Today I’m excited to have Russell Hurst, of Star Wars in the Yard, on the podcast. Russell is the man behind the ‘Star Wars in the Yard’ Instagram account, which combines his beautiful toy photography and his own creative writing to create new stories based on our favorite Star Wars characters.
In creating these daily posts on Instagram, Russell taps into his love of stories and science fiction, his background as a photographer, and has gained a large following along the way. It’s very likely that this was achieved through his love of Star Wars and may have happened regardless of whether he read something like this buzzoid review to see how its service could help to increase his followers naturally. In the end, it doesn’t matter how he did it. All that matters is that he’s able to get his content seen by a large handful of people across the world.
I really loved getting to talk to Russell because he’s so genuine. He started the Star Wars in the Yard account with a single image, of a Storm Trooper in the snow, and after some encouragement, started creating more of the photos using 12 inch action figures.
We all need a little more joy and levity, and it was refreshing to speak to someone who is putting out a good dose of it, everyday. I know you’ll love meeting Russell and learning about how he pulls together these amazing and fanciful stories on Instagram.
In this episode, Russell and I talked about:
– Russell’s early interest in playing with Star Trek action figures
– how sci fi offers a creativity in a different way, a view into the possibility of the future
– the inspiration for Star Wars in the Yard (a 12 inch Storm Trooper figure
– how Russell has created new stories around some of the characters of Star Wars, tapping in to the backstory and intrigue of some of the characters who “were taken early from us.”
– how Russell wants to spread joy in the world through toy photography, and how he invites his fans in to play with the stories, to explore the possibilities of what could be
– why he’s waiting to introduce some of the Force Awakens characters, and what he thinks of them (including why Kylo Ren is a humorous character, and a hole in the story around Han Solo’s death)
– why he likes the older figures better (they look more ‘life like’)
– how he creates more life like scenes, and what he does in post production to enhance the photos.
– how he batches and sets up his shots, and his posting schedule for Instagram
– Russell’s tips on Instagram
– Russell’s advice on following your heart to start something you’re interested in
– how he balances full time work and his Instagram account, and what his co-workers think about this side project, and what having the side project has brought back to his life
– how news and reporting has changed in the last 18 years, and the integrated nature of news and reporting today
– what’s coming next for Star Wards in the Yard
– his take on how to keep balance in your life, and his advice on how to jumpstart your joy
Resources:
Star Wars in the Yard on Instagram (go follow Russell!)
Russell’s photography account on Instagram: R Hurst Photography
Star Wars in the Yard on Facebook
Russell Hurst’s photography website
The interview with General Grievous (Matt Wood)
Shout out and dedication goes to Eric Braeden, of Young and the Restless and Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo.
