Video: "The Devil's Toy"

A thing of beauty, thanks to my buddy Anthony for sharing it with me.  

"This short 1966 documentary dedicated "to all victims of intolerance” depicts the dawn of skateboarding in Montreal. A new activity frowned upon by police and adults, skateboarding gave youngsters a thrilling sensation of speed and freedom. This film - the first Canadian documentary ever made about the sport - captures the exuberance of boys and girls having the time of their lives in free-wheeling downhill locomotion."

Directed by Claude Jutra, music by Pierre F. Brault.

The Chargeboard

A student designer has built a skateboard that harnesses the kinetic energy from the motion of the wheels to store power and charge your device. It's called the Chargeboard, and its creator, Bjorn van den Hout, who designed the board as a school project for the Willem de Kooning Academy of art and design in the Netherlands explains, "The two dynamos in the in the rear axles generate 6V each, this electricity is then converted back to a 5V current and gets stored in to a powerbox. So when you'll plug your iPhone in the dock your phone gets charged and in the meanwhile you can listen to some of your favourite tracks."

That last part calls to the Chargeboard's third function, an iPhone boom box. Van den Hout has added an extra component to the underside of the board, between the two axles, a dock speaker. When you dock your iPhone you can play music through the speakers.

According to the specifications, one hour of skating will generate enough energy to charge your phone, and the built-in battery can store enough power to charge your phone eight times over.

Although it's a graduation project, van den Hout would like to take his Chargeboard further. "Chargeboard is now still a prototype in development," he wrote. "If there is a brand, product developer or anyone else interested in Chargeboard it can hopefully be further developed."

Of course no self-respecting skater would be caught dead riding a long board as they tend to be viewed as a tool that allows people who can't skate to sort of hop on the skateboarding culture but in theory this should be able to work on any type of deck with some modifications. 

Contribute to the Kickstarter campaign HERE and start getting that playlist ready!

Thanks to Matt for the tip.

Video: A look at ALL THIS MAYHEM (Tas & Ben Pappas Documentary)

VICE documentaries’ All This Mayhem is a searing account of what happens when raw talent and extreme personalities collide. An unflinching, never-before-seen account of drugs and the dark side of professional skateboarding that stars brothers Tas and Ben Pappas. Chronicling the intense bond and charisma that took the siblings from the pinnacle of their sport into a spiraling world of self-destruction; All This Mayhem at its core is a film about what happens when raw talent and extreme personalities collide.

Utilising endless handicam footage taken at the time, paired with interviews from Henry Sanchez, Lance Conklin, Dom Kekich, Bill Weiss and others, director Eddie Martin, who has ties to Exit The Through the Gift Shop and Senna, touches upon the brothers’ revolutionary style, feuds with Tony Hawk, their ferocious appetite for mood-altering substances and where it ultimately landed them.

If you haven't seen the film and have an interest in the subject matter, really try and do so. And given we live in the age of the internet you can stream the film online HERE for a reasonable price. But if you still need some convincing or perhaps just want to know a little more before jumping in, check out the 20 minute video below where those involved talk a bit more about the project.

Video: Supreme - "JOYRIDE"

After a bunch of internal issues apparently plaguing the project, Supreme‘s brand new skate promo finally arrives courtesy of William Strobeck. “JOYRIDE” lasts nine minutes and stars the younger members of the Supreme crew, including Sage Elsesser, Nakel Smith, Sean Pablo, Tyshawn Jones and Kevin Bradley. "Senior" riders are represented by the likes of Jason Dill,  MarkGonzales, Lucien Clarke,  Dylan Rieder,  Anthony Van Engelen, and Bryan Herman. Shot in NYC, LA and Paris. The video will mark the follow up to this year’s hugely successful and original “Cherry” movie which was Supreme’s long overdue return to skate films proper. 

Video: Epicly Latr'd - Elissa Steamer

I usually shy away from posting older material on the blog or at least save it for Throwback Thursdays but that’s the great thing about being your own boss, you can decide the rules, and today I figured I’d do just that and throw up one of my favorite episodes of Epicly Later’d, 2012’s Ellisa Steamer profile.

I’ve probably watched most of the Epicly Later’d’s multiple times over the years and Elisa’s episode is no different in that it’s a great watch. So why highlight after the fact? I guess this is my way of aiming the spotlight on an issue that’s probably more relevant today than it has been in years, feminism.

Something in the air has changed, maybe for the first time in a long time woman are starting to celebrate each other without the approval of men and I want to believe that most people think that’s great. Woman most certainly don't need my help championing their various achievements and contributions to society but what I can help shine a light on are the woman of counterculture, those who are a minority in a scene made up of minorities.

Hopefully readers get the sense that I do this anyways without the need to highlight it these last three plus years but as always there will be unsung heroes.

