Back in 2008, a music video emerged onto the fledgling YouTube platform, primarily populated with amateur footage, and promptly stirred up quite a commotion. It garnered a devoted cult following and amassed a staggering 1 million views. Over a span of more than 15 years, this video has undergone a gradual transformation, evolving — albeit at a snail's pace — into a feature-length film.
Chris Dane Owens' upbeat love song "Shine on Me" was already a captivating slice of rock, heavily influenced by the vibrant sounds of the '80s. But it was the accompanying epic video — crafted with a hefty budget of $70,000, a considerable sum even in today's music video landscape — that truly stole the show. In its four-minute runtime, it managed to squeeze in virtually every clichéd trope and inspiration from the popular swords-and-sorcery fantasy genre. "The Princess Bride" stood out prominently, but there were also hints of "Xena," "The Lord of the Rings," "The Chronicles of Narnia," "Pirates of the Caribbean," "Dungeons and Dragons," and countless other sources of inspiration.
