First Wave of X Games Athletes Announced

Los Angeles, CA - ESPN Winter X Games has announced the first wave of athletes who have been invited to compete at Winter X Games 12, to be held for its seventh year at Buttermilk Mountain at Aspen/Snowmass, Colorado January 24-27, 2008. The event will air live on television in the U.S. on the ESPN and ABC networks. The 12th annual winter action sports competition will feature more than 250 athletes from across the globe competing for medals and prize money in the following sports: Skiing, Snowboard and Snowmobile. The event includes day and evening competitions and is free to the public.

The first wave of invited athletes include:

• Shaun White: Six-time snowboard Winter X Games gold medalist and 2006 Winter Olympic gold medalist
• Hannah Teter: Three-time snowboard Winter X Games medalist and 2006 Winter Olympic gold medalist
• Tanner Hall: Defending Skiing SuperPipe champ and six-time Winter X Games gold medalist
• Chris Burandt: Winner of the first-ever Winter X Games Snowmobile Freestyle gold medal in 2007
• Tyler Walker: Winner of the first-ever Winter X Games Mono Skier X gold medal in 2007
• Lindsey Jacobellis: Three-time snowboard Winter X Games gold medalist and 2006 Winter Olympic silver medalist
• Torah Bright: Defending Winter X Games Snowboard SuperPipe gold medalist
• Travis Rice: Three-time Winter X Games snowboard medalist
• Sarah Burke: Three-time Winter X Games and defending Skiing SuperPipe gold medalist
• Daron Rahlves: Widely considered the most accomplished speed skier in American history with 28 World Cup podiums and three World Championship podiums over the course of the last decade

Via First Tracks!! Online

Let "The Beating" Begin!

The Beating Film Festival 2008

Online Viewer's Choice Award Powered by nossaTV

December 20, 2007 - It's that time of year again ... time for The Beating Film Festival at Silverton! The online viewer's choice competition starts today on nossaTV, the action sports video on demand site.

Voting for the best video will take place from now until January 1st. Fans can learn more about The Beating on the festival page. In order to vote, viewers must first login or create an account on nossaTV. Then head over to The Beating 2008 channel and rank each film from one (lowest) to five stars (highest) in overall impression. Fans are encouraged to download the nossaTV media player and watch the videos full screen. The DVD quality playback will help users decide their favorite films. Limited to five short films, it won't take you long to rate the videos, and you'll be helping a hard-working filmmaker out this holiday season.

The winner will be announced at the film festival Friday, January 4th, at Miner's Union Theater. With record-breaking early season snowfall, copious amounts of swag to win at the show, and unlimited stoke from standing-room only crowd, you should make every effort to get to Silverton for The Beating!

"The viewer's choice award is a great way for aspiring filmmakers to win some cash," says Jen Brill of Silverton. Last year's winner also pocketed $500 from nossaTV, while the overall festival winner won a tour of Studio 411.

This is the third film festival powered by nossaTV. The "new-ish" video on demand site hosted the voting for the first Beating in December of 2006, and hosted the voting for the Steamboat Mountain Film Festival earlier this fall.

About The Beating

Now it it's second year, The Beating is a new amateur ski and snowboard film festival showcasing undiscovered talent. Hosted in Silverton, Colorado by the Silverton Mountain Ski Area, The Beating is designed to be the "core" version of "The Meeting" (held in Aspen) where the top 'pimpin' big budget ski films of the year premiere. The event will also help raise money for Silverton Mountain's High School scholarship ski program. This year's sponsors include Final Draft editing software, Studio 411, Freeskier, Snowboard Mag, and K2, who is contributing a pair of Pontoons. What better to surf the deep pow at Silverton?

X-Dance Accepted Films

The world's best skiing videos, snowboarding videos, surfing videos, and skateboarding videos, as well as some windsurfing, climbing, and even a tubing video from the looks of it, will be duking it out for bragging rights in Utah this January.


To quote Darren Rayner of Voleurz, "We're going to X-Dance baby!" The nossaTV sponsored filmmakers out of Canada made it into the action sports version of the Academy Awards on their first try. They will be competing in the Short Film Festival. The rest of the nominees are...

ACCEPTED FILMS FOR X-DANCE 2008
(alphabetical order)
Stay tuned to X-Dance site for more information.
Follow the links to see trailers on nossaTV.

FEATURES

199 Lives
Director: Gregg Godfrey
Producer: Jeremy Rawle
Executive Producer: David Brooks
Production Company: Godfrey Entertainment

20 Seconds of Joy
Director: Jens Hoffmann
Producer: Cleonice Comino
Executive Producer: Cleonice Comino & André Duck
Production Company: F24 Film GmbH

Against the Grain, The Tara Dakides Documentary
Director: Josh Landan
Producer: Josh Landan, The Background Collective
Executive Producer: The Background Collective, Studio411, David Brooks
Production Company: The Background Collective

Apples & Oranges
Director: Carlo Wein, Bryant Bell, Colin Jones
Producer: John Clapham
Executive Producer: Carlo Wein
Production Company: Alterna Films

Believe
Director: Constantine Papanicolaou
Producer: Constantine Papanicolaou
Executive Producer: Tanner Hall, Michael Chapin, Chris Mater, Jamie Simon, Pat Mcilvain, Greg Strokes
Production Company: Studio 411

Bra Boys
Director: Sunny Abberton
Co-Director: Macario De Souza
Producers: Sunny Abberton & Michael Lawrence
Executive Producers: Jason Bergh, Sal Masekela, Michael Lythcott, Nicholas Cook, Michael Lawrence, John Mossop
Original Music: Jamie Holt
Production Company: Berkela Films, Bradahood Productions, Garage Industries

Crusty Demons - Night of World Records
Director: John McMillan & Chris Nelius
Producer: John McMillan & Chris Nelius
Executive Producer: John McMillan & Chris Nelius
Production Company: Fleshwound Films & Rush Sports

Deep Winter
Director: Glenn Zoller

Down The Barrel
Director: Steven Lawrence
Producer: ESPN Original Entertainment
Production Company: Peligro Pictures

Dying for Everest
Director: Richard Dennison
Producer: Gus Roxburgh, James Heyward, Andy Salek
Executive Producer: Steve Luczo, Shaun Murphy
Production Company: Balance Vector Productions

Enjoy
Production Company: Rage Films

Facing Obsession
Director: Jochen Schmoll
Producer: Jochen Schmoll, Drehxtrem
Executive Producer: Jochen Schmoll, Drehxtrem
Production Company: Drehxtrem

In Short
Production Company: Blank Paper Studios

It's Fantastic!
Director: Matt Sheridan
Producer: Matt Sheridan
Executive Producer: Matt Sheridan
Production Company: Team 13

Journey to the Center
Director: Jens Hoffman
Executive Producer: Liro Seppanen & Jeb Corliss
Production Company: Ground Impact Inc.