For every prime- time news report on the Kacy Catanzaro’s out there there are woman doing equal or greater things with no fanfare what so ever. No division 1 athletic advantages, no sponsorships, and most certainly no support from the mainstream media. Even the powerhouse feminist forums like Jezebel tend to focus on the most vanilla of vanilla in their pop culture reporting, offering a much needed woman’s point of view on topics that unfortunately are as tired as the stereotypes they fight to break. Do we really need another blurb on Beyonce? Speaking for myself I don’t and while some fight to get a female led superhero movie made I’d prefer to see interesting things come out of the movement rather than female driven versions of tiered “men’s staples.” 

So with that here is Vice’s Epicly Later’d profile on skater Elissa Stemaer, watch it, get inspired and go do something interesting and different from your norm.

Part 1 looks at the first female pro skater ever, speaking to her from her home about her Toy Machine years from Jamie Thomas, Mike Maldonado, Brian Anderson, and Chad Muska.

 

In Part 2, we hear more about what it was like for the best girl skater in the world to hang out in an all-dudes world.

 

In Part 3 we find our heroine fully confident in her role as a pro skateboarder. When she was not breaking boards, she was breaking hearts, as illustrated by the love ballad a young skater penned in her honor. Elissa also decides to leave Toy Machine and joins the controversial, but talented, Bootleg team.

 

In the last part of the Elissa Steamer Epicly Later'd series Elissa explains what "life after skate" is like and how surfing may actually be the key to her future.

Video: Riley Hawk's "Shep Dawgs Vol. 4" Part

I originally saw the Shep Dawgs video just under a month ago but am running behind on posts; regardless I figure a lot of people still haven't seen it so I decided to still share it here. Most non skateboarders are familiar with the name Tony Hawk but much like the name Pharrell is now synonymous with radio pop, once mom recognizes the faces and names that define a style that shit is D-E-A-D!

Clip-stacking king, Riley is Hawk’s son and produces so much footage you just have to pick the edit you want. This one showcases his big snaps, smooth style, and gnarly spot attacks. Check it below and watch individual clips from the film HERE.

Video: A Conversation with Supreme Creative Director Brendon Babenzien & “How Can I Be Down” Extended Trailer

By Such and Such shared a 13-minute conversation with Supreme creative director Brendon Babenzien who provides some insights into how he entered the industry and his take on style versus fashion. Of course Brendon has a pretty well-known history with Animal Farm/Pervert post Don Busweiler joining The Brethren cult so we are going take advantage of history by making this a double post highlighting both the interview mentioned and sharing a new extended preview for the captivating “How Can I be Down” documentary.

This eight minute preview includes chats with Erik Brunetti, Eric Haze, Rick Klotz, Alyasha Owerka-Moore, Shepard Fairey, Ian MacKay and many more. Obviously the parallels between the cult like fandom people have for their streetwear and an actual cult is not lost on me or the folks being interviewed which makes this documentary all the more interesting; but If you have no idea what in the world I’m talking about take some time to watch the clips below and you should be all caught up.

How Can I Be Down (Extended Trailer.) from Louis L on Vimeo.

Video: Epicly Later’d – “Ed Templeton Part 1”

Vice’s Epicly Later’d has been one of my favorite series from ever growing multimedia company and the latest episode is an inside look at skate (and art) royalty Ed Templeton. In this first part Ed speaks on his life growing up in Huntington Beach and the beginnings of his skateboarding career, specifically key influences and the people and places that left a strong impression.  We also get some guest appearances from the likes of Jason Dill, Dave Carnie, and Justin Regan among others and some rad 80’s and 90’s video footage of people who went on to be massive in the sport. 

Video: “The ATH Documentary”

I grew up skating in Athens, it was a HUGE part of my childhood so I was pretty excited to see a new beautifully shot 60-minute documentary about the Athens skate scene with a focus on how the current economic crisis has affected the people, sport, and city as a whole. Directed by Kostas Mandilas and staring Vagelis Markogiannakis, Mike Vasilakis, Giorgio Zavos, Chris Loupis, Dicky Bury, Thomas Kolousis and Giotis Gordios.

The ATH Documentary from kostas mandilas on Vimeo.

A Visual History of Stüssy's Advertising Campaigns (1986-1991)

Stüssy  is one of those companies that is synonymous with urban fashion, some would call it the godfather of street wear, it most certainly has withstood the test of time and even inspired the launch of other iconic brands like Supreme who’s James Jebbia famously worked with Shawn Stussy for years before forming what many consider to be the industry standard for this generation.

I recall first being introduced to the iconic brand in the mid 80’s when I started to skate, the tribal logo created by founder Shawn himself was instantly recognizable and appealing as where their ads  which applied a great punk rock aesthetic to them with their collage like construction.

