Friday, June 24, 2022

Seasonal Sightings:

Austin Butler: All Shook Up


Well, my hands are shaky and my knees are weak 
I can't seem to stand on my own two feet 
Who do you think of when you have such luck? 
I'm in love I'm all shook up


With the release of the Baz Luhrmann directed Elvis movie this week, I thought it was time to turn the spotlight on it's star, actor Austin Butler.  Austin's actually appeared on FH a few times before, mostly in birthday posts.  I first noticed the talented young actor not from his acting projects, but from the many shirtless pin-ups from celebrity and teen magazines.


Although he loved movies, the California born Butler didn't initially plan to be an actor.  When he was just 13 however, he was spotted walking around the Orange County Fair by a representative from a background-acting management company.  The representative approached Butler about work, and helped get him started in the entertainment industry.
 

Most of those shirtless pin-ups were published early in Butler's career.  For the first few years of Butler's career, he was a regular on many Nickelodeon shows including; iCarly, Zoie 101 and Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide.  He also had regular roles on Disney's Ruby & the Rockits and Hannah Montana


Soon, Butler was getting roles on more mainstream shows including CSI: Miami, Life Unexpected, Switched at Birth and The Carrie Diaries.  Although Butler is known to many, he's also a bit of an unknown to movie going going audiences which appealed to director Baz Luhrmann.  Some of the more well known actors who also auditioned for Elvis include: Ansel Elgort, Miles Teller, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Harry Styles auditioned and tested for the role of Elvis Presley. 


For his audition tape, Butler originally recorded himself singing Love Me Tender.  When he watched it back however, he felt his performance was more of an Elvis impersonation than an Elvis performance. Butler ultimately decided not to submit the tape.   


A few days later, after having a nightmare about his deceased mother, he decided to pour his emotion and grief into another song.  Butler sat at the piano in just his bathrobe and filmed himself singing Unchained Melody. The performance was so full of emotion and pain, Luhrmann wasn't sure if it was an audition, or a breakdown.  Either way, he wanted to meet Butler about an audition.


Having Butler in place as Elvis didn't mean that casting was then smooth sailing.  It was during the production of the film that Tom Hanks and wife Rita Wilson tested positive for Covid.  This halted the film's production in Australia and the film was temporarily shut down.. Maggie Gyllenhaal and Rufus Sewell were also  originally cast as Presley's parents before the production was shut down. Six months later, they were forced to drop out when productions resumed due to scheduling conflicts.


There's doesn't appear to be any nude scenes in the film, but fingers crossed there's a scene of Elvis' military physical....  Although the movie, and Tom Hanks, have gotten mixed reviews, Butler is getting a lot of attention of his turn as Elvis.  If you haven't seen the trailer yet, you can check it out on Youtube HERE:


' The movie ends up feeling sort of like this love letter to my mom, and to Elvis and his mom, you know?  Because that’s the biggest void I’ve felt in my life, losing her. "And she was my best friend. I’ve never experienced that type of unconditional love, and I probably never will, of a mother – a sense, is what I mean. And I know that’s how Elvis felt.'

The Oregon Coast: Francisco by Studio1x


'It was late August but in Oregon the ocean never really warms up.  Let's say it was a shock for Francisco to get in and actually get used to the water'

I'm sure many FH readers recognize the ultra hot and sizzling form of Francisco.  I first featured the Oregon based model, and his work with Jim, (Studio1x) this past May. Jim and Francisco shot together over a two day period last fall.  The results of their first day of shooting, I previously featured HERE:


I loved Francisco's look and the results of he and Jim's creative collaboration,  Jim beautifully captured both Francisco's form and handsome face in both studio and on location on an Oregon beach.  In addition to the work, Jim also shared stories from their time together, one of my favorites, I just have to once again share. 


'I think the funniest part of the shoot was how hairy he was from the waist down. We decided he needed to shave his ass some and he asked me if I could do that for him. It was the first time he had been naked in front of a guy outside of the locker-room and here he is asking me to trim his ass. :) We only had my electric shaver so I did the best I could trimming him up.'


Jim planned the beach shoot for early in the morning, hoping to get the nudes shot prior to the beach filling up with people.  When they arrived, there were a few people (as you can see above)  on early morning walks, and setting up their chairs for the day, but the stretch of the beach they were on was long, so if they were careful, there were still enough deserted areas to get what they needed.


They began shooting a few nudes on the beach.  Francisco quickly covered up whenever anyone would walk by.  Jim helped by holding a towel up for him to change behind when the need arose. Once they the beach really began to crowd up, they moved to a grassy hill overlooking the beach.  Jim also wasn't too worried about getting nudes as they had captured many during their shoot the day before.


Originally, Francisco's roommate Zack, as well as Zack's girlfriend, were originally going to also be a part of the beach shoot.  Unfortunately, one of them ended up getting sick, so it was just Francisco and Jim on the two hour drive to the beach.  This turned out to have an upside and photographer and model had a good amount of time alone in the car to talk, get to know each other, and go over what each hoped to get out of the day.  


Some may remember that this was Francisco's first shoot, and first time posing nude.  Despite being new to modeling, he really wanted to have the full experience. Francisco was eager to push his boundaries and shoot in as many different locations, and capture as many different looks as was possible.


FH readers know that I love a good reveal, and I especially loved this series of Francisco's sand strip.  I also love his little 'turn to the right' once completely nude and erect.  Francisco kept his phone handy, to check out images and videos to insure he was able to ensure it was always a hard turn to the right.


If you enjoyed Francisco's strip in the sand, check out his second strip, this time in the grass overlooking the beach.  Check it out on the NEXT PAGE HERE: