Featured Director Profile:  Bill Breithaupt   Film Profiled: AquaBurn                                             
Inspired by Star Wars at a young age (as many of us were), Bill had the realization that filmmaking was what he wanted to do in life. By age 10 he was enrolled in classes, and made his first film "Trick or Treat" , a disturbing portrait of one child’s hallucinogenic-induced homicidal rage on Halloween night.                

With a competitive streak ever-present in his character, as well as a high level of energy, Bill was involved in many sports including swim team, soccer and skate boarding. Skate boarding became his passion. As his skills grew, followed by his trophy collection, he decided to attract the attention of sponsors by renting a home camcorder and filming his incredible tricks, which no one was doing at the time. His brilliant idea worked, and under the sponsorship of such companies as Independent Trucks, Skate Rags Clothing Co., Stylized Sun Glasses and Walker Skateboards, Bill went on to win more skate competitions, bigger trophies and even more sponsors.

One fateful day in the summer of ‘91 at a skate competition in Pompano Beach, FL, Bill attempted an ollie over a 12’ box. His back foot slipped off, resulting in a painful wrenching of his knee, which had suffered previous injuries. Although he placed third in the competition, his career as a professional skate boarder was over, and that was the end of a very beautiful thing.

He then returned to his earlier passion of filmmaking. Apprenticing under the photographer Mike Voorhees in Newport Beach, CA he improved his framing techniques. He studied graphic arts at the Art Institute of So. California, film/audio techniques at the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale, FL, computer animation under Jimmy Hayward at the Academy of Art in San Francisco, and 16mm filmmaking at San Francisco State. He has an Associate’s Degree in Film and Audio Recording, and is working toward a B.A. in Computer Animation.

He began his career making videos: music, modeling, wedding, corporate and

Stoked by the floods of compliments, Bill began his own tradition. It was in the year 2002 that he made his breakthrough film "Aqua Burn" .At the Santa Cruz Film Festival showcasing films about Burning Man, only one month after the festival itself, "Aqua Burn" was premiered and garnered a standing ovation from the 300+ crowd. "Aqua Burn" later went on to take 1st place in the Coney Island Festival.

Bill continues his filmmaking, when he is not making killer films he can be found tearin’ up the slopes in Lake Tahoe with his friends and girlfriend. Although he retired from pro skating some time ago, you might spot him ripping over the newbies at the local skate park. The SCUBA Dive Master, with over 100 dives under his belt, is also fond of taking trips to Monterey, CA to catch a few shots of the "local Fishy's" with his underwater camera.

      
          Burning Man 1999                         Burning Man 2000                       Burning Man 2001

Bill Breithaupt and Larry Harvey (Founder of Burning Man)        AquaBurn: "Dare to Take a Trip"                                  at the premiere party for the London Burning Man Film Festival,                              A Bill Breithaupt Film                                  which Aqua Burn headlined. 2004                                                                                                       Bill Breithaupt : Burning Man  2001                                Bill Breithaupt : Ocala SkatePark, Florida 1988                                                                                 Bill Breithaupt : Professional Skateboarder, 1987  SkaterDaze.com            Bill Breithaupt : Coney Island Film Festival, NY- 2005  AstroBlaze                                                                                                   Bill Breithaupt : Brawley,CA 1997                        Bill Breithaupt.com          Bill Breithaupt :  Dive Master  Depth 40 feet  Monterey Bay,CA 2003                                        Bill Breithaupt : Grand Canyon, 1991                                        Bill Breithaupt : Grand Canyon, 1991                             Bill Breithaupt : Kirkwood, CA 1998                                        Bill Breithaupt : Kirkwood, CA 1998                              Bill Breithaupt : Hunters Point, SF 1986                                 Bill Breithaupt :  Dive Master  Depth 50 feet  Monterey Bay,CA 2003                                  Bill Breithaupt : SteadyCam Training, 1991                                Bill Breithaupt : SteadyCam Training, 1991                        Adam Covey , Kirkwood, CA 1998                                             Adam Covey , Kirkwood, CA 1998                                   Bill Breithaupt : I-5 Ditch midnight session,CA 1987                   Bill Breithaupt : Walker ad in Thrasher SkateBoard Mag, 1987

Bill Breithaupt :  Mount Burdel, CA 1995                  Bill Breithaupt : Mount Tam, CA 1994                            Bill Breithaupt : Lake Tahoe, CA 2002                                     Bill Breithaupt : I-5 Ditch midnight session,CA 1987                                   Bill Breithaupt : Newport Beach, CA 1987                             Bill Breithaupt : Mexico, CA 1987                                 Bill Breithaupt : Ocala SkatePark, Florida 1990                      Bill Breithaupt : Ocala SkatePark, Florida 1990                                                                                                                                                                                Bill Breithaupt : nosewheelie, Newport Beach 1987                                                               Photo by Mike Voorhees