James Jannard

The future's so bright, he's trading his Oakley shades for HD cameras. Sunglasses magnate finalized sale of Oakley to Italian design firm Luxottica late last year; personally netted $1.2 billion. Fulfilling lifelong passion for filmmaking, photography; founded Red Digital Cinema in 2005. Firm is the first to offer "affordable" high-definition digital cinema cameras to the masses; Red One camera sells for $17,500. Elite Hollywood directors—including Peter Jackson (Lord of the Rings), Steven Soderbergh (Ocean's Eleven)—using Red Digital equipment on set. Spent 32 years developing cutting-edge optics technology; some Oakley glasses can withstand a shotgun blast. Employees dubbed him "mad scientist" 1980s. Views Oakley like a daughter graduating: "I'm still loving and loyal to her, but IMm no longer responsible."