Ft. Dillon Butcher

One of the greatest challenges in cinematography is avoiding the repetition of the same ideas. It’s easy to fall into the habit of regurgitating what works to create a video, out of necessity to complete a project quickly. When Dillon and I first conceived the concept of “Shadows in the Understory,” it was daunting. We knew we had no time limit with a concept fueled by passion, but how do we seamlessly transition between seasons mid-ride in almost every shot? I wanted to do this in a way that was both challenging, feasible and difficult to reproduce. Naturally, the answer was to film almost the entire video using a Cable Cam, ensuring smooth transitions between seasons. Tripod and handheld filming would have been too simple and lacked the dynamic movement we envisioned. Initially, I had serious doubts about whether this idea would work. I wondered how it would be possible to have the camera in the exact same spot, moving at the same speed, while Dillon’s riding remained consistent and repeatable in