King Lines
Director: Josh Lowell, Peter Mortimer
Producer: Josh Lowell, Peter Mortimer
Executive Producer: Nick Rosen, Cooper Roberts
Production Company: Big UP Productions

Let's Do This!
Director: Jon Holland & Jason Hernandez
Producer: Jon Holland & Jason Hernandez
Executive Producer: Jon Holland & Jason Hernandez
Production Company: Transworld

Lines
Director: Flora Pauporte
Producer: Axel Pauporte
Executive Producer: Reid Pinder, Grahma Stapelberg, Andrew Flitton
Production Company: Quinta Films

Lost and Found
Production Company: Teton Gravity Research

Mixed Tape
Director: Pete Santa Maria
Producer: Pete Santa Maria, John Wilson, Kevin Flanagan
Production Company: Reef

My Eyes Won't Dry
Directors: Brian Conley
Producers: Brian Conley
Executive Producer: Brian Conley
Production Company: C life Productions

New Emissions of Light and Sound
Director: George Manzanilla and Joe G
Producer: Joe G, Michael Marckx
Executive Producer: Peter Hill, Matt Hill, Gary Valentine
Production Company: Globe

NWD 8 Smack Down
Director: Derek Westerlund
Producer: Derek Westerlund
Executive Producer: Derek Westerlund
Production Company: Freeride Entertainment

Optimistic?
Director: Patrick Armbruster & Justin Hostynek
Producer: Patrick Armbruster
Production Company: Absinthe Films

Push Process
Directors: Justin Stephens
Producers: Matty Swanson
Executive Producers:Matty Swanson & Pat Mcilvain
Production Company: 1242 Productions

Seven Sunny Days
Director: Steve Winter, Murray Wais, Scott Gaffney
Producer: Steve Winter, Murray Wais, Scott Gaffney, Steve Reska, Nate Nash, Mike Hans
Executive Producer: David Brooks
Production Company: Matchstick Productions

SEVENVISION
Directors: Don Hampton Aaron Chase
Producers: Don Hampton
Executive Producers:Don Hampton
Production Company: DH Productions

Sliding Liberia
Director: Britton Caillouette; Nicholai Lidow
Producer: Britton Caillouette; Nicholai Lidow
Production Company: Inner Tube Films

Source
Director: Rush Sturges, Brooks Baldwin, Marlow Long
Producer: Rush Sturges, Brooks Baldwin, Marlow Long
Production Company: Young Gun Productions

The Dawn of the Stone-Age
Director: Andrew Miller & Aden Stay
Producer: Brad Dougherty
Executive Producer: Troy Eckert & Richard Woolcott
Production Company: Vecco Productions

The Man Who Souled the World
Director: Mike Hill
Producer: Jason Boulter & Matt Hill
Executive Producer: Steven Hill & Peter Hill
Production Company: Whyte House Productions

The Windsurfing Movie
Directors: Johnny DeCesare & Jace Panebianco
Producers: Johnny DeCesare, Jace Panebianco & Levi Siver
Production Company: Poor Boyz Windsurfing

Tomorrow Today
Director: Chris Cote, David Washauer
Producer: Josh Williams
Executive Producer: Transworld Surf
Production Company: Metalstorm Entertainment

Tony Hawk's Secret Skatepark Tour 3
Director: Kemp Curley
Producer: Irene Navarro, Matt Haring, Jared Prindle
Executive Producer: Tony Hawk, Pat Hawk
Production Company: 900 Films

Transgression
Director: Ronn Seidenglanz
Producer: Ronn Seidenglanz
Executive Producer: Erik Lutgert
Production Company: Sidewayz Films

Travis Pastrana - Driven
Director: Leandro HBL
Producer: Marko Zawadzki
Executive Producer: Marko Zawadzki
Production Company: emenes GmbH

Under the Sun
Director: Cyrus Sutton
Producer: Cyrus Sutton, Michael McFadin, Jody McFadin
Executive Producer: Michael McFadin, Jody McFadin
Production Company: A Peel/Luella

WHY
Director: Taylor Congdon
Producer: Taylor Congdon
Executive Producer: Transworld Media, Jason Young
Production Company: The Assignment

SHORTS

Another LA Day
Directors: David Auerbach & Mathias Klozenbucher
Producers: David Auerbach & Mathias Klozenbucher

Autumn Dream

Find My Way

Fish Bowl
Director: Darren Rayner, Jan Schuster
Producer: Darren Rayner, Jan Schuster
Executive Producer: Darren Rayner, Jan Schuster
Production Company: Voleurz

Skater Made

Tide
Director: Colin Jones
Producer: Colin Jones
Executive Producer: Colin Jones
Production Company: Adrift Films

Stay tuned to www.x-dance.com for more information.

ABOUT X-DANCE

For one insane week each winter, the world's top action sport filmmakers and athletes, along with cutting-edge bands and DJs and key figures from the entertainment industry, gather in Park City and Salt Lake City, Utah, to celebrate action sports culture at the annual X-DANCE Action Sports Film Festival. Launched in 2001 and coinciding each year with the Sundance Film Festival, X-DANCE showcases the year's top action sport films, followed by post-screening Q&A's with filmmakers and athletes. X-DANCE also features open forum panels with athletes, filmmakers, industry figures and icons from the action sports world, plus special screenings, privately sponsored parties and a legendary Closing Party/Awards Ceremony. With roots in both the core industry as well as the mainstream, no other event on earth harnesses the creative energy of adrenaline culture and brings it together under one roof like the X-DANCE Action Sports Film Festival.



A special note from Brian Wimmer, X-Dance founder, via their site:

This has been the most incredible year for film entries in the past eight years of X-Dance. The level of filmmaking has reached new heights. Hundreds of films have been submitted from all over the world. Almost half of the films submitted were from outside the U.SA. X-Dance is truly the premier international event for Action Sports Filmmaking.

The difficult part of this process is determining which films will make the festival. The competition was extremely high this year. If your project did not make the final list, that does not mean that your project was not a good film. We judge all films equally on the basis of filmmaking merit and not sport genre, sponsors or budget. The five categories we judge are Cinematography, Editing, Story, Music, and Action. Each of the five merits are given equal value. The films that ultimately make it into the festival score well in most, if not all, of the filmmaking categories, making them a good blend of story and action. Films that were all action with no story or interaction with the athletes plot-wise fared the same as films that were all talk and no action.

Everyone that submitted a film can (and should) be part of the festival. The X-Dance Film Festival was created as a forum for everyone in the Action Sports Filmmaking Industry. We will be conducting the X-Dance Filmmakers Institute with seminars, workshops, and panels. The subjects will deal with real issues facing the Action Sports filmmakers, like emerging Internet demands in regard to content providing, music licensing, digital and hard copy distribution, and legal issues that arise from everything mentioned above. We will have the top people in the industry from each category there to raise the level of awareness and help you.
Our final awards ceremony is notorious for being the best party during the Sundance Film Festival. We will give all filmmakers that submitted films tickets to all of our events.

