What started with a wedding gift has grown into a fulfilling hobby, and a second job.
“For my wedding gift I got a video camera. So I started messing around, and the first film I made got me into the Banff Film Festival. It was of a kid falling off his bike, and everyone loves kids falling off bikes,” said Golden filmmaker Steve Crowe. “So after getting recognition like that right away, I got really engaged in it.”
That was back in 2003 that his first film garnered modest success on the festival circuit. Ten years later he has only grown as a filmmaker and artist.
His submissions at this year’s Golden Film Festival earned him high praise from the judges, and especially the crowd.
His short film, Golden Moments, won second place in Golden Area Initiatives Pure Golden category, and his documentary Wisdom from Wounds was a definite fan favourite.
The 24-minute documentary, Crowe’s longest work to date, recounts the story of a group of guys who got caught in an avalanche.
“Those guys told such an amazing story… I just had to add to it with video. But I thought the story needed telling. And at that point in my life, when I was doing short action videos, I was looking for more of a story and a bigger production, just to see if I was capable of pulling it off,” said Crowe.
The shorter the better has always been Crowe’s motto, but at this point in his artistic evolution he feels he has the confidence and skills to hold an audience’s attention for longer.
“I wanted to take that next step, and I was really happy with how it turned out. I think the guys were really happy with how it turned out as well.”
Crowe finds it very fulfilling working on his own projects, such as Wisdom from Wounds, but has also managed to use his talent to supplement his income.
He has become the go-to guy for Tourism Golden and Kicking Horse Mountain Resort for promotional materials, as well as backcountry condition and video updates.
“It’s more of a jobby for me, a hobby job,” said Crowe.
It is likely to remain that way, at least for the time being. Crowe has plans to expand on his filmmaking projects, but does not expect it to become a full time career.
“I really want to stay in Golden, and to me that is a higher priority than expanding my filmmaking capabilities. If I want to move further in the industry I would probably have to leave Golden too frequently,” he said.
Crowe has a young family, and has no intention of leaving the place that has inspired him for so long.
“I really appreciate the support that Golden’s given me. People are stoked on what I produce, and the only reason I produce what I do is because I’m stoked on Golden.”
All of Crowe’s films, including Wisdom from Wounds and Golden Moments, are available online on his Youtube channel http://www.youtube.com/briefly7.
