We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Shaun White a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Shaun , thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

My single most meaningful and important project I’ve worked on, would still have to be my college graduation thesis, short film, CASSETTE: https://youtu.be/ePCmPqsNsgw?si=hJzTI6UoI-vQm1Hu. Back in 2018, at the end of summer, I graduated at the top of my class, at The Los Angeles Film School, located in the heart of Hollywood, California, via Sunset Boulevard. Not only that, but I had the distinct honor and privilege of screening my short film during my, our graduation ceremony, in the LAFS’ theater auditorium, located in the once RCA building. That very room, where I received my educational credentials, is the same room where my favorite musician, The Maestro himself, film composer, John Williams composed the Return of the Jedi, my favorite Star Wars film.

In addition, right across the street from where I graduated, is and was the world famous Pacific CINERAMA “DOME” Theatre, now the ArcLight Cinema. This is where my favorite motion picture of all time had its premiere. This film would happen to be Steven Spielberg‘s “comedy spectacular!,” 1941, released in 79. Just as John Williams, who I mentioned before as my favorite film score composer, Steven Spielberg is my single favorite “picture-maker,” at least through much of my upbringing. As those two names go hand-in-hand together, my graduation was an accumulation of nostalgia, just like my thesis film CASSETTE, which relies heavily and was inspired greatly from the works of these two men.

Some of my greatest influences growing up, both artists and their companies alike, came from the heyday of the Amblin and LucasFilm era, primarily. I was undoubtably a Star Wars/Back to the Future/Indiana Jones kid. That being said, one can only imagine how crazy my imagination was as an adolescent. Much of these types of movies, like the Rocketeer, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Willow, the Muppets, Hook, etc; I watched for the first time in comfort of my grandmother’s home, where I lived for sometime as young boy. These kind of films were exactly what I needed as a child. Many, many years later, my grandmother’s home would become the main location and centerpiece for my thesis film. My big little movie, CASSETTE, is indirectly, the big little story of myself. I believe everyone involved in the making of it, knew how important it was back then, in 2018. However, it is much more meaningful today than it ever was. This is a whole other story, a bit of a sad one at that.

Shaun , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am a writer and director of many projects. I’ve dabble in many things from music videos, to lyrics, to skits, and short films, including prop making and set design on occasion.

To be quite honest, I am the least tech savvy person you’ll meet. I know a little to nothing about modern technology. So, I try to do as many things as practical as I can, when it comes to visual storytelling. Many people, the majority, would see this as a setback. However, I look at it as a blessing. All I have to do is look back at some of the greatest movies of all time, more specifically, the older pictures, and realize how those filmmakers didn’t have any of the technology that we do today, yet those movies and those filmmakers still stand the test of time. I innovate by taking one step back to take two steps forward.

One day, I would simply love us, as the audience, is to simply have fun again enjoying entertainment, especially here in the America. There’s a life force, an energy that many people have turned the blind eye too in these past many decades. Here’s a quote that I try to follow, by my favorite artist, Norman Rockwell; “Without thinking too much about it in specific terms, I was showing the America I knew and observed to others who might not have noticed.”

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

I like to challenge the audience’s emotion and imagination. By default, I’m challenging myself. When I shoot a story, and put it up for everyone to see, I adore standing at the sidelines and seeing the people react. I love, listening to the audience cry, scream, or clap, at the exact moment where I intended them to. It can become rather addictive in the best way. If I can make at least one viewer think about what they’ve just seen from me, for hours or days, or even a month after watching something that have created, I’ve done my job and realized my dream.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Unfortunately, only a few months after my graduation from The Los Angeles Film School, when I was most happy in my creative element of movie directing, I had a catastrophic falling out with many of my peers, in my Hollywood circle. I blame no one and I have moved on. Despite that, at the time, I was devastated for a very long time, years in fact. I found myself tragically disenchanted with the magic of the entertainment industry as a whole. I lost my spirit and I lost my way.

However, after many years of isolation, so to speak, I finally found the courage to pick up a camera again. First, I started to write a story, any story. I simply wanted to see what would happen. I came up with a Neo Western short, under the pretense that there would be more episodes to follow. Each one, every installment, I would have to challenge myself into new territories. This project, the original COLD ONES, released in December, 2023, had many of my friends and family wanting more! https://youtu.be/VjNUZuEfFos?si=IeNlRsRpjEKRsC1R

I believe that was the turnaround, the moment where I believed in myself again. I’ve been working to get that high back ever since then. So much so, that after six long years of collecting dust, I finally released CASSETTE to the public, after giving it a fresh coat of paint; new and refurbished audio, colorization, new soundtrack, and much more. It would go on to receive 1000 views per week, little to nothing in the grandscale of things, virally speaking. However, I was on a roll once again with these projects. Now, I thrive on resilience. I, along with the enlistment and help of Tukes Studios, are currently hard at work, editing the anticipated dark sequel to COLD ONES.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shaunleewhite/profilecard/?igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
• Youtube: https://youtu.be/ePCmPqsNsgw?si=KyB7T2pOHtjTtDWN

Image Credits

Michael Tukes
JoAnna White
D-Wayne (Derrall Wayne)