As filmmakers, you should all immerse yourself in the Sundance Film Festival and its activities as well. We will post a listing of Sundance Film Festival activities so that you can participate. Use the Sundance Festival to inspire your career.

This year we have expanded the festival to Salt Lake City. We have grown to the point where we needed bigger and better venues. Salt Lake City will also put us more in touch with our core crowd and make it easier for everyone to participate. The Sundance Film Festival is moving a lot of its energy to SLC for the same reasons we are. The O.R. (Outdoor Retailer) convention is also in town at the same time. Our new venue is right in the middle of both events, by no accident. This year promises to be bigger and better than ever.
Thank you all for your incredible film submissions and the passion that went into making them! We look forward to celebrating your creativity and the Actions Sports culture with you in the New Year!

Best,
Brian Wimmer
X-Dance Film Festival
Director / Founder

2XtM - To Cross the Moon

Using skiing and snowboarding videos to raise awareness for environmental concerns. Seems cliche. But 2XtM is a truly inspirational, and unique project the likes of which had never been done.


Follow Jason Magness and Sam Salwei as they kiteboard across North Dakota to prove the potential for wind power in the state and excite the locals and kiteboard community about the new North Dakota as a State Of Extreme Sports.

The video is available on nossaTV, where you can watch it full screen by downloading the nossaTV media player. Check out the video below. It was part of Thrillhead Creation's Return to Schralptown. Both videos can be found in their channel on nossaTV.

Surf NossaTV

Check out all the new sick Surfing videos on www.nossatv.com. Filmakers include Boost Video Productions, CG Productions, Never Satisfied Productions, Cloud Break Films, and Phil Goodrich Films. The best surfing videos the internet has to offer!

Jackson Rigs - Episode 1

Snowboarding Allowed at Taos!

Ski and now snowboard resort, "Ski Taos" has decided to drop the long-standing ban on snowboarding.


We could have rightfully broken the story here at nossaTV, but it was more fun to sit back and see what other people said. I received the word directly from Hano Blake, Ernie Blake's grandson. In an e-mail that Thursday he states:

Dear Friend ,

After much contemplation Taos Ski Valley has decided to open our slopes to snowboarding beginning March 19, 2008. It is in the adventurous spirit of Ernie and Rhoda Blake we welcome the challenges and anticipate the opportunities that this decision implies. While there are many reasons why we have chosen this season to make such a significant change to our company’s policy the foremost factor is we feel simply that it is time.

For several seasons the debate has been more directed as to “when” rather than “if” snowboarding would be permitted at Taos Ski Valley. It has been the opinion of the Blake Family and TSV’s management that the timing was critical. Let us emphasize that this decision is the result of careful planning and consideration. We recognize many challenges that will result from this decision but feel ultimately it will benefit Taos Ski Valley, Inc., its employees and the community at large.

It is the goal of the Blake family and current management to continue the legacy of Taos Ski Valley. Equally to take care of you, our devoted staff and loyal friends, who for so long have helped us take care of our Mountain and the Taos Ski Valley legacy. We ask you to join us as Taos Ski Valley, Inc. transitions into the future with its spirit and ideals firmly rooted in the past.

Cordially,

Alejandro, Adriana and Mickey

I tested skis with Hano up at Whistler a few years back for Ski Press magazine. So a bit of irony there. But if my memory serves me correctly, the whole "Ernie Blake's dying wish" that snowboarding never be allowed at Taos was all a myth.

It had also occurred to me over the years, living in Utah especially, that after Aspen allowing snowboarding, Taos had the most to gain of the four remaining resorts. The Utah resorts, Alta and Deer Valley have next door neighbors that allow snowboarding. I actually taught many a snowboarding lesson at Park City Mountain Resort, in a Deer Valley uniform! And I was living in Utah when Alta and Snowbird joined up via Mineral Basin.

So that leaves Mad River Glen. I guess I'll just ask "Who wants to snowboard moguls?"

So way to go Taos. I understand the skier numbers are down for whatever reason. The last time I was there, 1996 I think, I almost didn't leave. A fresh infusion of sideways shredders will help get them back the recognition they deserve.

STEEP Premiere December 21st

STEEP. The skiing video documentary of a lifetime. Opening nationwide next Friday. Everyone is talking about it, and nossaTV went out and got the uncompressed video trailer from Sony Pictures. Here's the flyer, the schedule, and the trailer. Enjoy!


Watch the trailer here, or full screen by downloading the nossaTV media player.




DECEMBER 21, 2007

IRVINE, CA - University Town CTR 6 Cine
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, CA - Heavenly Village Cinemas
WEST LOS ANGELES, CA - Nuart
ASPEN, CO - Isis Theatre
BRECKENRIDGE , CO - Speakeasy Theatre
BILLINGS, MT - Carmike 7
KALISPELL, MT - Stadium 14
WHITEFISH, MT - Mountain Cinemas 1 & 2
HUNTER, NY - Hunter Theatre
NEW YORK, NY - AMC Empire 25
NEW YORK, NY - Angelika Film Center 6
ASHLAND, OR - Varsity 5 Cinemas
PARK CITY, UT - Redstone 8 Cinemas
SALT LAKE CITY, UT - Regency Trolley Square
BURLINGTON, VT - Merrill's Roxy Theatre
JACKSON, WY - Movie Works Cinema 4

DECEMBER 28, 2007

PORTLAND, OR - Cinema 21

JANUARY 4, 2008

PASADENA, CA - One Colorado Cinemas

JANUARY 11, 2008

PALM SPRINGS, CA - Stadium 10 Palm Springs
ASPEN, CO - Isis Theatre
CRESTED BUTTE, CO - Majestic Theatre 3
DENVER, CO - Mayan Three
DILLON, CO - Skyline Cinemas
DURANGO, CO - Gaslight Twin
TAOS, NM - Storyteller 4
HOOD RIVER, OR - Skylight Theatre & Pub
PARK CITY, UT - Redstone 8 Cinemas
LARAMIE, WY - Fox Four

JANUARY 18, 2008

BERKELEY, CA - Shattuck 8
PALO ALTO, CA - Cinearts @ Palo Alto Square
SAN DIEGO, CA - Ken
SAN FRANCISCO, CA - Lumiere Cinemas 3
SAN JOSE, CA - Camera Stadium 12
SAN JOSE, CA - Cinearts at Santana Row
SAUSALITO, CA - Marin Three
SAN DIEGO, CA - Ken
BOULDER, CO - Century 16
WESTMINISTER, CO - Westminister Promenade 24
CAMBRIDGE, MA - Kendall Square Cinema 9
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - Lagoon Theatre 5
BOZEMAN, MT - Campus Square 8
PHILADELPHIA, PA - Ritz at the Bourse 5
SEATTLE, WA - Varsity three Cinemas

