Uploaded messages on instagram accounts of both Nick Jensen and Sylvian Tognelli have revealed that both team riders have left Blueprint Skateboards today following Paul Shier’s departure yesterday. What a week for BP.
All three skaters that have left were guests on Fos’s LA radio show last week. Listen to it here.
With 10 days to go before Pretty Sweet drops onto premiere screens across the planet, Kansas born, Girl Skateboards pro, Sean Malto spills some beans on his trips to the UK, what’s coming from Pretty Sweet and a little bit more.
How different has this year been, knowing you started 2012 wearing a pair of Nike‘s?
Man, it’s so crazy. I’m just starting a different chapter in my skate life. I’m just grateful for the opportunity that I have to skate for some of the best companies in the world. With that though, it creates much more traveling for me.
This was your second trip to London in 2 months, what’s your take on the terrain we have here to skate?
It’s tough, but I love the way footage looks in London. I’m a big fan of all of the Blueprint videos.
Have you found how rough our streets are a hindrance or a challenge?
It’s definitely a challenge. Getting stuff in London does not come easy! It’s a lot of walking and skating just to get to the spot. Then you have to deal with the weathered ground. I have a lot of fun in London though so I try and go there when I can.
Have you managed to film any footage for Pretty Sweet in London’s streets?
I got a few things in London that are in my part. Feds (Girl Filmer) and myself came out and skated around for 10 days and filmed kinda everything from skating spots to taking the tube. I’m not sure how they ended up editing my part but I’m sure some of that footage is in there.
Any particular UK spots that you enjoyed most?
The bench that turns into a flatbar is amazing. I’ve never skated anything like that in my life.
What about the culture, the people and the food. Some Americans hate our food…
I’m the least pickiest eater. I like all types of food, so that doesn’t bother me at all. The people are always nice and I definitely enjoy a good pub every once in a while!
Growing up in Kansas, did you have any knowledge about the UK skate scene at all?
I didn’t know a lot about it, other than the Blueprint videos. When I started hanging out with people that have visited the UK, everyone always mentioned that Nick Jensen was killing it.
Which UK skaters do you rate the most?
There’s so many talented people. Neil Smith, Nick Jensen, Danny Brady, Jerome Campbell, Paul Shier…..they’re all so awesome to watch skate.
Is your Pretty Sweet part finished yet?
Last day of filming was October 15th, so I’m all done!
Where was the majority of your footage for this production filmed?
Kinda a little bit of everywhere. Over the past few years I’ve spent time all over Europe, China, and the US, so it’s just a collection of everything I’ve filmed.
Which trick was the biggest pain in the ass to get down and where?
I filmed one of my last tricks a week before the deadline of the video. It was one of the scariest tricks I’ve every put myself through. It sucked so bad. When I landed it, I was more happy that I didn’t have to try it again than I was about landing it!
Did you have to go back to any spots to re-shoot tricks you didn’t particularly like?
There were a few things I had to go back to. Towards the end, it was more about trying to do tricks I’d been putting off until the deadline.
Did you manage to get any NBD’s down in this section?
Haha! I’m not sure. I’m not the best at skate history. I’m sure there’s a couple tricks that seem to be NBD’s, but someone probably did it at EMB 20 years ago.
We always discuss the skateboarders, but the filmers are equally important to mention when it comes to film productions. Out of Ty Evans, Federico, Ryan Lovell, Sam Newman and Roger Bagley, which one person gets the very best out of the team for their parts on the day, which filmers do you like working with mostly, and who filmed the majority of your part?
I love all those guys. Ty Evans, Ryan Lovell, and Feds filmed the majority. To be able to work with all those guys has been an amazing experience. I did work with Ty Evans a lot for Pretty Sweet. He’s so motivated, and knows what it takes to get a video done. I’ve never been on more productive trips than Ty Evans’ trips.
Sean hits up a bs nose blunt at the Ladbroke Grove rail, poached by Matt Anderson’s phone cam.
Do you know what other names came up first before they chose the title Pretty Sweet?
There was one other name that I really liked, inspired by Keenan Milton. I don’t know if I should say it, because I think it could be used for another video somewhere down the road!
Brandon Biebel mentioned in a recent interview that Guy Mariano’s part is going to blow minds. Have you been on any filming missions with him for this production?
