The City of Trail is getting buzz, not because it’s home to the largest zinc smelter in the world and prices are up, but because of a new ski movie that’s going viral.

JP Auclair’s urban skiing segment was posted 2 weeks ago on several ski mag forums, and the contagion factor was as rapid an Ebola fever pandemic. The fact that the segment has generated more than half a million hits on vimeo was enough to make it prime-time newsworthy, especially given the eagerness of Trail’s mayor to claim it as a local success story. (The story runs at 11:43.)

Our takeaway from this well-deserved success for the hard-working crew and athletes behind All.I.Can?

JP Auclair Street Segment (from All.I.Can.) from Sherpas Cinema on Vimeo.

1. 90 awesome seconds of a ski film will do more for the image of a town than a city-convened Image Committee will achieve in three years.

2. Social success is now driving mainstream media headlines.

3. Dave Mossop’s mustache WON Movember.

But seriously, we’ve seen evidence of this appetite for authentic story, character and playfulness, (as distinct from contrived and highly managed messaging), with several of our winter campaigns, from the Tourism Whistler Sabbatical Project, to Whistler Blackcomb’s Embedded, to Jay Peak’s winter launch of the Pump House.

The campaigns, anchored in digital storytelling and playful experience, have generated massive uptake in consumer engagement, and spilled over into headlines in the New York Times and widespread online sharing. (All we were missing were the mustaches.)

Would you ski a run called DOA? from Tourism Whistler on Vimeo.

Bottom line on how to make prime time headlines? Do good work, that speaks truly to your core constituents. Hit share.

Whistler’s home town girl Ali Milner shows that you can be true to your classic style and training, and be perfectly at ease jamming with a hip hop superstar. And that combination adds up to: Awesome.

Bilingual fluency in French and English is an asset, excellent written and verbal communication skills are a must. The successful candidate may choose either of Origin’s Whistler or Montreal offices as his or her home-base.

Must be eligible to work in Canada.

A full job description is available here BusDev_Marketing

Interested applicants can send their resume and salary expectations to jobs@origindesign.ca.

We would like to thank all applicants for their interest in this position; however only those who are considered for an interview will be contacted. No calls please.

Mike Douglas, aka “the Godfather,” is the ski industry’s rennaissance man. He just keeps remaking himself. From pro athlete to ski design innovator to event engineer to webisode producer for Salomon Freeski TV, these days Douglas is increasingly inspired to make film–festival quality shorts from his Whistler digital studio, Switchback Entertainment, like the 72 Hour Filmmaker Showdown finalist, Like, or his recent 15 minute short, The Freedom Chair.

LiKE from Switchback Entertainment on Vimeo.

The Freedom Chair – Official Trailer from Switchback Entertainment on Vimeo.

He’s also going deep as part of Whistler Blackcomb’s annual celebration of the season opening, embedding himself on the peak to watch winter arrive.

We chatted with Mike about what’s changing in the world of ski films and what’s fueling his stoke these days.

Why the ski–porn path is diverging in the woods:

This year, Freeskier posted 55 trailers for ski films. There’s definitely been a shift and it started 4-5 years ago. More than anything, what’s responsible is a change in the technology. Good cameras got way cheaper, more accessible and anything to do with video production has gone up in quality. So it’s opened up the world to a lot more people. When it was TGR, MSP, Level 1 and Poor Boyz spitting out ski porn every year, you didn’t get sick of it, because there were only 4 films. When there’s suddenly 20-30, you need to stand out, and you can do that either through technology, which Matchstick has, or through creativity, and that’s been the thing that has changed the game.

Is there a standard path for a filmmaker?

I went about it completely in reverse. I was producing web content and had a solid, consistent product. And 2 years ago, Telluride Film Festival, who had been watching the show, reached out to me and said, ‘have you ever thought about submitting something to the show?’ Uh, no. ‘You should.’ Well, how would I do that? So we played one of the episodes in the film festival and it totally opened my eyes, there’s so much rad stuff to see. I was like, this is so cool, I want to do more.

Are there opportunities for brands to reach the film festival audience?

Without a doubt. Last year, we were more on the festival radar and we screened at ten different festivals. This year, instead of producing 20 episodes for Salomon Freeski TV, we are producing 15 shows, with a view to putting together 3 shows with largest edits for the film festivals. Our goal is to hit fifty festivals this year. I did a little sales pitch to the guys at Salomon and said, we could totally reach the hardcore outdoor demographic through this venue. So I’ve been busting my butt all summer to make short films instead of webisodes, which is harder than I thought it would be. But it’s super inspiring.

The secret to a successful creative collaboration?