JANUARY 25, 2008

PHOENIX, AZ - AMC Ahwatukee 24
SCOTTSDALE, AZ - The Luxury Shea
SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA - Downtown Centre Cinema 7
BOCA RATON, FL - Shadwood Square 16
MIAMI BEACH, FL - South Beach 18
CHICAGO, IL - Music Box Theatre 2 (Art)
ALBANY, NY - Crossgates Mall 18
DALLAS, TX - Inwood 3
HOUSTON, TX - Angelika Theatre 8
WOODLANDS, TX - Cinemark at Market Street 5

FEBRUARY 1, 2008

NORTH FALMOUTH, MA - Nickelodeon 5
ST LOUIS, MO - Tivoli Theatre 3

FEBRUARY 8, 2008

BONITA SPRINGS, FL - Bonita Springs 12
JACKSONVILLE, FL - Beach Blvd Cinema 12
TALLAHASSEE, FL - Miracle Five
WINTER PARK, FL - Winter Park Village 20
ATLANTA, GA - UA Tara Cinema 4
CINCINNATI, OH - Esquire 6
EUGENE, OR - Bijou Art Cinema
NASHVILLE, TN - Green Hills Commons 16
AUSTIN, TX - Arbor Cinemas @ Great Hills
FT WORTH, TX - Modern Art Museum of Ft. Worth
MILWAUKEE, WI - Oriental 3

FEBRUARY 15, 2008

ANCHORAGE, AK - Century 16 Anchorage
TUCSON, AZ - Centruy Elcon 20
DAVIS, CA - Davis Vasity Theatre
MONTEREY, CA - Oslo Plaza Theatre
BOISE, ID - Flicks Four
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - Keystone Art Cinema
OLATHE, KS - AMC Studio 30
NEW ORLEANS, LA - Canal Place Cinema 14
KANSAS CITY, MO - Cinemark Palace 14
ALBUQUERQUE, NM - Century 14
SANTA FE, NM - UA Devargas Center 6
RENO, NV - Riverside 12
PITTSBURGH, PA - Regent Square Theatre
KNOXVILLE, TN - Regal Downtown West Eight

FEBRUARY 22, 2008

HUNTSVILLE, AL - Madison Square 12
TRUSSVILLE, AL - Trussville Cinema 16
WASHINGTON, DC - E-Street Cinema
GAINESVILLE, FL - Gainesville 14
SARASOTA, FL - Hollywood 20
LEXINGTON, KY - Lexington Green 8
LOUISVILLE, KY - Village 8 Theatre
DETROIT, MI - Detroit Institute of Art
CHARLOTTE, NC - Manor Twin
LAS VEGAS, NV - Village Square 18
BEND, OR - Pilot Butte 6 Plex
SAN ANTONIO, TX - Fiesta 16

FEBRUARY 29, 2008

BALTIMORE, MD - Charles Theatre
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - AMC Quail Springs 24
RICHMOND, VA - Westhampton Theatre 2
SPOKANE, WA - River Park Square 20

MARCH 7, 2008

VERO BEACH, FL - AMC Indian River 24
OMAHA, NE - AMC Oakview 24
TULSA, OK - AMC Southroads 20
CORVALLIS, OR - Darkside Cinemas

CANADA - Coming in January

Absinthe "Optimistic?" Review

Having seen the full snowboarding video at The Meeting in Aspen, I can attest to this review. We have the trailer on nossaTV if you want to get an idea. I've been a huge fan of Absinthe since I got "futureproof" a couple years back.

Words by: Tawnya Schultz.

I’m claiming right now because I’ve seen almost every snowboard video this season; “Optimistic?” kills it on every level of my review scale. Now I don’t want to hype it all up and disappoint you; like what usually happens when your friend tells you a movie is good then you see it and think it sucks; but honestly “Optimistic?” is a premium snowboard flick sure to be a classic loaded with stellar shots, simplistic scenery, and no doubt several heavy hitters fronting the scene. I gather the flick is titled “Optimistic?” because everyone was trying to remain optimistic last winter with the warm temps and lack of snow but somehow this film resembles a flourishing winter with the term lack no where in sight. Watch this video and it will make you want to do one of two things: grab your gear, run out the door, and find the first perceivable terrain to shred down…or sip a nice hot cocoa, glue your eyes to the set, press repeat, and come to the conclusion that you might as well just quit trying to snowboard at all.

Read the rest on Snowboard-Mag.com.

Enjoy a short preview of the trailer below, or full screen / full length with the nossaTV media player.

ICER Air Feature Show at Dstructure Tonight

For all you Bay Area urban skiing and snowboarding shredders out there, the fine folks at ICER Air invite you to a special show tonight at D Structure. Details below.


Should you be in San Francisco this Friday night, I'd like to invite you to Dstructure for a screening of The ICER AIR Urban Big Air Invitational, the one hour feature show currently airing on Fox Sports Net nationally.

The show gives viewers a backstage pass to all the highlights from this year’s event, such as jump construction, interviews with athletes, including winning athletes Jon Olsson and Travis Rice, coverage of skate, BMX and freestyle motocross sessions, as well as the parties and behind-the-scenes antics. The one-hour special will touch upon the history behind ICER AIR and its unforgettable start in 2005 when 15,000 people gathered on one of San Francisco’s steepest streets to witness history being made.

WHAT: FSN One-Hour TV Show of Esurance ICER AIR
WHEN: DECEMBER 14 at 8 PM
WHERE: Dstructure (520 Haight St)

ICER will be selling all ICER AIR merchandise (new era hats, hoodies, shirts and North Face jackets) at 25% off for one night only. In addition, there will be numerous merchandise deals, Head skis to give away, free Peroni beer and other surprises. Finally, Dstructure carries some of the coolest t-shirts and hoodies ever created and the largest bay area selection of primo twin tip skis.

This event is free and open to the public.

See you there!

Thrillhead Creations' Return to Schralptown - Feature Length Version

Skiing and snowboarding video Return to Schralptown is now available on nossaTV in feature length. You can watch the full trailer below. To see the feature length video, GO to nossaTV, GET the nossaTV media player, and then download and WATCH nossaTV to your heart's content!

Mike Horn, reviewing for Backcountry Magazine, declares:

"Thrillhead's got the best Colorado chute and couloir footage I've seen, especially when you consider a bunch of these guys are riding splitboards. It's just impressive riding."

This is the second full length video from Thrillhead Creations, a backcountry ski and snowboard filmmaker. Thrillhead is also the first of five (and counting) filmmakers sponsored by nossaTV. As part of our sponsorship, they receive their own Thrillhead Creations channel on nossaTV, full length streaming previews which they can embed on their own site, and unlimited free advertising they can pass on to their other sponsors. They are also first in line to get their own branded nossaTV website allowing them to take advantage of the powerful video marketing solution we are developing.

