Shannon Shaw

I am from a small town (less than 1,000 population) just south of Waco, TX. Film-making is the first and ONLY passion I have ever had, and I only realized that around 2007 after I hurt my back and was unable to continue working 9-5 jobs (especially 40 to 120 hours a week or occupations I couldn't physically manage yet still did my best so I could pay the bills).
Since 2007, I have read books, listened to interviews and speeches, and watched behind-the-scenes making-of documentaries on film-making. Most importantly, I CREATED. I actually filmed you tube shorts and features whenever I had the resources (cast & production costs) so I could LEARN BY DOING. (Almost all of which I will not show publicly due to them being learning experiences.)
Film school is too expensive for me and from what I have gathered through other film-makers, film school is best for creating contacts and getting on-set experience. Otherwise, most of my "director" friends are now on "real" sets... fetching coffee for the director or running errands, with little time to actually observe and learn the "real" film-making process.
I love the screen-writing process - but I do acknowledge my limits and strive to overcome those limitations (which I hope to with time and experience). I also love making musical score compositions (again, I will improve drastically with time.)
My goals? With the advent of digital technology, half the planet seems to want to make movies. It is difficult to get noticed in such a saturated market. However, once you are noticed, one must have the talent and skills to stay in the game and move forward. I am not delusional to think I can become rich or even make a living from my passion of film-making simply due to the sheer number of "film-makers" out there. I DO want to show the world what I have learned over the years and prove to myself and others I AM a film-maker, even if it is hindered by lack of resources.
I hope to make some movies that are good enough to be accepted into film-festivals, or maybe find an audience to the point I can encourage crowd-funding to pay for the productions - and reimburse the cast & crew for their time.
I understand making a movie is a group effort. Sure, the director has the final say in order to make a unifying vision, but a director can't do it all - at least not as efficiently as a crew. So, if I ever were to make ANY profit on any films I made, i'd share those profits with the actual people that made my dream come true: the cast and crew! Without their work, and their input, I would only have a dream and a passion with no way of making it happen! (I know, not the "Hollywood" norm, but, that's simply who I am.)
I have a dozen stories i'd love to turn into films - Dramas, science fiction, and psychological thrillers. Yes, all "serious" content but with as much appropriate character humor and entertainment value as possible. If I WERE to be able to make those dozen films, then i'd like to continue my passion with other genres (HORROR!) and even family friendly films - all with interesting, deep characters (relatable), themes (so they're ABOUT something), and an intriguing plot.