I’ve seen a few things on trips, but Guy is a very talented and motivated person. His part is going to exceed any expectations. To me, his part is going to be one of the best parts ever in skateboarding.
Who is everyone hyped on for this video from the Chocolate camp?
Obviously MJ is the man. All the new guys on the team killed it as well though! Stevie Perez, Elijah, Raven, and Vincent took this video to a whole new level!
Any words on Gino, Koston and Howard?
Watching Gino is, and always will be amazing. No one makes it look better than him. Rick Howard is a big reason why Girl is so awesome, and why this video is even happening. I have so much respect for Rick and always have such a great time hanging out with him. Koston’s the best skater in the world! But you guys already knew that right?
For all the new skaters out there who may not have seen classic Girl Skateboards videos, Mouse or Goldfish. If you had to choose a section from each film, which ones would you choose
Koston in Mouse and Jeron’s section in Goldfish.
Tell us something about Pretty Sweet that we don’t know?
Trunk Boyz are always fun and funny to hang out with. If anyone from London wants a dose of the Trunk Boyz, I would suggest going to the premiere in the UK! They’ll be there, and in full force!
Last words….
Don’t piss into the wind.
Pretty Sweet premiere’s in the UK at the Richmix Cinema, London on Monday November 19th. Girl and Chocolate team riders Raven Tershy, Elijah Berle, Rick Howard, Cory Kennedy, Vincent Alvarez and Stevie Perez will be in attendance on the night. Pre-order the deluxe DVD boxset from your local skate shop this week.
Watch Sean’s latest footage for Kansas City skate shop Escapist, whose latest video ‘Red and Yellow’ just dropped this weekend. This part also features footage of Tyshaun Johnson.
Watch this clip of how Sean was sponsored by Girl too.
Blueprint’s Sylvian Tognelli is back with another video blog from his travels rocking it with Method Man, Mickael Mackrodt,Marty Murawski, Paul Shier, Tura, Fredd, Jürgen Horrwarth, Ben Raybourn, Wieger Van Wageningen, Luis Tolentino, Chris Jones, Sebo Walker and many more.
HIT THE FAN from sylvain tognelli on Vimeo.
It’s always a pleasure to see new footage of Blueprint’s Tom Knox. Destructo bring the goods in this new advert. Fine trucks.
This weekend’s Downtown Showdown held in Amsterdam went offin fine style. If you didn’t manage to tune into the live stream of the event from Vans then catch up with the highlights from all 4 teams.
Flip team rider Overall “Best Pro” Luan Oliveira skated with remarkable consistency and smooth style, landing tricks and winning 1st place on the Palace Obstacle and the Blueprint Obstacle. Best Overall Am was Element team rider Ross McGouran, who also took 3rd place on the Flip obstacle, skating hard all day. He made every transfer the windmill-inspired Antiz obstacle had to offer.
Flip:
Inside the massive Gasholder building at the Flip Obstacle the atmosphere intensified with heavy hitting last tricks and a solid performance by first place finisher Dominik Dietrich, who set the bar with a wallie up and Nollie heelflip down the ledge.
Vans Downtown Showdown 2012 – Amsterdam – Flip Obstacle Highlights. from Vans Europe on Vimeo.
Blueprint:
At Blueprint, Luan Oliveira landed a variety of flip tricks over the pyramid and on the ledge. Billy Marks double flipped the gap to flat and walked away with 1,000 Euros for 2nd place. Technical and creative skater Dallas Rockvam took third place by using the entire design, which was inspired by the barges and canals of Amsterdam.
Vans Downtown Showdown 2012 – Amsterdam Blueprint Obstacle Highlights. from Vans Europe on Vimeo.
Antiz:
The Antiz Obstacle rose above the venue floor like a classical Dutch Windmill on Acid. Rob Smith took first place by skating every angle, while Ben Nordberg’s backside nose blunt on the extension ricocheted into applause that reverberated off the walls.
Vans Downtown Showdown 2012 – Amsterdam ANTIZ Obstacle Highlights. from Vans Europe on Vimeo.
Palace:
Vans Downtown Showdown 2012 – Amsterdam – Palace Obstacle Highlights. from Vans Europe on Vimeo.