+Good Chemistry

Dan Barham, (www.danbarham.com) whose 3^rd place winning light-hearted “5 Stages of a Bummer Summer” riffed on the season’s disappointing weather, brainstormed his show’s “big idea” with his crew around a large table with two bottles of scotch and a pad of paper. “I’d had the idea for the ‘five stages of grief’ on the drive up that afternoon,” said Barham, “so we hashed out a very rough plan and then kept it loose. That way, we were able to go with the flow, concentrate on things that seemed to be working and ignore those that weren’t.”

For Barham, creative collaboration with his posse made the event so fun, even with the high-stakes and high-stress timeline. “I collaborate with writers and creative directors all the time, but normally only so far as getting the general concepts or overview of a job clear in both our minds. This Deep Summer was a step above that. Having such a short amount of time to put together a finished piece meant sharing responsibility, trusting the instincts of the talent I’d surrounded myself with, and relinquishing some control over details.”

+ An Open Mind

Event winner Robin O’Neill (www.robinoneillphotography.com) conceived her big idea herself, to document the Whistler indie bike crew at Chromag. Then, after the idea had percolated a little, she began bringing other people in to her creative circle and fleshing out the storyboard. “I like to collaborate. The athletes, the environment, the passionate locals with all their trail knowledge. Your support system, editor, fantastic writer friend… All of those come together to create a show. The more ideas that are thrown in to the mix, the more brains to pick it apart and find the holes in the technical or logistical aspects of the work or the storyline all lead to success. And being open–minded to others’ input is the key to a successful collaboration. It is important to have buy–in from your team, so they want to work hard to actualize your idea.”

+ Shared Vision

Tim Zimmerman (www.timzimmerman.com) also developed his Grim Reaper/RIP Summer concept on his own (“I spend a lot of time alone in my truck driving from shoot to shoot. My concept came to me on one of those long contemplative driving sessions while listening to Amon Amarth way too loud”) which he developed into a storyboard and a specific shot list that he shared with his entire crew. “That way, we all knew what we needed to make happen. I was worried about how my idea would be received by the crew at first but I got nothing but positive feedback and started getting ideas thrown at me that really added to the vision. It stopped being “my” vision and became a group effort. My crew helped me stay on–task, to the point of choosing runs on the mountain that would allow us to get the highest number of shots and supporting background images per run. I have never been a solo–flying photographer, ever. All good photographs featuring people are collaborative in nature. Everyone involved has to be behind an idea to make it work properly. If you don’t believe in what you’re working on, it won’t be good. Period.”

Le secret d’une collaboration créative réussie ?

+Une bonne chimie

Dan Barham, (www.danbarham.com) dont le document humoristique « 5 Stages of a Bummer Summer » s’est mérité une 3^ème place en ironisant sur la déception causée par la mauvaise température, a développé « la grande idée » avec son équipe autour d’une grande table avec deux bouteilles de scotch et une tablette de papier. « J’ai eu l’idée des « cinq stages du deuil » sur la route durant l’après-midi avant d’arriver, dit Dan, et nous avons ensuite élaboré une structure très sommaire que nous avons gardée ainsi. De cette façon, on a été capable de laisser sortir le jus, de nous concentrer sur des choses qui semblaient fonctionner et ignorer ce qui ne marchait pas. »

Pour Dan, la collaboration créative avec sa gang a rendu l’événement plaisant, malgré l’enjeu élevé et les délais stressants. « Je collabore régulièrement avec des rédacteurs et des directeurs de création, mais ça ne va pas généralement plus loin que de comprendre les concepts dans leur ensemble ou de clarifier avec la personne le travail à faire. Pour Deep Summer, c’était une coche de plus. Comme on disposait de très peu de temps pour produire le final, il fallait répartir les responsabilités, se fier à nos instincts et renoncer à vouloir tout contrôler. »

+ Ouverture d’esprit

La gagnante de la compétition, Robin O’Neill (www.robinoneillphotography.com) a développé elle-même sa grande idée : créer un document sur l’équipe de vélo indie Chromag de Whistler. Une fois que l’idée a macéré un peu, elle s’est mise à amener du monde dans son cercle de création et à étoffer son découpage. « J’adore travailler avec du monde. Les athlètes, l’environnement, les locaux passionnés avec leurs connaissances des sentiers. Mon réseau de soutien, mon monteur, un super ami écrivain… Tout se met en place pour créer un document. Plus il y a d’idées au départ, plus il y a de cellules grises pour décortiquer chaque aspect technique ou logistique du travail ou du scénario et plus le succès sera au rendez-vous. Être ouvert à l’input des autres est très important pour que la démarche collaborative donne des résultats. Il faut aussi l’adhésion de l’équipe pour que tout le monde fournisse le meilleur de lui-même et donner forme à votre projet. »

