The "Headless" team took first place this weekend with their film "How to get ahead in Skateboarding" featuring Bristol local Korahn Gayle tearing up the local skate spots. The 2-minue film, filmed and edited by Gary Thomas and Ross James, impressed judges and rival teams alike with its mixture of great skating and impressive visuals. The team took home the weel-deserved top prize of £200, a fifty fifty skate deck each and quiksilver merchandise. In addition, come November they'll be whisked away to Paris for a trip to the Tony Hawk show, courtesy of Quiksilver.
Headless winning film 2009:
Close behind, The Outsiders team; featuring "Best Trick" award winner Barney Page; took 2nd spot for their entry shot exclusively from the perspective of the filmer (it has to be seen to be understood!). Whilst in 3rd place, the Radio Wheels team displayed an extremely polished production; filmer and editor Dan Higginson showcasing the skating of Dave Snaddon and Dan Wileman to great effect.
This years' Olliewood films took a huge jump in quality; with every team making a massive effort to compliment their best skating with a theme or story to engross the watcher. Notable mentions have to go to crowd favourite Skateboard Cafe, winner of the "Most Stoked" award, who unfortunately missed out on making it into the final 5; a penalty for exceeding the 2-minute film limit scuppering their chances of taking the title. However the crowd demanded a re-screening of their humourous film at the end of the projection night; giving the team some great recognition for their hard work.
Team Schaeffer, starring 5-year old Schaeffer McLean made an impressive film; which was warmly received by the crowd. At a young age this skater is showing huge promise and is certainly worth keeping note of as his skating progresses; this teams' film won over 1600 views within 20 hours of being put online.
The Cube Cinema in Stokes Croft was packed with local skaters eager to see the teams' efforts; many people camping outside the cinema hours before the screening was scheduled, determined to get a good seat. The crowds had also been in force throughout the weekend at the specially converted Lloyds amphitheatre; made into a skate plaza for the competition, with help from UKRampHire.com and GMC events' own features.
Check out all the films over on the video page; and watch out for the Olliewood feature in Sidewalk Magazine.