The World Premiere of Seasons – A Film By The Collective
As some of you know, one of my passions is bikes and every Summer, I get to take The Beast out to some great trails, or bring out the Hardtail to work on my jumping skills. During the Telus World Ski and Snowboard Festival in Whistler, I had a chance to check out the latest work of The Collective; a creative group dedicated to freeride filmmaking and pushing the art to the limits.
Since their last film, “ROAM”, The Collective had been hard at work on their latest film “Seasons”, a film that follows seven riders through Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall. The film stars freerding legends, Thomas Vanderham, Matt Hunter, Cam McCaul, Andrew Shandro, Steve Smith, Steve Peat, and Darren Berrecloth.
The premiere of the film was absolutely packed to capacity leaving standing room only for many attendees. Seasons was definitely highly anticipated as it would also help kick off the coming riding season just like how Warren Miller kicks off each Ski and Snowboard season with his movies.
Attending the premiere with me was avid rider, Brice Wong, but we also managed to snag Ed Lau, Leo Chiang and Michael Kwan to the event. Seeing as they don’t ride at all, it will be interesting to see how the film holds up to the scrutiny of the general Dot Com Public.
Most of the crowd, expecting the film start immediately, went into a frenzy when Latch Key Kid gave a live performance of Coming Home Soon, which was part of the soundtrack of ROAM. This quickly made up the $15 ticket price that was charged for this event, though gouging $10 for a canned beer or tiny glass of wine wasn’t forgiveable. After the musical performance, the crew from the movie and a few of the stars of the film showed up to give thanks to the crowd that came out to support them and then we fade to black for the movie.
The film used many of the film tricks that were developed in ROAM like the zip line camera, which allows the viewer to really follow along and take in both the beauty of the scenery and the lines that the riders are carving. Along with generous 16mm shots, The Collective managed to weave together a lush tapestry of visuals, taking us through the seasons with some of freeriding’s greatest icons. With a driving sound track and impactful cinematic sequences, Seasons is definitely a must see for any freerider looking to bring excitement back into their riding.
Surprisingly, Ed, Leo, and Michael all enjoyed the movie and agreed that it was one beautiful movie that truly conveyed the speed and excitement of the sport. With that, as a rider myself, I have definitely been bit by the riding bug again after seeing this film and can’t wait to get back out there at the dirt jumps and on the trails.