+ Vision commune

Tim Zimmerman (www.timzimmerman.com) a également développé son concept de Grim Reaper/RIP Summer seul (« Je passe beaucoup de temps seul sur la route dans mon camion, de tournage en tournage. L’idée m’est venue lors d’un long trajet contemplatif en écoutant du Amon Amarth à la planche. »). Il a développé son concept en découpage avec une liste précise de plans qu’il a fait parvenir à son entière équipe. « De cette façon, on savait exactement de dont on avait de besoin pour que ça se fasse. J’étais un peu nerveux de savoir comment l’équipe aimerait le projet, mais je n’ai reçu que des commentaires positifs et les gens me renvoyaient la balle avec des idées supplémentaires qui ont vraiment nourri la vision. Ce n’était plus « ma » seule vision, mais un effort collectif. Mon équipe m’a aidé à me concentrer sur les tâches à faire, jusqu’au point de choisir les descentes en montagne offrant le plus de plans et le plus d’arrière-plans par course. Je n’ai jamais été un photographe solo. Les bons photographes qui filment des gens aiment naturellement collaborer. Tout le monde impliqué dans un projet doit se ranger derrière un but commun pour que ça fonctionne. Si vous ne croyez pas à ce que vous faites, ça ne marchera pas. Tout simplement. »

All.I.Can. Official Teaser from Sherpas Cinema on Vimeo.

The scale of the project is mammoth – the feature was shot over 2 years across five countries with more than 15 different athletes. So we figured if anyone has some lessons on navigating the creative process, it’s the Sherpas.

Here’s the short version of How to Make Something Awesome, Sherpa–style, (with thanks to director Dave Mossop for taking a break from cutting, rendering and masterminding an eco–revolution, to chat):

1. Don’t be afraid of a big idea.

Creating a ski film with a theme has been one of the hugest challenges of my life.  The chapters and segments in All.I.Can are loosely based on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs – his theory provides quite a palatable explanation of the building blocks and stages necessary for a person to reach “self-actualization” or reach their full potential.  In the case of our environment, we are interested in humanity as a whole reaching actualization, and in turn, a balanced sustainable existence.

2. Commit yourself, boldly and publicly.

Dropping the trailer for All.I.Can last summer was kind of like Evil Knievel holding a press conference and saying, “Next year, I’m going to jump 150 cars in my underwear”. Half a million people have seen it. It’s being studied in film school. It’s a piece of art, in and of itself. But it’s also a promise and a contract with 500,000 people, to deliver. You can’t get more accountable than that.

It’s been the most intense year of my life, and though I signed up for this epic quest, I never dreamed there would be such an enormous following.  It’s awesome, but yes, the pressure can often be overwhelming – we are just regular dudes after all.

3. Give yourself a deadline. That you must meet. Or suffer public humiliation.

That would be the September 15 screening in Montreal at IF3 – the International Freeski Film Festival, followed by the world premiere in Whistler on September 23. And counting…

4. Trust your obsessions. (That would be time–lapse, I’m guessing?)

Dave Mossop capturing a seasonal time–lapse. Photo by Malcolm Sangster.

5. Make the process as fun as possible. Explore a question you are passionate and curious about. Take the dream trips for your research and shooting. Work with people you love and admire and have a blast hanging out with.

Single best moment of the past 2 years? That’s impossible to say, but my birthday party at 10,000ft on the Freshfields Icefields pops to mind.  Next day, not so much.

Freshfields Icefield camp. Photo: Malcolm Sangster.

6. Be disciplined and dig in for the hard yards.

As Scott Belsky, founder of Behance says, great work is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration.

Sherpas Cinema Interview from Mitchell Scott on Vimeo.

And perspiration looks like this:

Mitchell Scott, (June 13): So how many hours of work left until we get to that day, September 23?

Dave Mossop: Whatever the days are between now and then, times 24 hours a day, plus about 300 hours, that we’ll manage to squeeze in there somehow.

Tickets are $20 and can be ordered online here.

The result: The Wisdom Project.

Here’s what he learned.

Andrew Zuckerman from 99% on Vimeo.

Inspiration is for amateurs. The rest of us show up and get to work. ( ~ Chuck Close. )

Zuckerman on the irrelevance of inspiration: “When curiosity and rigor get together, something happens. If one of those things isn’t there, then either nothing happens, or the project doesn’t really reach people.”

So is this a

or a

kinda day?

So, in honour of Cupcake Tuesday, we present our top 3 DIY creative projects for the week.

1. Green design, thanks to the girls from Hurley. Haven’t you always wanted a cactus coffee table? (The most effective way to stop your housemates’ cat from walking all over the furniture.)

2. A 100% biodegradable surfboard from waste cardboard. It’s a protest placard! It’s a dreamy summer afternoon by-the-lake project! It’s art! It’s just freaking cool.

THE CARDBOARD from Scott Mac Donough on Vimeo.

3. Ninja gingerbread, because real men do get sugar cravings and resort to comfort-eating… And when Chuck Norris wears an apron, he takes names and rolls dough with his elbows.