The Thin Line

It must be major ski documentary month. First we have all the buzz going around with STEEP, the big mountain documentary from Sony Pictures and The Documentary Group. Now comes the announcement for The Thin Line, and downhill racing documentary. Not sure who produced this, but we'll find out and update this post. If we don't get the trailer on nossaTV first.

Free Skiing and Snowboarding Commercials for Advertisers

Here at nossaTV, we've been busy assembling the best collection of skiing and snowboarding trailers for the coming season. Today is our one year anniversary since launching our interactive media player. Since launching December 3rd of last year, we've assembled 133 titles and over 34 hours of content.

So what do we do for an encore? Start bringing you the best skiing and snowboarding commercials we can find.


If you are a skiing or snowboarding marketing person, contact us to find out more about our Free Advertising Trial 2007-08.

Voleurz Landing in Vancouver

nossaTV sponsored filmmakers continue to take over the universe. On both sides of the border...

The Voleurz Family just annihilated The Longhorn Saloon (Whistler) on Sunday night. Darren crowd surfed. Enough Said.

If you weren't able to make it out to Whistler, then join them in Vancouver this Saturday:

Saturday Dec 1st / 9:30pm
$7 (at the door)

Check out the More For the Astronauts trailer and the new Voleurz Channel on nossaTV.

Thrillhead 80's SKI PARTY

Thrillhead Creations is having their 80's ski party this friday (Nov. 30th) at Road 34 Bike Bar in Fort Collins. There will be DJs spinning reggae... Thrillhead will be showing Return to Schralptown and the Caleb Riley Funk Orchestra will be playing after the movie. Best 80's outfit will win tons of prizes!!!
Doors open at 7

These guys are one of our original nossaTV sponsored ski & snowboard filmmakers, and we just gave them their own Thrillhead Creations Channel. We should have Return and several more kayaking videos on site soon! In the meantime, check out Return to Schralptown trailer or just watch it below (if you don't care about seeing it full screen, like you would with our nossaTV media player).

The Beating 2008 at Silverton Mountain

Ski and snowboard film festival at Silverton. Win great prizes like a ski trip to Silverton Mountain, K2 Pontoon Skis, a North Face jacket, a tour of Studio 411, Smith goggles, Black Diamond equipment, plus $500 in cash money from nossaTV for the online viewer’s choice award.


Check out The Beating 2006 entries. Below is one of my favorites, a ski film by Vital Films:



Think it looks cool right here? Download our media player and then watch the whole video FULL SCREEN.

Get It? Got It. GREAT

X-Dance Short Film Festival

nossaTV.com to Power This Year's Action Sports Film Festival

November 21st - X-Dance, the leading action sports film festival, and nossaTV, the leader in free DVD-quality downloadable action sports video, announce the X-Dance Short Film Festival on nossatv.com. Comprised of the best short action sports films, the 2008 X-Dance Short Film Festival will premiere on the X-Dance channel on nossaTV in January 2008.

Entries are due to X-Dance on December 4th. Finalists will be announced no later than December 14th, and the online voting will run from January 4th to 21st. Users will have the opportunity to pick their favorite videos after downloading and viewing them on the X-Dance Channel on nossaTV. Videos must be watched in the nossaTV media player. The grand prize winner will be announced January 23rd along with the feature-length winners at the X-Dance closing party.

Mike Sharp, nossaTV’s new GM, has some experience getting short films into X-Dance. He founded The White Room - Wasatch Winter Film Festival in 2005, and the winner of the "Shorts" category went on to be the opening video at X-Dance 2006.

"Having been exposed to X-Dance by virtue of living in Park City, I think its time for the world to experience the action sports equivalent of the ‘Academy Awards,’" says Mike Sharp. "X-Dance will use our technology to bring this content to the action sports masses, starting with the X-Dance Short Film Festival on nossaTV. Just preview, download, then use the nossaTV player to watch the entire videos full screen. Think YouTube meets iTunes meets Quicktime," he explains.

ABOUT X-DANCE

For one insane week each winter, the world’s top action sport filmmakers and athletes, along with cutting-edge bands and DJs and key figures from the entertainment industry, gather in Park City and Salt Lake City, Utah, to celebrate action sports culture at the annual X-DANCE Action Sports Film Festival. Launched in 2001 and coinciding each year with the Sundance Film Festival, X-DANCE showcases the year’s top action sport films, followed by post-screening Q&A’s with filmmakers and athletes. X-DANCE also features open forum panels with athletes, filmmakers, industry figures and icons from the action sports world, plus special screenings, privately sponsored parties and a legendary Closing Party/Awards Ceremony. With roots in both the core industry as well as the mainstream, no other event on earth harnesses the creative energy of adrenaline culture and brings it together under one roof like the X-DANCE Action Sports Film Festival.

ABOUT NOSSATV

NossaTV’s patent pending technology delivers free DVD-quality, full screen video downloads to rabid action sports fans. By providing distribution, content management and marketing tools in an integrated platform, nossaTV connects action sports fans, companies and athletes through video. NossaTV provides free, unlimited access to the best feature length action sports films to anyone with a computer and high speed connection.

For more info on X-Dance please visit www.x-dance.com and www.myspace.com/x_dance

Storm Show 300" World Premiere

Come see “the locals’ ski film” on the big screen, and get your stoke on for winter!!!

STORM SHOW presents... 300" WORLD PREMIERE
Friday, November 30, 2007
Jackson, Wyoming
The Center Theater (Center for the Arts), 265 S. Cache St.
Two Showings - 6:30PM & 9:00PM
$14 advance, $18 day of show (plus 10% CTA service fee)

Ticket sales to benefit BTNF Avalanche Forecast Organization

100% of raffle proceeds to benefit The Brent Newton Memorial Foundation
(www.brentnewtonfamilyfoundation.com). There will also be a silent auction in the lobby to benefit the BNMF, local businesses have donated goods for auction.

Raffle prizes include JHMR all-mountain ski pass, Never Summer snowboard, Cloudveil goodies, tons of freebies.

Afterparty at the JH Playhouse with mad hip-hopsters BIOMECCA (music featured in film). $10, doors open after film screening.

HOPE TO SEE YOU AT THE SHOW YO!

Meathead Films at Boston Ski Show

After a day of skiing with New England Telemark at Sunday River, I hopped in the nossaTV Suby and raced down to the Boston Ski Show to meet up with nossaTV filmmaker Meathead Films.

MHF has a Subaru Outback Wagon of their own, and it was on display at the show, tastefully adorned with their inflatable logo. Just have to wonder how that holds up at highway speeds, in Nor'easters, and at the drive-thru!

Meathead is on the road promoting their latest film Wanderland. You can catch the trailer on nossaTV, and buy it on their website. They also have a nice line of clothing called Ski The East.


