Thread
1/ This shoot was freaking nuts. Story time. 
2/ Nightmare Number 1: Living in Brooklyn, lighting stuff on fire is obviously off the table, so I flew to CA, where fire is equally as challenging. I arranged a plot of land that is used for film productions where fire was OK'd by the owner. 
3/ Since I was flying in all my materials were shipped and waiting for me upon my arrival. I ordered a small pallet of hoops for this shoot since I had to burn through so many of them, literally. 
4/ The listing was wrong and they shipped me the wrong size hoops! They were tiny! My shoot was in 3 days. I couldn't get my normal "canvas" shipped to me in time. My only option was to get a bunch of "pro" hoops from a local sporting good store. These are heavy AF and expensive!
5/ My normal hoops "canvas" are way lighter and have a certain silhouette I enjoy, I also buy them in bulk to save cash. Anyway, slightly over budget and a different hoop. No Big deal I suppose.
6/ Nightmare Number 2: We get to the shoot and set up. I'm checking the weather constantly. Clear sky, no wind. All systems go. 30 minutes later, out of freaking nowhere there is a huge storm. I lived in CA for 25 years and it rained like only 13 times.
7/ So there's a massive flash flood and we have to bail. We are driving over one of those kind of hilly desert roads where you need your high-beams and can't see anything. On the bottom of the hill there is a massive river over the road from the flash flood.
8/ I hit this at like 50 mph and there is a floating wheel with a tire on it. I have a split second to decide and I center the car and run it over dead center. If I hit one of my tires, we flip the car, no question about it.
9/ So this metal wheel is stuck under the bottom of our car and we are dead in the water now. Literally stuck while rapid water keeps getting higher and higher. We open the doors to get out and hoops are falling out of the car into the water.
10/ We are packed to the brim with supplies. We get all our supplies back in the car and are able to get at least out of the river. The metal rim that's stuck is dragging on the asphalt. The water keeps rising and we have to move the car every couple of minutes.
11/ We get a massive rock and drive up it to pry out the tire. Finally we're unstuck and get out of there. So this now is a Massive L. Paid for the location, 2 crew members. 3 hour drive with $6 a gallon. Very much over budget and I'm in CA only for another week.
12/ The only day we can reshoot is the day before I fly out. So we reschedule, very over budget but everything will be fine!
13/ Nightmare Number 3: We have to coat these hoops with contact cement and gasoline for these to catch on fire. And then keep applying lighter fluid as it burns to ensure we have a nice flame. All of this is toxic if you breath it in.
14/ We are for sure prepared with masks with respirators but I guess you can only prepare so much. I was looking through my viewfinder at the flames and didn't see the massive amount of smoke I was breathing in. 
15/ I almost pass out, so light headed and weak we have to stop the shoot for me to feel at-least ok enough to resume. 
16/ Some time passes and I am now high as fuck on glue and fumes and I have that tingling sensation in my spine and limbs like I'm on LSD and I'm doing the rest of the shoot giggling and shit.
17/ We wrap the shoot, I feel like shit. My limbs barely work, I'm lethargic, weird headaches, I could barely breath. I'm very close to going to the ER and considering bailing on my flight. I ride it out and thankfully start to feel better after about 36 hours.
18/ Is that what a glue hangover is? I have no idea, all I could think about is how I just poisoned myself for this shot. I have no idea the long term effects of this but I have to say it was all worth it. I am so proud of the end result.
19/ I think these two pieces are two of my best work. I am so happy to share them with you guys and beyond grateful to each and everyone of you for allowing me to be in the position to continuously almost kill myself to make art. Forever grateful. ❤️🔥 
