Chris Bryan’s promo reel has turned out to be one of the big hits on Vimeo for 2011. It features surfing, fighting and very hot beach girls. Did we mention it’s filmed at over 1000 frames per second and delivered in ultra-slow motion HD. What else would you honestly rather watch right now?
BH: Hi Chris, your Phantom Reel on Vimeo has been hugely popular – and for good reason, congratulations!
CB: Thanks Brad, yeah I’m surprised at the response I’ve gotten from it.
BH: Tell us a little about your background in film? Where did you start out and what brought you to where you are?
CB: I started out as a still photographer and then moved onto film. I’ve always been inspired by Jack McCoy’s high speed footage from back in the day and he is the reason i got into film making.
BH: The Phantom HD Gold and Flex are opening up new worlds in terms of slow motion HD video and you are at the forefront of the revolution.
How have you found this new equipment and has it changed your creative process?
CB: Yeah, as soon as i first heard about the Phantom i just new i had to get my hands on one. I was fortunate enough to work with Curt Morgan’s Phantom for the first time on a Quiksilver campaign, the shoot was the first time we had ever used the Phantom in the water and was a huge success. Working with the Phantom, it’s great to be able to shoot at such a high frame rate and not have to worry about changing rolls of film. The camera is truly amazing.
BH: Developing custom water housing for such expensive pieces of kit must be pretty scary. Have you always been mechanically minded or did you build it out of necessity?
CB: I built the housing because i knew there were a couple of things that I could improve on but given that Curt’s water housing was the first of its kind, it worked great for our shoot.
BH: Your involvement in the Quiksilver Moments videos pretty much made that series. Any highlights for you personally?
CB: The highlights with working with Quiksilver would just be getting to work with a great group of people.
BH: The model shoots looked like a lot of fun? I’ve noticed a lot of attention being paid to 11:11 on your reel.
CB: Hahaha, yeah that was shot in Tahiti, i had a day off from shooting so i met up with the model and just shot that stuff for myself, a fun shoot.
BH: Do you have any cinematographers or directors that you personally admire?
CB: I’m inspired by Curt Morgan and Spike Jones.
BH: What’s next for Chris Bryan? Will you be concentrating primarily on surfing, extreme sports, models, documentary, film or something completely different?
CB: I’m always open to new projects, just whatever comes up.
BH: Thanks for your time!
CB: Pleasure, thank you.