Blueprint Skateboards are about to roll out a new series into your local skater owned shop this week. Artist Mark Ward came up with the new Big Smoke deck series and wheels for pro riders Shier, Smith, Murawski, Jensen and Brady.
The wheels are new and improved Blurethane shape and urethane. Order one from your local store.
A film by Henry Edwards-Wood
What is there to be said that hasn’t been said already about this milestone of British – or more importantly London skate heritage? City of Rats is the first full length video from Slam City Skates in 25 years of business and the man hired to carry the camera bag and shoot the team of heavy hitters was none other than Henry Edwards-Wood a.k.a. Hold Tight Henry.
The featured skaters picked from the Big Smoke list include Nick Jensen, Snowy, Lucien Clarke, Steph Morgan, Joey Pressey, Jin Shimizu, Casper Brooker, Rory Milanes, Karim Bakhtoui, Olly Todd, Neil Smith, John Tanner, Darius Trabalza, Rob Mathieson, Scott Howes and Danny Brady. If that wasn’t enough, there are all the affiliates and shop staff to include in the mix. There is something good to say about everyone I just mentioned, but it would take the equivalent of the running time (60 minutes) to cover everything, so I’ll stick to the few things that have stuck out in my mind following the numerous viewings I made.
First and foremost: the spots. London is one of the world’s biggest metro poles and it looks like Henry and the boys have searched far and wide to unearth new terrain and unique features of the city. Next is the quality of the filming and editing. Henry has really set the standard pretty high for himself and future productions that look to portray street skating in the city. Blending HD tricks with elements of every day life in such a bustling place really helps solidify the origins and roots of the Slam City squad. The generation game might serve as a clever phrase to describe the next thing I enjoyed about City of Rats. Whether it’s the older generation like Chris Pullman or the young upstarts like Darius Trabala on screen, everyone gets their shine. The wide variety of age and experience also provides the viewer with a wide spectrum of spot selection and styles. A clear example of maturity is the shared Lucien Clarke and Steph Morgan section where these best friends forever paint a picture of their city like a couple of mature artists, or you can also pick up on the good times shared that come from Neil Smith and Jerome Campbell’s joint shop section (Lost Art/Slam) who have both brought some amazing skateboarding to the table as a result of friendship from having shop sponsors there to bring people together.
Finally, the music: Paramount to a film’s effect as it sets the pace and mood for every scene, Henry has weighed the scales correctly to merge old skool London rap music with relaxed folk beats. As a whole, the soundtrack helps pace the video – calming at times whilst hyped at others. An example is Henry choosing not to use stereotypical grime artists as the chorus to Karim’s street assault.
As a skateshop video, City of Rats goes above and beyond anything else in this category. As a standard skate video, City of Rats sits firmly among the best of them too. It took 25 years for Slam to finally commission a testimony of their dedication and support of London skateboarders and the team has done the shop and their city an honour. Commit No Nuisance.
Enjoy an exclusive treat from Henry today and witness Neil Smith and Jerome Campbell’s joint section yourself, aired for the very first time on the web below. Grab your copy of this fine DVD from Slam City today to keep some heritage and raise a glass to another 25 years of service.
Ralph Lloyd-Davis
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More fresh footage from John Rattray has dropped onto the Predatory Bird within the last week covering many aspects of skateboarding that goes down in his life. Sit back and enjoy more goodness from Scotland’s finest.
Blueprint’s Sylvain Tognelli is back with one of another of his fun video blogs from recent skateboard travels, this time from London with Blueprint team mates.
Polar Skateboards have appointed Jerome Campbell as their UK ambassador today. This statement from Blueprint was posted on the BP facebook page early this morning:
“We would like to take this opportunity to give a big shout out to the good mate Jerome Campbell for being part of all the good times with Blueprint over the last 7 years. We wish him all the best with his next journey and look forward to seeing some banging shit soon. You will be missed mate. Lycha till!!”
In related news, the Polar and Palace Skateboard teams will join forces for a 10 day tour from Malmo next week.
“I been quite busy with the PXP thing, it starts on monday….All these gansta´s are confirmed and on their way over to Malmö. At the moment we will all stay at my place. Ha ha ha, endless night sessions my neighborhood will be stoked. – Pontus Alv.
