Adam Bhala Lough, the filmmaker behind The Carter, Bomb the System and and the Street League Skateboarding documentary The Motivation has a new film dropping worldwide on June 23, 2015. It is Motivation 2: The Chris Cole Story.
Shot over the course of a year in San Diego, Los Angeles, Philadelphia and China, Motivation 2: The Chris Cole Story is the story of a man that earned his place as an innovator, motivator and legend in skateboarding that now creates inspiration and opportunity for a new generation. Cole’s progression from humble neighborhood beginnings to the world of elite street skateboarding is revealed through recently discovered archival footage, presenting a skater that went on to achieve the highest amount of skate contest wins, a list of defining video parts, being twice selected as Thrasher magazine’s Skater of the Year, back-to-back X-Games gold medals, and becoming the 2013 Street League Super Crown World Champion. . . Featuring interviews with some of the most respected figures in skateboarding, including Tony Hawk, Rob Dyrdek, Stevie Williams, Rodney Mullen, Bam Margera and Jamie Thomas, this is already one of the most anticipated sport documentaries of the year.
The film premieres June 20, 2015 at LA Live in Los Angeles and will be followed by a party at The Berrics. We all can download a copy from iTunes on June 23, 2015. Not a bad way to kick off the summer, right?
While caught up in the magic of a skateboard video premiere like Vans’ Propeller it is easy to forget that behind all those shots, and edits, and effects, there was someone making every single decision. Sometimes doing an edit different ways for weeks before finalizing it. In the case of Propeller that person was director Greg Hunt. His critically acclaimed body of work shows that he has gotten his head around the long form skateboarding video, but what’s interesting is hearing what he has to say about the process and how his ideas are reflected in the video. That’s why this interview by Concrete Skateboarding’s Editor Jeff Thorburn is so key.
Here’s a slice of what Hunt has to say:
It’s just a video I made at home, so it’s hard for me to imagine that it’s going to push skating in any direction,” Hunt says. “It’s a video. I don’t mean to downplay it, but it’s a video. It’s not going to change the world or anything. But I would like to think the way these guys skate, and the way it’s presented, it’s honest. It’s honest and real skateboarding. If anything, it’ll hopefully keep things going in that direction. I don’t think it will push skateboarding in any new direction, because I don’t think skateboarding needs that. I would like to think that maybe with everything that’s happening within skateboarding and outside of skateboarding right now, that this will just keep pushing that sort of true skating that’s at the heart of everything, in the direction that it’s always been going, and hopefully not let it derail into some sort of other strange competitive thing.”
See? Skate wisdom straight up. For the rest of this exceptional (and long) interview, please click the link.
Today we were reminded how much we love Transworld Skateboarding’s Skate Nerd. Everything about it is right. Not sure we knew any answers, but maybe you will. Watch it here. Now.
The International Assn. of Skateboard Companies (IASC) and the International Skateboarding Hall of Fame (ISHOF) are proud to announce this year’s Icon Award recipients for the 6th Annual Skateboarding Hall of Fame: Steve Van Doren, James O’Mahoney and Tracker Trucks. The Skateboarding Hall of Fame will be held during the IASC Summit on May 14 at the Westin South Coast Plaza Hotel in Costa Mesa, Calif. For the official word from the IASC, please follow the jump. [click to continue…]
All the heads were in LA last night (April 21, 2015) for the premiere of Greg Hunt’s new Vans skateboarding film Propeller at the Orpheum Theater.
Making a grand entrance in the famous Vans Sk8-Hi car, Godfather of Vans Steve Van Doren proudly took the mic as he introduced the film alongside the illustrious Vans Pro Skate team, a momentous gathering of over four generations of skateboarding on a single stage. Resounding applause filled the theater throughout the showing, fueling the evening with sincere emotion and pride held by loyal fans, industry friends and families, legends, pros and the devoted Vans team. The festivities topped off with a lively after party featuring performances by Ray Barbee and Tommy Guerrero, culinary taste by Pizzanista!, tons of Vans giveaways, and the stars of the film mingling amongst the crowds. Vans embraces this milestone 49 years in the making, and last night’s epic celebration was the first of many to come.
For all the photos and dates of the Propeller world tour, follow the jump. [click to continue…]
In its ninth year, the amateur skateboard series brings top pro riders, industry leaders and media to these communities to provide opportunities for the contestants to gain exposure across the industry. The local winner from each of the 34 stops will be flown to the finals to compete for overall 2015 Best Foot Forward championship.
The winner will join Ishod Wair, Tom Asta, Jack Olson, Chris Wimer, and Alec Majerus as a best foot forward champion. For the official word from Zumiez, please follow the jump. [click to continue…]
Canada’s alternative action print group The King Publishing Project has just rolled in a few new titles. Joining them at King Shit, King Snow, and Later are Canadian skate mag Concrete and the trade mag The Board Press.
“Every skateboarder here knows what Concrete has meant for the scene in this country; they’re the original Canadian skateboard mag. Even when King Shit was competing against it, we respected everything they did for skateboarding,” said King Publishing Project President Ryan Stutt. “By bringing Concrete and their team into the King fold, we’re going to be creating a whole new media network for Canadian skateboarding, which we hope the community here will rally behind.”
Concrete’s Jeff Thorburn and The Board Press’s Mike Prangnell will stay on with the titles. For the official word from King, please follow the jump. [click to continue…]
We’ve all still got a couple weeks to check out Jerry Hsu’s photography show A Love Like Mine is Hard to Findat LA’s Slow Culture Gallery.
A Love Like Mine is Hard to Find says a lot about the way Jerry Hsu approaches his photography. Without a doubt, this is a passion thing. His process, like the title indicates, is tied to dis-covery and patience and it borders on compulsion. It would appear that Hsu has honed the skills of seeing and identifying what is “photo-worthy,” because he has created his own vernacular and effectively mastered his vision. Hsu’s need to capture the absurd but beautiful, everyday world around him has certainly paid off. . . Like learning a language, a photographer’s work relies heavily on practice and immersion. Sensitivity to events that seem like non-events adjusts one’s perspective by shifting the focus to things often missed. Hsu honors those moments outside of the frame; he looks when one is “not supposed to look” and he photographs them. (Lucky for us, he likes to share.)
Eternal Board Shop owner Mike Dunn announced today (April 3, 2015) that after 21 years in business in Sparks, Nevada he’s shutting down, according to a story on KOLOtv.
It used to be pretty popular spot. One of the few locally owned places to get outfitted for winter. . . “The small snow and skateboard shop is maybe a things of the past, maybe a dying breed,” said Mike Dunn, Owner of Eternal Board Shop. “It’s just the lack of snow, mostly on the whole west coast is the biggest reason this year.”
Sad to see another great shop go. It will be greatly missed! Reno shreds can help out by going in and buying something while the shop is still open. For the rest of the story, click the link.
