Trenton Sullivan

In 2017, while serving as the Creative Director for Built Apparel, a leading e-commerce fitness brand in the bodybuilding industry, I sought to create something that went beyond showcasing physiques. Representing four Olympian athletes from the renowned Team Zero Gravity in Southern California, I wanted to capture the untold stories behind their physical feats.

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The strategy behind Sonder was rooted in the concept of empathy—highlighting the mental, emotional, and spiritual challenges that these elite athletes faced in parallel with their physical pursuits. By documenting their six-month journey to the prestigious Olympia competition, the goal was to humanize their experiences and shed light on the grit and resilience that bodybuilding demands. This project combined intimate storytelling with cinematic visuals, aiming to inspire viewers and reframe how the world perceives bodybuilding.

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Synopsis

Jeremy Potvin, Jamie LeRoyce, Thomas Bakke, and Johnny Bernstein—four Olympian athletes, each with unique backgrounds and personal struggles—used bodybuilding as their outlet and their path to greatness. From heartbreak and abuse to post-traumatic stress, these men have faced challenges far beyond the physical realm.

While bodybuilding may appear to be a purely physical endeavor, Sonder reveals it to be much more. It’s a metaphor for life: a relentless pursuit of self-improvement through pain, discipline, and resilience. Pain, to a bodybuilder, is not a barrier but a trusted companion—a catalyst for growth. This documentary explores how these Olympians transform life’s challenges into the strength that defines them, offering an unprecedented glimpse into the mental and emotional fortitude it takes to be among the best in the world.

SONDER celebrates the profound beauty of human endurance, showing that greatness is built not only in the gym but also in the trials and triumphs of life itself.

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