A really unique video hit our inbox yesterday. Simply put, we were pleasantly surprised to open an email that linked to a 20-minute Japanese street movie—definitely not something we see everyday.
Optical Path Length follows Hiromu Kobayashi, Daichi Matsushita, and Koji Yamada as they navigate the seemingly limited Japanese spot selection. Unfortunately, "seemingly limited spot selection" is an all too common reality for everyone, regardless of location. Non played out spots are a rarity, and the fact that the Third Creek Sardine crew finds enjoyment and purpose in uncovering that gives us hope for the future of street snowboarding.
Enjoy a little insight on the inspiration that fueled this film:
"As a premise, I respect all snowboarders, photographers, filmers and editors as a street snowboarder/video creator. But as a viewer, I can't help but feel my excitement subside every time an existing spot appears on the screen.
This phenomenon is especially common in Japanese videos, where snowfall areas are limited, and clips of the same spots are used in multiple videos every year. Just like movies and comics, the first viewing with no sense of déjà vu is the most stimulating, and the second and subsequent viewings cannot compete with the first viewing. Of course, good videos like "dreamcastle", "how dark blue feels", "Good Sport", "something for us", "CONNEXIONS", etc. are always stimulating. The development of unexplored spots is also related to residential areas and environmental problems, and it is also a big issue for us who are active and future street snowboarders, but I think that is why it is worth it. We avoided existing spots as much as possible and spent time exploring unexplored spots. We believe that people with the same sensibilities as us can feel the same stimulation as we do by watching our videos." —Hiromu Kobayashi
Starring: Koji Yamada, Daichi “8931” Matsushita, Hiromu Kobayashi
Also Featuring: Keisuke Seko, Masayuki Hashimoto, Soto Kurimoto, Shoya Mitsuda, and Miyuki Asaoka
Edited by: Hiromu Kobayashi
