Has anyone else noticed that full length wake videos have all started bleeding together? Lately it seems like if you've seen one, you've seen them all. Nothing stands out. The last thing I remember seeing that actually had me paying attention was the quarterpipe/wallride section of "Defy". Even then, it seems like the only reason I was paying attention was because I hadn't really seen something like that before. Is that what it takes now? Some crazy obstacles to grab everyone's attention?
It seems like short youtube/vimeo clips are what's progressing wake videos now. New tricks being landed is what seems to get everyone really fired up. Are full length videos the timex watch in the digital world? Has anyone else had this thought or am I alone?
The sport of wakeboarding needs full length movies. Riders put year or more of quality effort to making a riding section that is the best they possibly can. The filming, the editing and feel of a full length movie is always so different then a web video. People don't remember web videos. People remember 12 honkeys, Push Process, Such is life and etc.
Full length movies will always exist, because there's a ton more production value in them than online videos. Wake videos will use helicopters and/or crazy/unique rail setups to get different footage compared to the typical online video where there's just some chaseboat following a rider. And personally, I think getting out of Florida makes a huge difference in video quality, too. Having footage from a region/lake that I can't readily identify is always cool. The more mysterious and different, the better.
But on the other hand, if a non-huge name in the industry is looking to gain some cred then an online video or two might be the best way to kick start things. I think people kinda jumped on my case for saying this awhile back, but the onus is really on the rider to decide whether they should throw down for a quick online video, or if they should save their stuff for a larger production DVD release.
Full length movies will always exist, because there's a ton more production value in them than online videos. Wake videos will use helicopters and/or crazy/unique rail setups to get different footage compared to the typical online video where there's just some chaseboat following a rider. And personally, I think getting out of Florida makes a huge difference in video quality, too. Having footage from a region/lake that I can't readily identify is always cool. The more mysterious and different, the better.
Here's the thing though: web clips have gotten so good now that they often feature helicopter shots, crazy/unique rail setups, and exotic locations. In my opinion, they're getting closer and closer to making full-length films obsolete. I don't particularly like the few full-lengths I have watched. I much prefer hard-hitting web clips. They tend to have a much crisper visual style instead of abusing that stupid flashing tint overlay that so many feature-length filmmakers go for in their struggle to seem "artsy."
Oh ya, and everyone can see them for free and share them via social networking and post them all over forums like this. THAT'S exposure. In my opinion, web clips are the best way to showcase the progression of our sport, and I look forward to making a few of my own in the coming months.
I guess it's just me then. Once I've seen "person A" throw a crow 5, it looks pretty similar to "person B" throwing the same trick. I can only seem to remember specific parts of videos, never the whole thing. The only part of 12 honkeys I remember is Parks going gigantic off of kickers and something about him holding a shotgun. I also never have understood why they travel to an exotic location to go ride. The water looks the same to me, the only thing that changes is what's in the background. Now-a-days it seems like the best way to get coverage as a rider/sponsor is to post an online video. They're watched way more than a video the viewer has to purchase. Think of how many views the new brostock video is going to get. Now think of how many views it would get if you had to pay $10-$20 to watch it. In an economically driven world, full length production dvd/blu ray videos of our sport doesn't make much sense to me. I'd be curious to see the numbers behind videos like lipsmack. How much did it cost to produce compared to how much it brought in. There's a huge chance I'm wrong though! I'm just spitballing here, it wont all be gold!
Way more comes out of a full length then sales. It creates a buzz for a brand. Magazine stories. Magazine Photos. Riders who get payed actually have a goal/plan of what to do.
There are certain riders who always do the same tricks with the same grabs. That does get old. However, that's where the true freeriders excel. I could watch a Randall Harris section every day because his riding is always fresh. He my not be doing 1080's, but he has the ability to grab all his tricks in multiple spots and tweak/poke them to death. I would say watching Harley Clifford is always exciting too. He seems to have a new never been done before trick every week. Bob soven, Chris oshea, Danny harf, and Scott Stewart are also on my list of guys I can watch all day.
I hear what you're saying and those are good points that I hadn't considered. I still think that the videos are kind of blending together now though. It seems the latest fad is creating sketchy looking sliders from materials they find on the side of the road. If only one video showed that, it would stick with us, but since everyone is doing it now, it looses it's value. But like I said before, I guess it's just me. I'm ready for the next big thing. Doubleflips are catching on now, maybe that's what we'll be seeing for the next year or so. I definitely wouldn't mind seeing some cable doubleflips w/o using a kicker!
I hear what you're saying and those are good points that I hadn't considered. I still think that the videos are kind of blending together now though. It seems the latest fad is creating sketchy looking sliders from materials they find on the side of the road. If only one video showed that, it would stick with us, but since everyone is doing it now, it looses it's value. But like I said before, I guess it's just me. I'm ready for the next big thing. Doubleflips are catching on now, maybe that's what we'll be seeing for the next year or so. I definitely wouldn't mind seeing some cable doubleflips w/o using a kicker!
