Bloss Angeles: The Legacy of Brian Bloss

Date of Birth: May 3, 1987

Date of Death: July 16, 2019

An icon, a close friend, and generous mentor. On July 16th, 2019, we truly lost one of the greatest aerial and timelapse pioneers in our industry. Combining his love for aerial cinematography and timelapse/hyperlapse photography, Brian was the creator of the Aerial Hyperlapse. This of course, is a timelapse or hyperlapse recorded from a drone. Having had the opportunity to work on incredible productions such as Drug Wars, A Life Below Zero, The Amazing Race, and many more, his legacy proved that you can build a successful career pursuing your dreams.

Brian inspired all of us to be better versions of ourselves and focus on what mattered most, the pursuit of happiness. Impacting many, Brian’s path empowered the next generation of rising aerial and timelapse creators to believe in themselves. His positive energy, creative passion, and willingness to share will be deeply missed. We lost a great friend and mentor. Brians’ energy filled a room and made you smile.

A close friend, inspiring adventurer, and wise mentor for the drone & timelapse techniques I learned from Brian over the years. Our global community of filmmakers suffered a huge loss and it’s remarkable to see how much of an impact he left on everyone. He was a legend, a brother, a mentor to many, a kind soul, a professional, and a great friend. Many knew Brian Bloss as an avid explorer, filmmaking expert, and energetic beyond comparison. I am so thankful for the time I had with him while he was still with us. All-encompassing, we bonded over the love of shooting and he was someone I looked up to. 32 is far too young, almost a year later and it’s still heartbreaking.

We met shooting at the top of Glacier Point in Yosemite back in 2015 during sunset. He was the maverick with 3 cameras shooting timelapses of Half Dome all from different angles; 2 of them were motion control sliders on tripod mounts. He set up his tourist cones and signs reading “timelapse in progress - do not touch” and in a snarky tone would tell the tourists to get out of his 3 compositions if they crossed his frame. That was my first time seeing anyone with the passion/skill to operate 3 cameras simultaneously and audacity to do what it took to get the perfect shot. His energy was infectious and he has influenced so much of my work since meeting him.

We kept in touch through Instagram over the years. Back in 2017 I spent 4 months in LA for work and we would shoot almost weekly. For the past 2 years I’ve been in Los Angeles about once a month and we’d be off on another aerial cinematography mission somewhere epic. Brian took frequent calls, gave advice, we’d show the awesome content from our worldly travels through text and DMs, and support each other on Instagram almost daily. I crashed on his couch several times as well, awe-struck by his Mad Scientist apartment in Culver City showcasing Baker's racks of filmmaking equipment, wires all over the place, a supercomputer, crates with petabytes of hard drives, prints hanging on the walls. It was his laboratory, very fitting for an aerial/timelapse production genius.

Before relocating to Los Angeles and splitting my time between here and Colorado, I was in LA more than my house over that 2 year period. Every time I was in town Brian made me feel at home, we’d go shoot some epic view of the skyline and get a fantastic dinner. One of the few people that actively pushed me to think twice about who/what I wanted to be when I grew up– as if we ever grow up. He would tell me, "Let's turn this into a career, you were put on this planet to make art!" He pushed almost everyone he knew to be better versions of themselves. It is impactful when people go out of their way to show kindness like that. We shared a lot of great memories together since meeting in Yosemite in the summer of 2015. I personally can’t thank him enough for showing me the ropes and teaching me everything he could about aerial and timelapse productions.

Words can’t really describe the lasting impression Brian made on my life, art, goals, and professional dreams. Looking back almost a year later and his impact has since pushed me to create Framework Films and pursue this filmmaking dream with full dedication and commitment to honor the legacy he left us with.

Brian Bloss was always flying, now he has his wings. Your memory lives on in the ones you impacted and taught. With a heavy heart, rest easy Brian Bloss.

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