#josh smukal

[dylan-kasson]

Josh Smukal Gahanna, Ohio

[ccadedu]

Josh Smukal grew up in Columbus and came to CCAD to study video. He puts his video skills to use at the CCAD Student Agency, where he works as a videographer, and recently at Tilt Scooters, where he worked on a big project. Get details of Josh's story, and how he's grown as a filmmaker since coming to CCAD.  

[dylan-kasson]

Tyler Wheeland Brooklyn, New York

A few months ago Tyler called me and said he was interested in getting back into scootering. After his Hella Grip part I thought that I would never see him on a scooter again. I told him nothing had changed, people ride scooters and film, and to meet me in New York in March. To see Tyler determined to ride and enjoying it again is surreal.

[dylan-kasson]

Erik Deptula Brooklyn, New York

Erik can play any classic rock song on command, ask him.

[dylan-kasson]

Josh Smukal and Jon Archer Toronto, Ontario

Tom was trying a handrail in the pouring rain. He was so close every try but as time went on it was apparent that it wasn’t going to happen in the rain. None of us were going to leave or tell him to stop, so we had to resort to whatever we could to document it. Most of us took cover under trees. When the rain started getting really bad Jon ran over to Josh to cover him with the shirt. We were all nervous because the camera he was using is not intended for any kind of rain use. I was under a tree and saw Jon run over. I bent over to create a covering and switched from my 35mm to my 90mm lens under the tree I was standing. Shooting with fully mechanical cameras like the rangefinder I have is great because weather wise there’s very little that can harm the camera. I metered, ran out from the tree, composed and focused, and shot one frame. Soon after Tom gave up so we all ran back to the car. When the rain stopped we came back and Tom rolled away like the scooter warrior he is.

[dylan-kasson]

Josh and I are constantly pushing around for a few hours at night when we are both free. We usually go to the same areas, but it always amazes me what a new day or some other factor can bring. In areas we have been riding for years that have remain unchanged, a different perspective makes something rideable. The discovery is equally satisfying as landing a trick on what we find.

[dylan-kasson]

As Josh climbed to the top of the ledge and sat down, I noticed he became a reference to the scale of the wall and the awning. The frame was divided in half by solid textures and the arched lines of the awning lead to him. I have a compact flash that I used on my Fuji digital cameras and it seems to be working out for the Voigtlander also.

[dylan-kasson]

I grew up at the skate park with David Veltum. Of all the scooter riders I have seen in person, he is one of the most naturally talented. Over the years I would ride with him off and on. He would show up at the park or we would go on a trip. After he left, everyone involved would be in awe. Then he would disappear for months. Despite my efforts to get him recognized in the mainstream scooter world, there was only so much I could do. The four color photographs are from the period of time in 2012 when we went on two trips to Chicago and rode a couple days in Columbus. I was pushing him to get out frequently because I knew he was at the age where his riding had matured enough to film a memorable video part. After the last trip to Chicago that was it, I didn’t hear from him again. The product of those few days turned into a short video part on Scooter Resource.

On August 22, 2014, David was forced off the road on his motorcycle by an SUV. He struck a tree and was ejected 100 feet off the motorcycle. He was rushed to the hospital in critical condition. The SUV kept driving and was never found. This was the first I had heard about David since the Chicago trip in 2012. As he was fighting for his life in the hospital I was trying to wrap my head around the series of events. This person I grew up with, watched evolve into a scooter rider I respected, could be dead.

I was riding at Powell skate park on a cloudy February day this year. I checked my phone and there was a text from David simply saying along the lines of “ride westerville?”. I immediately left Powell and drove to Westerville skate park. There he was, seemingly resurrected from the dead. We talked for awhile about the accident, riding scooters back in the day, and his recovery. The whole time I could hardly believe I was standing there with him. He had been going through months of reconstructive surgery and rehab that still was not over. He explained to me that multiple ligaments in his knee were torn and he hadn’t got them repaired yet. He was able to find a doctor to repair the nerves in his arm that were diagnosed to never move again, along with other lifelong injuries.

After explaining all of this to me, he did something I wasn’t expecting to see. He jumped on his scooter and rolled into a quarter pipe. He proceeded to blast airs, grind rails, and do tricks over pyramids. The level of comfort he had on the scooter did not depict his injuries, or his time off the scooter. I couldn’t believe it.

I knew how important this moment was so I took out my camera to document it. He was blasting the big quarter pipe, so I stood on the deck of it with my camera and pointed to it. He pushed towards it and went even higher than previously. I thought he went out of the frame. I took a few more air photographs and then that was it. We said goodbye, lets ride sometime, and so on.

[dylan-kasson]

There are always spots that you drive by frequently but various imperfections cause you to never stop. Max dropped down a step and quickly hopped into a board slide. The distance was so short that his front wheel hovered in between. I climbed a tree with my camera while Josh filmed.

[dylan-kasson]

I edited the video for Tilt’s new glow in the dark Continental grips. Filmed by Josh Smukal.

[dylan-kasson]

I edited a short video when Conor Davidson visited me during a cross country road trip. See you in Portland in November Conor, and everybody else. Filmed by Josh Smukal.

[dylan-kasson]

I edited the official video for the 2015 Chicago Street Jam. Filmed by Olivia Monks and Josh Smukal.

[dylan-kasson]

I did most of the filming and all of the editing for the Tilt 2 trailer.

Tilt 2 is a film that will not only be a breakthrough in the standard of modern street riding, but also a new level of scooter cinema that the community has never seen before. Featuring full parts from Erik Feenstra, Dylan Kasson, Issac Miller, Jon Archer, Ralph Mcmoran, Jordan Jasa, Jona Humbel, and Tom Kvilhaug.

Tilt 2 will premier after the Chicago street jam on August 8, 2015.