2019 Pinkbike Awards: Video of the Year Nominees
Video Nominees
It used to be that the best shot edits with the biggest moves in the most impressive locations were generally rewarded with the most views and plaudits, but that isn't always the case now. These days glowing thumbnails, all-caps titles and chest cams grab a lot of views while some well-crafted edits get swallowed in the content avalanche.
The Pinkbike Video of the Year award isn't about the most views or the most viral moments, but instead the art of shooting videos and telling a story. This is for the filmers and athletes that went the extra mile to deliver us with some stunning content. Here are our nominees for Video of the Year.
Fabio Wibmer in 'Urban Freeride Lives 3
Why it's nominated
The man with titanium ankles returns for the third instalment of his Urban Freeride Lives series. This time the streets of Lyon and Paris were in his crosshairs as he hucks off every stair set in sight. Cinematography-wise it's not the most impressive video in this list, but Fabio is starting to shave away the cheesy skits from his edits and instead just pack them with bangers, and that has to be worth a spot.
Brandon Semenuk & R-Dog in 'Parallel'
Why it's nominated
Two bike wizards performed a synchronized shredding routine and left our jaws on the floor. The precise planning, from the building of the track to the positioning of the shots to the impressive drone flying and the riding control make this a totally unique edit.
Danny MacAskill in 'Danny Daycare'
Why it's nominated
Danny Daycare was only a side project for the Scottish trials wizard but that is only proof that everything he touches turns to gold. The edit was made to celebrate ten years of Stu Thompson and Danny first working together on the Inspired video as Danny revisits some of his most famous locations. Danny now has his lighthearted, quirky formula down to a tee and every video produces is a pleasure to watch. This is, of course, no exception.
Brett Rheeder in 'Return to Earth'
Why it's nominated
Darcy and the team from Anthill have made some of mountain biking's landmark videos including Follow Me, Seasons, Not Bad, Unreal and Strength in Numbers. In Return to Earth, there's now another classic to add to that list. It was a film about living in the moment and in Brett's section we wanted that moment to last forever. This shoot has already produced a Photo of the Year finalist so it should be no surprise it has a section that's been shortlisted for Video of the Year too.
Reece Wallace in 'Flight Path'
Why it's nominated
After being passed over for Rampage in 2018 following his British Columbia edit, Reece decided he needed to take it up a level for 2019. He traveled south this winter to the crossroads of big mountain riding in Utah. A month of building and two weeks of filming later, Flight Path was the result. Huge moves, high speeds and big exposure, it was everything a Utah edit should be and it finally earned him another shot at freeride's biggest competition.
Mike Hopkins in 'Siblings'
Why it's nominated
Picking up where Skidsville left off, Siblings is all about the joy bikes bring us throughout our lives. Chances you if you're a mountain biker now you can relate to the adventures, discoveries and failures in this edit. It's without a doubt the feel-good video of the year.
Amaury Pierron in 'Reunion Island'
Why it's nominated
As we've seen time and again this year, if you put Amaury Pierron on a bike, magic normally happens. Dressed in just a t-shirt and shorts, Amaury lays waste to the corners of the Reunion Island and throws in some big hucks for good measure. Among all that though there are some incredible slow-mo tracking shots that elevate this typical shreddit into something really special.
Tom Van Steenbergen & Ethan Nell in ‘Mesa’
Why it's nominated
Mesa starts with a huge flat drop flip and doesn't slow down from there. There are big moves aplenty as two Rampage regulars flip and spin-off some seriously intimidating terrain. Much like the Pierron video above though, this is elevated by shots like the slow-mo scrub or the double berm shot.
Thomas Vanderham, Rémi Gauvin, & Carson Storch in 'Oscillation'
Why it's nominated
3 riders, 3 terrains, 3 different riding styles, 1 bike. This beautifully shot edit introduced the new Slayer to the world and it's technically impressive from the soundtrack to the shooting to the editing. But then, when you put these three riders together in an edit, was it ever going to be bad?
DJ Brandt, Hugo Frixtalon, & William Robert in 'The Calm Before the Storm'
Why it's nominated
From racing to bike design to edits, Commencal are doing plenty of things right these days. This is Commencal's second edit in this list and this time it's the launch video for the Furious. Similar to the Rocky video, this shows the bike in a variety of environments with some of its flagship riders. This is the longest video here but it never drags thanks to the stunning shooting and riding.
Your Turn
On this one, you get a say. Let us know which edit you think is best and we'll be awarding a Reader's Choice Award alongside our own.
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For may we all be Rough as F*ck!!!
R.A.F. JORDIE!!!
Can you imagine Yeti featuring a non-Yeti bike in one of their videos? LOL
Don't get me wrong, I think based on Pinkbikes criteria of " the best shot edits with the biggest moves in the most impressive locations" that down to earth featuring Brett Rheeder probably still edges it out. And there are some other amazing videos in this list of people riding bikes. To call anything about Fabio's video cringe I simply don't get.
it might be a product film but it perfectly encapsulates riding for me.
Either way, all are excellent as anybody who really rides bikes would agree.
There are a number of amazing edits on this list of guys riding bikes on a trail which I thoroughly enjoyed. Urban Freeride Lives has nearly 8 million views on Youtube in 2 weeks! It's clearly the best video.
Be the change you claim to want to see in this world Pinkbike!!!!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eo0TN9UjVlU&t=3s
NO I'M NOT SAYING I COULD DO IT BETTER, NO I'M NOT SAYING IT'S NOT TOTALLY f*ckED GNARLY.... i'm just saying.....
In Fabio's video, the only cases you see are in stunts where he probably though that a clean shot was not worth the risk. Always remember that when a gap looks big in video, they're huge IRL. And pretty much all of those looked huge in video, which might say something
#1 Semenuk RAW100 v5 (Utah edit)
#2 paul Couderc My War
What you proposed above is a vote for #3
youtu.be/uh4ZqGwOHEQ
Because it`s cool to see a well made video with some RM Slayers that don`t break
All I'm saying is he is epic. Consider him in the future
Sam Pilgrim is amazing, but has not once ridden with Semenuk or Fabio this year.
Also, Tom Cardy.
Also, "crack a monny o'clock''.
As much as I like Pilgs, most of his videos are put together in a day or two and are basically vlogs.
This list is not about the riders skills or connections... it's about image quality, fluidity, uniqueness, and all the hardships that come with making a mtb video.
I'll give it to Pilgrim though, he does put out like 100 really consistent videos a year and that's pretty amazing.