I remember flipping through the pages of Thrasher Magazine each month excited to see the latest one, cutting them out and sticking them on my bedroom wall for inspiration. I’m much older now and those torn pages obviously no longer grace my bedroom walls but I am just as attracted to the graphic work as I was when I was a kid and have recently noticed a nod to the past in some of their newer marketing which most certainly put a smile on my face and inspired this piece.

Stüssy has never hired out ad agencies or creative consultants. All ad’s are created in-house with a creative director leading the vision. Here is a breakdown of some of the important folks involved with the campaigns over the years .

Ron Leighton (1983-1986)

Ron met Shawn in the early 80’s when he and his wife, Michele, produced an ad for Newport Surf and Sport that featured some pieces from Stüssy. Shawn liked what he saw and asked Ron to do his thing on some ads for the emerging clothing brand, the two worked together for a period of three years amassing a large collection of photographs hallmarked by the globally recognized grainy black and white aesthetic Stüssy is known for.

Shawn Stüssy (1987-1989)

Shawn himself took over after Ron left in 86 and continued to combine his noteworthy graphic talents with his distinctive taste in humor. Shawn had an eye for ambiguous imagery and when he came across something he liked, he would shoot it, re-purpose it and add his own mark on the photographs often with a hip-hop inspired phrase in his iconic handwriting.

David Dobson (1989-1990)

Outside of California David spent portions of his life in Calcutta, India, Kenya, Egypt, and Sri Lanka, where he was exposed to various cultures that went on to influence his work. As a fan of Stüssy, David cleverly reached out to the brand for a box of t-shirts to take along on a missionary trip just to see what he could come up with. What the brand got in return was a series of photographs that displayed  his unique ability to connect and communicate with the diverse cultures in a natural way that didn't look staged. Most impressive perhaps is that his work still looks just as fresh today as it did two decades ago.

So now that you have some background on the who’s who here without further delay are fifty-four  Stüssy ads from between 1986 and 1991 for you to enjoy and be inspired by. Some might be pretty familiar, but there are a couple of lesser-seen ones in the mix featuring some fun guest models you might recognize, enjoy.

Stüssy 86-91 - slideshow

Video: Red Bull Daily Grind - "A Day At The Office"

© Jesus Arellanes / Red Bull Content Pool

Been a while since I posted anything skate related on the ol’ blog but this Red Bull sponsored video is a whole lot of fun and features some great continuous shots of riders tearing it up in a Chicago office space located on the 23rd floor of a high-rise in the heart of downtown. Featuring Ryan Sheckler, Felipe Gustavo, Joey Brezinski, Corbin Harris, Alex Midler, Ryder Lawson, Gard Hvaara and Sewa Kroetkov.

Thanks to Nicola for sharing.

Video: “The Revenge of the Beasts”

You know those sports commercial’s that shoot everything so it’s in slow motion and all epic looking once edited? Well “The Revenge of the Beasts” is a five-minute skate film that is composed entirely of such breathtaking moments. Using hypnotic slow-motion footage, Sebastian Linda has created a film that he says tries to bring back the fantasy of skateboarding. Using high-end cameras and unconventional methods of shooting, like eliminating tripods and dollies in favor of a skateboard, a car and natural body movement, the results are top notch and complemented perfectly by Woodkid’s score.

BONUS:
In the making of video below Sebastian shares the though process and vision behind the film as well as some anecdotes about the colored powder and long brutal days of trying to get a trick captured on film under perfect lighting conditions.

Video: “The Cuban Skateboard Crisis”

What we got here is an older yet still fantastic documentary on Cuba’s struggling and often challenging skateboard scene.

While most skaters don’t have to deal with these kinds of absurd set backs, Cubans must pursue their passion under strict embargos that make even obtaining a board a challenge.  In the 16-minute film you hear downright heartbreaking stories of skaters sometimes waiting up to five months to get a new deck, often resulting in makeshift repairs of damaged gear to make due. While competitions in Cuba don’t offer the dream of a pro-sponsorship or world wide travel (something that is pretty much unobtainable in their situation) the promises of a new deck alone is motivation enough, and pretty much their only legitimate source of obtaining one. Yet despite the major handicap the local scene has produced some talent and Cuba’s skaters remain optimistic and a happy people making the best of what they have been given, inspiring stuff to say the least. Check out the by Phil Brown directed piece below and If you would like to help the Cuban skaters, there’s a shop in Germany who has set up a fund called Subvertcubaproject.org.

Video: “The Cuban Skateboard Crisis”

Go Buy These: Henry Leutwyler Ballet Skateboards

“In ballet and skateboarding, fearlessness rules. No half-measures or marking the trick. Just passion, grit and blood.”

Photographer Henry Leutwyler released two fantastic limited edition skate decks featuring some of his trademark ballet photography. The two images are quite powerful when displayed side-by-side and beg to be hung as art. Purchase them while you can HERE.

