Zina Nicole Lahr was an extremely talented young artist, puppeteer, designer and special effects artist who died last week in a tragic accident after sustaining a fall while hiking in Colorado. I actually wasn’t familiar with her work until her passing was announced by the Stan Winston School on Facebook last week, but I wanted to share this wonderful tribute to her on Vimeo because I found it and her story very inspiring.
This is a description of the video from Zina’s friend Stormy Pyeatte, who produced it:
In August 2013 my friend Zina asked if I could shoot a video for her portfolio. She needed something that would showcase her work but also tell a little bit about her personality and her interests. We had two days to shoot and edit so we shot an interview and smashed something together to meet our deadline…After the funeral I revisited the footage and made this short as an attempt to capture her personality and creativity. I never planned to release it online but now I have a chance to share her and her creations with all of you!
Zina had initially been reported as missing in Colorado before it was discovered that she had died in an accident. A brief report about this on ColoradoRadio.com has some wonderful remembrances of her in its comments section.
Zina seems like the kind of person who had a zest for life and embraced it fully, making the most of her 23 years here on Earth. It’s so sad to loose such a bright light at such a young age. I would have loved to see more of Zina’s work and her story reminds me how lucky each and every one of us is to be here on this Earth today. Every day truly is a gift. We should make the most of each and every day we’re given.
Rest in peace Zina.