If you hadnt seen it, Ethan landed a double cab roll off flats last year. As far as I know hes still the only one
I think we need a good mixture of both feature length videos and short internet videos. You can get some really nice tricks out of the short length videos, but sometimes you can get some lesser seen tricks in the full length videos. One trick that has alwasy stuck with me is Danny Harf's BS 360 to late Method Grab at the end of The Butter Effect. That is something you don't see every day and possibly wouldn't have been caught on film if they weren't shooting a full length movie. Paying $20 for a movie may sound like a lot, but it is worth it to me when I am stuck inside on a cold winter day.
I will say that I respect obstacle riding a ton, but I would much rather watch a sick boat section. I agree with DirtyCracker in that people remember full length videos. An example of that is anytime I hear "Mountain Song" by Janes Addiction, I immediately think of Byerly's section In High Wake Drifters. The Ollie 360 over the boat is stuck in my head forever. I don't know if this will ring true in the future due to the music that is currently being used in videos. This electronic music does nothing for me and I feel it does nothing to add to the part. The different styles of music from part to part used to help us get a feel for a riders personality and seperate them from the next guy. Think about your favorite parts growing up, I bet u can name the song that accompanied them. I'm not sure I can name one song from defy and I've watched it like 5 times.
High Wake Drifters and Mountain Song...reminds me of the dog barking at the wakes, the ollie over the boat, and the sweet butter out in the flats to shed speed for the next hit. So stylie.
i think the feeling of movies feeling the same is the combination of the same riders doing similar tricks.
two of the latest "big films" out of the pond and defy both had.......harf, henshaw, watson, ruck sharpe. (no hate on theese riders btw)
where somthing like global warming had a diverse bunch like dean smith, jeff weatherall kyle alberts..... could watch that **** all day long!
someone needs to get all theese young kids together and make a feature film..... how good would a movie be featuring harley, rathy, sovens, shota, steel, dowdy, twekler, dean smith and scott stewart and surely a heap more that i am forgetting.
High Wake Drifters and Mountain Song...reminds me of the dog barking at the wakes, the ollie over the boat, and the sweet butter out in the flats to shed speed for the next hit. So stylie.
Yeah, the butter in the flats was the ****! ...."comin down the mountain!"... Damn, I'm about to dig up a VCR and pop that ish in! While I'm at it, might as well watch Mayday and Hit it!
If all the full length videos you're watching seem to blend together, then you're not watching the right ones, or paying enough attention. As already mentioned, web videos are fun, but full lengths feature so much more. I'll use Push Process as an example. The bonus features alone are worth buying that DVD. Getting to see all the lifestyle footage from all the trips they took was cool. I love being able to see beyond the riding and into how the riders interact when they are together like that, and there is no way you can put all that stuff in a web edit. And something like Lyman's wake to rail gap is way too big to throw down for a 3 minute web video. Web videos are getting better and better, but they will never be able to capture all the aspects of wakeboarding like a full length can because nobody is going to make a 20 minute video and then throw it on the internet for free. And nobody is going to watch a 20 minute web video because nobody has the attention span.
I really think people just need to slow down and appreciate each trick they see in full length DVDs, because every one was picked to go in it for a reason. Like Benny G's massive front roll into perfect butter in his section in Drive. Or Jeff Weatherall's little Saturday Night Fever toeside w2w in Global Warning. Those are the tricks that make wakeboarding awesome for me, the lifestyle footage reminds me how much more fun it is to hang out near the water all day, and those things combined are the reason I will always be buying full length wake films.
Agreed Dave. The quality of what is available on the net is unbelievably good! If someone lands a 1080 we see it on the web almost immediately instead of waiting 3 months to see it in a section on a DVD.
Although I enjoy full lengths, the constant stream of web videos has really lead to the huge amount of progression we've seen in the last few years. Like Will said above, when someone sticks something sick we hear about it almost immediately. It makes other guys see that things are possible and pushes them to try new moves. This has to be why we are seeing new moves landed constantly these days.
Web videos may have hurt the wakeboard full length videos, but thats only because the wake industry allows it to happen. Look at the skate and snow industries, those riders who are working on full parts DONT LEAK ANY FOOTAGE. The riders and filmers need to have patience. Look how wakeskating is going about it, same thing multiple board companies are working on full lengths and they aren't releasing their footage until the movie drops. This needs to happen in wakeboarding to keep the value of full lengths up.
Full web parts are for ams, let them have it, they need the coverage and they keep the wake scene fresh. Pro's need to be ok with that realizing that their hard work into a full length might not be as much of a fast reward and lots of "hits", but they need to know it is worth the hardwork.
If these things happen full lengths in wakeboarding would be more common, and more people would be motivated to shoot them/pay for them. But if any wakeboarder is "down to get his newest trick on film" for a web edit then that rider is just hurting their potential of being in a full length and utimatly killing the buzz around his brand and riding.
Look at CWB's latest web clip, Twelker and Dowdy landing ground breaking new tricks. If they had only teased that, and saved it for another full length, people would be motivated to buy it and see what went down.
Hybrid Mode