Video: Costacos Brother's "Poster Boys" Documentary

“Seattle, 1984 – It all began with Prince. Naturally. One morning in his grandparents' house that sat atop his home city, John Costacos – just 23 years old – awoke to hearing “Purple Rain” on the radio.

A University of Washington graduate whose football team had the best defense in the country at the time, Costacos came up with the idea of making a "Purple Reign" T-shirt to honor the team, featuring a lineman in a purple jersey falling from a cloud in the sky.”

The rest, as they say, is history…

You may recall We covered a retrospective of the Costacos Bros work, "For the Kids" back in 2011 that took place at Salon 94 NYC, it was easily one of my favorite shows of the year and instantly transported me back to my youth and the posters that covered my bed room wall. Amy K. Nelson of SB Nation apparently shared the love because she put together a great documentary about the brothers featuring some killer footage of the original shoots, discussions with friends, family, former employees and of course many of the giants that where the models for these captivating posters.

The sixteen-minute film features the likes of Jim Mcmahon, Shawn Kemp, Jon Bois, Sir Charles Barkley and the very personable brothers themselves to name but a few and is absolutely worth your time if you were a child of the 80’s and celebrated sports with the Super Bowl Shuffle, The Reign Man and all the other larger than life personalities you just couldn’t get enough of.

Video: Kilian Martin – “Internal Departure”

Freestyle street skater Kilian Martin and filmmaker Brett Novak have once again teamed up to create a short film by the name of “Internal Departure,” the latest in their series of collaborations showcasing both their talents. For the shoot Kilian and Brett were invited to work in Austria where they were given free rein to skate an entire art gallery filled with Kay Walkowiak’s work. As always there are lots of whimsical tricks by Martin set to some stunning and dramatic camera work by Novak.

Video: Kilian Martin – “Blank Canvas”

Kilian Martin brings an exclusive short skate film, Blank Canvas, to Ride Channel. Kilian blends freestyle and street skating into his own one-of-a-kind style.

Film & Edit: by Cameron Sanchez

Music by: J.S. Bach - Cello Suite No.1 in G Major. Prelude

Performed by: Andrew Simpson

Recorded by: Don Neumuller

Download: Powell Peralta - "The Search For Animal Chin"

Well here is a little treat, Powell Peralta has decided to give away their 1987 film The Search For Animal Chin as a fee download!  At the time the film was the benchmark for what skate films should be  acting as one of the first skateboarding films to have a "plot". 

The Bones Brigade travels around  California,  Nevada, and Hawaii to different skate spots in search of a wisened old man, Won Ton "Animal" Chin. The movie is of the old-school nomadic, skate-everything-in-your-path genre with interludes of stopping to rip-up a big ramp, pool or kicker. After much searching and skateboarding, they locate a large ramp in the desert. They also find a Chinese character on the inside of the ramp's spine. They conclude that in searching for Mr. Chin, they may have found his spirit.”

Staring Tony Hawk, Steve Caballero, Mike McGill, Lance Mountain and Tommy Guerrero. Download it HERE in exchange for your email address.

Video: "The Killing Season" A Motorbike/Skateboard Trip Through Vietnam

Skateboarder Magazine’s Senior Photographer Jonathan Mehring got together with the globetrotting filmer Patrik Wallner to plan and film a skateboarding trip to Vietnam. The ambitious trip was especially difficult on old school motorbikes, the only method of transport used while there. But as they say, the bigger the risk, the bigger the reward, which is probably why the likes of Jerry Hsu, Keegan Sauder, Joey Pepper, Javier Mendizibal and Michael "Michi" Mackrodt were game to accompany them on this journey down nearly the entire length of Vietnam despite some of their limited past experience's with doing so." The trip didn’t  produce a whole lot of skating but The lush surroundings that make up Vietnam are the real treat in this very well shot twenty plus minute film. 

Directed, Filmed & Edited by Patrik Wallner

Skateboarder Magazine - 'The Killing Season' from Patrik Wallner on Vimeo.

Video: Skater Kilian Martin Speaks About His Craft

Presented by THE AVANT/GARDE DIARIES and director Brett Novak, KilianMartin speaks about his craft in this short video.  Making waves in skateboarding unlike anyone else, we get a peek into the thought process of the Spaniard as Martin shares his story and history in the sport. Probably the most fascinating aspect is Kilian’s transition from gymnastics into skating, using the skills he developed on the matt and applying them to the concrete. It doesn’t end there though as footage shows us that he methodically plans out tricks, keeping a sketchbook on hand at all times so he can write out his ideas. Once again Novak’s elegant cinematography captures Kilian’s take on freestyle skateboarding with his artful and inspiring take on handstands, helipops, heel flips and more.