Here's a short preview of the trailer, which is available for full download and full screen playback via the nossaTV media player:

KGB Productions in Maine

nossaTV sponsored filmmaker KGB Productions was showing their ski movie Sublimation Experiment on Thursday up in Maine. The Colby College Outing Club had a special screening of the backcountry ski video and showed it to about 40 excited fans.

"Those that were there were totally stoked, hooting and hollering during great scenes. The movie rocked, and all were grateful for the night," reported one nossaTV fan. "Was a monsoon though, my Jeep was on streets with water up to the bumper!!"

When it rains it pours. But when it's cold enough it also snows! Maine resorts picked up between 2" and 8" of the natural stuff, as did many Vermont and New Hampshire ski areas.

Watch the trailer, long form video, and all the KGB clips on nossaTV.

Go to the super cool KGB website to buy the video. It's almost gift giving season!

TGR Premiere in NYC

nossaTV sponsored the New York City premiere of TGR's Lost and Found on Thursday night. After the Voleurz show in Montreal the night before, it was time for another ski and snowboard movie.

It was a stretch getting there in time, so I blazed straight down I-87 through more torrential rain (almost snow just south of Plattsburgh). At least until the Lincoln Tunnel. Then it was the most excruciating sixty minutes of driving ever! But I got to the show just before doors and was able to park the nossaTV Suby right out front. Fortunately the guy from Steamboat got there at the same time and we were able to split the last table.

Thanks to Dave at TGR for letting us demo our nossaTV media player at this huge event. We also ran a special TGR commercial on nossaTV publicizing this ski and snowboard video premiere. Exactly what our media player is designed for: connecting with fans through targeted advertising.

Marc-Andre Belliveau and Bang Camaro warmed up the crowd. Then of course the latest ski and snowboard video from TGR took center stage and took care of getting everyone stoked for the season.

Voleurz in Montreal

Voleurz had the "east coast premiere" of their More For The Astronauts film in Montreal Wednesday night. It's a long stretch of road from Hartford, CT, to Montreal, QC. But to see our first Canadian sponsored filmmaker for the first time it was well worth the drive.

A quick stop in my hometown of Glens Falls in upstate NY helped break things up. Having heard the horror stories about crossing the border these days, I opted to leave my box of swag and brand new 23" external display with Dad. Managed to sneak our banner across, though.

Navigating a foreign city, in a foreign language, in the dark, and in the rain made things challenging after six hours on the road. But MapQuest delivered me to the correct street, and the funky blue Christmas lights of "Foufounes Electronique" practically screamed "this is the place you're looking for."

If you haven't heard of Voleurz, its because they're new! nossaTV sponsored their first feature length video, More For The Astronauts. These guys are killing it right now, and its only a matter of time before they catch on south of the border. Led by Darren as principle filmmaker, Bruce as the website/internet guy (check their Facebook profile), and Harvey running the burgeoning clothing line, these guys have all the right stuff.

The movie was BY FAR the most entertaining video I've seen this season (and that includes everything that was at The Meeting in Aspen). Do they have heli-shots from AK, or even the terrain park? No. But not to sound cliche, they have THE MOST progressive riding I've seen this year. Both skiing and snowboarding. Add to that a nice skateboarding segment. And lifestyle segments so entertaining you'd think you were watching reality TV. All I could think while watching Astronauts was "fresh." Voleurz is the future of skiing and snowboarding.

Check out the trailer and other segments on nossaTV and on the Voleurz site.

And if you happen to be in Whistler on the 25th, you can catch them at Longhorn.

East Coast Operations Have Begun!

It's been a long time coming, but we wanted to let everyone know that nossaTV now has a presence on the East Coast. Yours truly recently moved from Park City back east to the lovely, rolling hills of Connecticut and the icy slopes of New England.

More importantly, nossaTV will expand its content, user, and advertising reach. I'll be reporting on all things skiing & snowboarding related, marketing our video on demand site to action sports fans, and signing up advertisers in the coming months. We're actually skiing already out here, which is more than I can say for my old stomping grounds of Utah!

This week we're (I'm) up in Montreal for the Voleurz screening, down I-87 to NYC for the TGR show, taking in the KGB show in Maine (and skiing at Sunday River), then down to the Boston Ski Show to catch up with Meathead Films.

Here's to "Loud Powder!"
(If you gotta ask, then you don't know!)

New York City Premiere of TGR’s “Lost And Found”

NYC Premiere will feature live musical performances by Bang Camaro and Marc Andre Belliveau Band

November 13, 2007 – nossaTV is proud to announce its first live event with Teton Gravity Research. The video on demand site will be sponsoring one of the biggest screenings in TGR history this Thursday in New York City.

TGR will premiere their latest ski and snowboard movie, Lost & Found, with live musical performances by Bang Camaro and Marc Andre Belliveau Band. Attendees will witness Marc Andre’s skiing comeback and learn his story about overcoming a devastating accident one year ago, which left him paralyzed form the waist down. Amazing, fans will see him continuing as an action sports athlete as he skis in the newest Teton Gravity Research film.



The premiere takes place at Webster Hall this Thursday, November 15th, 2007. Cost is $20 in advance at tetongravity.com, Ticketmaster.com, The North Face Store on 73rd, and in Soho & Emilo’s Ski Shop.

FREE LIFT TICKETS to Mount Snow will be given to the first 700 attendees at the show. $5000 of sponsor prizes will also be given away.

Event Schedule:

7:00 Doors
7:15 Marc Andre Belliveau Band (www.myspace.com/marcandrebelliveau)
8:15 Intro 9 film athletes and give away $5000 in sponsor prizes
8:30 TGR’s Lost and Found (movie trailer at www.tetongravity.com, full screen version for download and viewing at www.nossatv.com)
9:30 Bang Camaro (www.myspace.com/bangcamaro)

The Marc Andre Belliveau Story:

In the spring of 2006, Belliveau was tragically paralyzed in a ski accident. After 8 years as a pro film skier and less than 6 months after injury, unable to stay off the snow, he came back on a sit ski. His inspirational return is captured on 16mm film in TGR’s newest release Lost and Found.

Marc Andre is an integral member of the TGR crew. He has had a staring role in the last six TGR movie releases including featured segments in the last three films, The Tangerine Dream, Anomaly, and this year in his return to the snow in Lost and Found. This year’s film showcases his heroic return in a sit ski, which enables him to again hit big mountain lines, launch big airs and float through deep powder.

Marc Andre will not only entertain us on screen, but also with a live musical performance before the movie as the lead singer in the Marc Andre Belliveau Band

About Bang Camaro:

MTV News reports “Kiss may have had their army, but Bang Camaro *is* the Army.” Bang Camaro is the biggest band exploding out of Boston with songs of finely crafted man-mayhem. They are causing a sensation, armed with a five-piece band, colossal choruses, raging guitar solos, and twenty, yes, TWENTY lead singers!

