For a year, my team and I traveled between Wilmington, NC, and Charleston, SC, creating videos and marketing campaigns for The Runarounds, a band led by Jonas Pate, creator and director of the popular Netflix series, Outer Banks. I had heard murmurs for months that Pate had been wanting to film a show in Wilmington for years, and now, finally, the opportunity had presented itself. Gradually, our production house became inundated with Netflix representatives, until one day, I walked in to find someone had claimed my desk as their own. I didn’t mind, though, as the chance to work on a feature narrative was becoming a reality. Prematurely, I began to fantasize about becoming a camera operator on this project, given my experience as a camera operator for their concerts and marketing campaigns. It seemed like a natural progression to me, but I was still relatively young in the industry and unaware of the ladder I needed to climb to earn such a title. But as they say, everything happens for a reason, right?

The story is both simple and complex in its overall scope. It revolves around four high school rockstars known as the FurtherMuckers, who are performing at a high school house party. However, when their beloved but incompetent drummer accidentally starts a house fire, it creates a rift within the band. Three of the band members begin seeking a fresh start, they decide to hold auditions, unaware of the potential consequences. As the new band of five forms and senior year draws to a close, each member is faced with choices that could drastically shape their future. Some sacrifice popularity, others their family ties, and some even sacrifice highschool love, all in pursuit of their dreams of rock stardom. In doing so the new band takeoff into the world filled with unknowns as The Runarounds.