Travis Rice That's It, That's All
"We're trying to make the Planet Earth of snowboarding," says snowboard icon Travis Rice, comparing his movie That's It, That's All to David Attenborough’s nature documentary. "We're trying to show people that there's a lot of raw, fucking beautiful places still left."
The twenty-five-year-old is the brains behind That's It, That's All, this winter's most anticipated snowboard film. But is it the best shred flick ever? Quite possibly.
After a screening in the Quiksilver rider's hometown of Jackson Hole, Wyoming, I’m left open-mouthed: crisp HD images of New Zealand's stunning Southern Alps cut to Rice dropping his signature double backflip to backside 180 in Japan; mountain-dwelling deer run around the NZ backcountry and Alaskan avalanches detonate across the screen. Like Subjekt Haakonsen back in 1997, ”Wow” is an understatement.
A veteran of over fifteen snowboard movies, the Wyo wunderkid's first foray into filmmaking was 2005's The Community Project, produced alongside Brain Farm Productions’ Curt Morgan. The movie was a success, but the team knew they could do better. So, pairing up with the best riders in the world (Terje Haakonsen, Nicolas Müller, Danny Kass and Eddie Wall) and with the added bonus of cash, cameras and the filmmaking knowledge of snowboarder-turned-film-school-graduate Morgan, That’s it, That’s All was set to be different. “We wanted to add a scenic element to show this world through our eyes," says Morgan.
With the help of Hollywood cinematographers, and a gyro-stabilised, heli-mountable Heligimbal camera system (as used on Planet Earth), That's It, That's All was never going to be a trick-after-trick freestyle cliché. Rice explains: "We didn’t want to just blow the minds of friends in the industry but capture that outside audience. If you're twenty miles out in the backcountry, it's difficult for people to understand. Most snowboard shots are of people flying through the frame – but with our camera system, you can see the entire picture. It's easier to watch for people who don't know anything about snowboarding.”
Funded initially by Rice himself, shooting began in August 2007 in NZ, then continued in Alaska in January 2008. But, after some persuasion from the film's Executive Producer, Circe Wallace (Rice's manager), Red Bull and Quiksilver came onboard. "Everyone thinks we spent fifteen million," admits Morgan. "But the film cost just over half a million for thirty months of shooting. If we had fifteen million, I'd be living in a mansion in the South of France with a maid and butler."
Still, that’s a lot of cash for any film. So, was it risky to focus on one rider – even if they’re as self-assured as Travis Rice? " I'm a bit anal," laughs Travis. "If you want something done right, you need to do it yourself. It was more about having the resources to go on an adventure, and just go do it ourselves."
"Travis is a pain in the ass to work with," adds Morgan. "But I am a far bigger pain in the ass so it balances out. We are both very serious about what we do so it makes for a pretty dedicated team."
There’s little doubt that That's It, That's All will be a groundbreaking piece of cinema. But with the excessive amount of gas-guzzling travel it required, do its makers feel guilty? "The environment is always on my mind," says Morgan. "I admit I drive a truck and fly in a helicopter occasionally. Still, no one would see our beautiful footage of the world if it weren't for that helicopter. I hope we encourage respect for this amazing planet we've been given."
"We want to show people that there are places in the world which remain untouched," says Rice optimistically. "Human kind is not so far gone that we can't turn this thing around and make things better."
"And yes," adds Morgan. "We are planning to offset the carbon footprint of the film."
That's It, That's All will be released in good snowboard shops in September, 2008.
www.thatsit-thatsall.com
The original story appeared in Huck #011.
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