The Boston Phoenix describes them as “Headbanger's Ball meets Polyphonic Spree.” They mix strut, energy, and arena rock hooks with indie sensibilities, solid musicianship and blazing solos. If they are not leading the evolution of rock, it's only because they drank their way through Darwin 101.

About Teton Gravity Research:

Based in Jackson, WY, TGR is the premier action sports entertainment brand. TGR consists of award winning producers, directors, cinematographers and the most recognized professional athletes in skiing, snowboarding, surfing, and related action sports.

About LOST AND FOUND:

From industry leader Teton Gravity Research comes a must have cinematic epic. Shot on 16mm and HD, LOST AND FOUND is the story of the extraordinary season of 2007 as seen through the eyes of world-class skiers and snowboarders. With global drought persisting and ski resorts closing around the world, athletes are forced to follow the snow, sending them deep into the uncharted north country of Alaska and Canada. Filmed almost entirely in North America, LOST AND FOUND is a testament to the terrain and conditions that only exist in the Western Hemisphere. This film will take you into the vast, unexplored Tordrillo Mountains of Alaska, proving that some of the best big mountain riding in the world is still completely undiscovered. Athletes take advantage of the bountiful winter in British Columbia, hit disturbing park features in Aspen and score over-the-head powder pillows at Skeena Heli skiing. The winter of 2007 was feast or famine; LOST AND FOUND documents the feast.

ATHLETES starring in the film are Marc Andre Belliveau, Seth MORRISON, Jeremy JONES, Sage CATTABRIGA-ALOSA, Ian McINTOSH, Candide THOVEX, Dash LONGE, Jeremy NOBIS, Erik RONER, Dana FLAHR, Chris COLLINS, and many more.

FILMED ON LOACATION at Tordrillo Mountains AK, Skeena Heliskiing BC, Jackson Hole, Utah, Montana, Aspen, Pemberton BC, Kicking Horse BC, Austria and Switzerland.

SPONSORS: Presented by Jeep, The North Face, Rossignol, Dynastar/Lange, Powder, Burton, Recco, Apple, Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, and nossaTV.

U.S. Freeskiing Dates Announced

Via MSI & USfreeskiing.com:

Registration for the 2008 Subaru U.S. Freeskiing Series and IFSA Freeskiing World Tour goes live on USfreeskiing.com TUESDAY NOVEMBER 13, 2007, AT 6AM MST.

Be sure to register early to avoid disappointment! Last year’s events sold-out in mere hours. Mark your calendars; write it on your hand or on your bathroom mirror, whatever you need to do to remember it – but do not miss this date! The 2008 Subaru U.S. Freeskiing Series is going to be huge with a new event in Alyeska, Alaska.

**The first 75 athletes to register will receive a free DVD of all videos shot for usfreeskiing.com in 2007!

“The 2008 tour schedule is the most impressive I’ve ever seen,” said veteran tour champion Drew Tabke. “I’m really happy to be going back to Squaw Valley and Alaska really tops it off. This should be a huge year for freeskiing.”

The dates of each event are confirmed and listed below:

Subaru U.S. Freeskiing Series

• Stop 1: Subaru Telluride Freeskiing Open, Feb 7-10
• Stop 2: Subaru Squaw Valley Freeskiing Open, Feb 14-17
• Stop 3: Subaru Jackson Hole Freeskiing Open, March 13-16
• Stop 4: Subaru U.S. Freeskiing Nationals, Snowbird, UT, March 18-23
• Stop 5: Subaru North American Freeskiing Championships, Kirkwood, CA, March 25-30
• Stop 6: Subaru Freeskiing World Championships, Alyeska, AK, April 9-13( Subaru U.S. Freeskiing Series Finals)

Freeskiing World Tour

• Stop 1: Subaru U.S. Freeskiing Nationals, Snowbird, UT, March 18-23
• Stop 2: Subaru North American Freeskiing Championships, Kirkwood, CA, March 25-30
• Stop 3: Subaru European Freeskiing Championships, Davos, Switzerland, Date TBD
• Stop 4: Subaru Freeskiing World Championships, Alyeska, AK, April 9-13 (Subaru U.S. Freeskiing Series Finals & Freeskiing World Tour Finals)

Check out the trailer for Linescore, the film by Core Shot Films that documented last year's season:

Steamboat Mountain Film Festival - Award Winners

Award winners split gear and $1000 from sponsors

Reel Award Best Overall – Presented by Steamboat Ski and Resort Corporation
First Place: Self Edit by David Lesh ($250)
Runner Up (tie): Tres Queso by Idiosyncrasy Films (Zach Ostrander) and Lift Line Media (Josh Brom) ($125)
Runner Up (tie): Steamboat Life II The Life by Brian McCleary ($125)



Reel Award for Best Teaser – Presented by NossaTV.com
1st Steeze Watch by Kerry Lofy ($250) – Score: 4.0
2nd Recovery by Matt Stensland ($150) – Score: 3.2
3rd Tres Queso by Idiosyncrasy Films/Lift Line Media ($100) – Score: 2.4



Reel Award for Best Line – Presented by Liberty Skis
Tres Queso by Idiosyncrasy Films / Lift Line Media



Reel Award for Best Powder – Presented by Helly Hansen
The Healing by Front Range Powder Factory

KGB "Sublimation Experiment" Tour

KGB Productions hitting the road with Sublimation Experiment

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October 10th (NossaTV) - After a sold-out premiere in their hometown of Jackson, Wyoming, KGB Productions sets out on their national tour with Sublimation Experiment. "This is not a story of big name pros, but rather a story of people that are devoted to the sport and struggle to make it work, just like you and me," pledge Chris Kitchen and Sam Pope of KGB.

The film has been received very well by a Who's Who of backcountry journalists. What they've had to say:

Lou Dawson, Wildsnow.com - "... plenty of excellent ski footage that has a distinct backcountry and earn-your-turns slant."

Powstash, Backcountry Blog - "... a different approach to the skiing lifestyle, one I think is easier to relate to. (Sublimation) appeals to an audience ... it's not your typical ski pro flying around the globe skiing patches of snow on far away mountains ... it relates to those who will watch it."

the snaz - "... plenty of good local ski vibes."

B. Gulotta, DropKnees - "This is a film about skiing and how young people struggle to make a difference in the world. Its an environmentally based film with some sick footage."

Built for the Mountain Life blog - "A fun soundtrack that won't cause you to leave with a headache."

Now a sponsored NossaTV filmmaker, KGB has been with the video on demand site since its launch. Their original movie Sanctified and short video Jackson Skids are on site, as well as a first look at Sublimation Experiment. Click on the preview above or go to NossaTV to see the Sublimation Experiment trailers. Expect to see their latest lifestyle piece, Jackson Rigs, on NossaTV soon.

