Ep 102 - Caleb "Bad Flashes" Knueven on Film Photography, VFX, and Storytelling

Ep 102 - Caleb "Bad Flashes" Knueven on Film Photography, VFX, and Storytelling

April 22, 2026 · 1h 4m · Episode 102

About this episode

Caleb Knueven discusses his journey from skateboarding to filmmaking and his passion for visual effects and film photography.

On this episode of The Life of PHYS Podcast, I’m joined by Los Angeles based photographer and filmmaker Caleb Knueven, a visual storyteller whose journey into filmmaking started the same way many creative paths do, with a skateboard and a video camera. When Caleb was about twelve years old trying to learn how to skateboard, he quickly realized he might not keep up with some of his friends on a board. So instead of competing, he found another way to be part of the culture. He asked his parents for a video camera. The official reason was filming his little brother’s soccer games, but the real goal was making skate videos with his friends. Those early skate edits eventually sparked a deeper fascination with storytelling and filmmaking. As a teenager Caleb was already storyboarding and creating short films, experimenting with ways to build worlds through moving images. His first short film ran about thirty minutes long and, like most first films, he admits it wasn’t very good. But it was the start of something much bigger. That creative curiosity led him to the University of Kansas where he studied film and theatre, eventually discovering a passion for visual effects. That passion…

People in this episode

Host: The Life Of Phys

Guest: Caleb Knueven

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Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Stargate Studios

Places: Los Angeles, University of Kansas

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