The rest of the tour is shaping up like this:

October 19th - Aspen, CO - Wheeler Theatre

October 20th - Carbondale, CO - Dos Gringo Burritos

October 27th - Missoula, MT - Roxy Theatre

November 10th - Salt Lake City, UT - UVSC Ballroom

November 11th - Rockland, ME - Strand Theatre

November 15th - Waterville, ME - Colby College

November 16th - Boise, ID - Egyptian Theatre

November 27th - Durango, CO - Abbey Theatre

December 6th - Salt Lake City, UT - Brewvies

December 10th - Salida, CO - Steamplant Brewery

Additionally, Sublimation Experiment will be shown several times during the Stowe Mountain Film Festival and at the Vermont Ski Museum, also in Stowe, VT. More shows are pending for Telluride, Mammoth, Eugene, and numerous other cities and college campuses across the U.S. and Canada.

Visit nossatv.blogspot.com for periodic tour updates.
Visit www.nossaTV.com to download full screen KGB videos.
Visit www.kgb-productions.com to get sublimated.

Voleurz "More For The Astronauts" Tour

Vancouver based Voleurz launches "Deep Space Tour"


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October 9th (NossaTV) - Upstart Canadian filmmakers Voleurz ("voh-lers") are on the road with their new feature length video More For The Astronauts. Officially dubbed The Deep Space Tour, presenting sponsor Coors Light is providing the spirits, while Darren Raynor and crew provide the stoke.

The film is an entertaining combination of ski and snowboard, urban and backcountry booter. Mixing fresh music, comedic skits, and first class footage, this is one flick that is sure to stand out this winter. The video stars such athletes as Joe Schuster, TJ Schiller, Josh Bibby, Shayne Zwickel, Braden Dean, Graeme Samodien, Cam Schuster, Jan Schuster, and Darren Rayner. It's set in Whistler, inbounds and out, and Silverstar Resort.

Voleurz threw a huge premiere in the Molson/Coors Brewery in Vancouver and now they're rollin' across the Northern side of the border through such towns as Kelowna (9 Oct), Penticton (13 Oct), and Vernon (18 & 19 Oct). Rounding out the month of October, the Deep Space Tour lands in Calgary (23 Oct), Edmonton, Saskatoon, Winnipeg (30 Oct) and Toronto. In early November they will be showing Astronauts in Kingston, Montreal, and Quebec City. Then its back to Vancouver and Whistler for the finale.

Visit www.voleurz.com for updated dates and locations.
Visit www.nossatv.com to download and view both trailers full screen.

Update: NossaTV just added two "mini-episodes" to the site, a day in the Blackcomb Park with skiers TJ Schiller and Josh Bibby, and a sunset ski shoot on the Blackcomb Glacier.

The Meeting - It's a Wrap

The Monday after The Meeting in Aspen - Trying to remember back as far as last Thursday night isn't necessarily easy. But here I go...

NEPSA Awards (photo: newschoolers.com)

The NEPSA / Meeting in Aspen weekend kicked off with an absolutely packed house for the 5th Annual NEPSA Awards. The show was comprised of "ten short films created by local athletes." When the results were announced, we realized NossaTV filmmakers had done very well. Two of the top four already had videos on NossaTV. Not a bad start to the weekend. We also meet with several new filmmakers whose work impressed us. But trying to get a few words in with Matt Hobbs while he and his athletes divied up the $3500 grand prize ($100 dollar bills) wasn't easy!

NEPSA Results:
1. "Unnamed" - produced by Matt Hobbs (Vital Films, Every Day is Saturday and Smooth Denali)
2. "Transition of Life" - Chris Anthony
3. "64 Frames" - Aaron Hooper
4. "More Lucky Than Cool" - edited by Mike Cuseo (CuseoMovingMedia, Winter Gone Weird and More Lucky Than Cool)




After the NEPSA Awards, it was straight over to the Belly Up for the Opening Party and D&E Ski & Snowboard Fashion Show. Half expecting a bunch of ski shop employees just walking around in this season's outerwear, it was quite the opposite. The models were clearly professional, the well-rehearsed "catwalk" a dead give-away, not to mention the small crew of their friends from New York (or LA) who arrived just before the show. And there must have been a quota for showing tight white t-shirts and booty shorts for each manufacturer. Having left the camera in the car, I quickly realized the opportunity lost. Fortunately there were about 25 professional cameras flashing away, so we hope to find and add some photos to this post.

D&E Ski & Snowboard Fashion Show (photo: newschoolers.com)

We were really happy to meet some of our other filmmakers and get some good feedback on the site. Mike Martin from WZ-TV / Steamboat Mountain Film Festival was more than happy to tell us what was on his mind. But seriously, listening to our filmmakers and users is time well spent.


The Meeting officially began on Friday with the first of three "sessions" NossaTV got to participate in. It was a fairly routine presentation on Music Licensing in Action Sports featuring Richard Jankovich from Rumblefish, followed by a Q&A. Richard basically concentrated on the basics and the law in "laymen's terms." But he added his opinion on some very recent events in the world of music licensing and the "harsh reality" of being sued for not having the proper licenses.

Fred, Bob, and Mike S. from NossaTV, diligently taking notes (photo: TGR)

It was cool to meet up with some key ski/snowboard media at the reception (re: free alcohol) immediately following the licensing session. This ended up being some of the most rewarding one-on-one conversations of the entire weekend, as the pace picked up considerably afterwards and worthwhile meetings were pretty much outta the question.

Friday night was basically six straight ski and snowboard videos. Four showed at Wheeler Opera House, and two at the Belly Up. Let the blur begin...

Saturday The Meeting managed to squeeze two industry sessions, go-cart races, and six more ski & snowboard films into the day. The sessions included a very insightful look into Sponsorship by Issa Sawabini from Fuse Marketing, and a lively Competition Forum featuring Calum Clark (USSA Grand Prix), Zach Christ (The Ski Tour / Jeep King of the Mountain), and Chris Stiepock (ESPN X Games). The scheduling challenges facing professional athletes are becoming a real issue, with filmmakers competing for time with the growing slate of high-paying events. How do you maintain the balance between giving casual fans what they want (via network TV ratings) and what core fans want (progression of the sport via films)?

The Q&A portion of the Competition Forum actually wound up with a fairly spirited back-and-forth between Tanner Hall (backed by other attendees) and Mr. Clark. More statement than question, athletes wanted it noted the failure to get skiing halfpipe in the 2010 Winter Games was unacceptable. Others went on to argue that including ski cross and not ski pipe was indicative of the division in alpine skiing. For those keeping score: snowboard halfpipe (in the Olympics), snowboard cross (Olympics), ski cross (2010), ski halfpipe (still on the outside looking in). Say what you want about Tanner, he's smarter and cares more about the sport than most people give him credit for. And USSA is on report for not representing freeskiing.

Six more videos and we were done. It should be noted that temps dropped steadily over the weekend, winding up with some snow flurries Saturday night. As we left the Roaring Fork Valley on Sunday morning, the mountains were frosted and we could see our breath. Watch those movies, but get ready for the real thing.