Evan Smith embodies the very roots of skateboarding and its creative nature. With an incredible run in the past few years, Evan has put out a myriad of mind-numbing video parts, enough coverage to stop the presses, and done it all with style for miles. So it should come to no surprise that Element and DC are proud to announce that Evan Smith is the newest pro to their teams. And what better way to do so, than roll it all out with a full-length video part, set to his own soundtrack… Turn on, tune in, and drop out; this is The Evan Smith Experience.

Waking up to a new vista with no certainties but the clothes on your back and your skateboard is rather romantic notion for most. For some it’s a reality though as the life of a professional skateboarder always presents opportunities to keep discovering. Michael Mackrodt is the perfect example, scouring the globe not just for new spots but for new experience. Element’s collections are also about keeping discovering and finding the new. Clothes that keep you comfortable whatever the weather and whatever the company. For SS13 Element followed Michael on his travels and produced a vignette that gives a good feel of what a few days in the life of Mr. Mackrodt might be like.

Shop the new Spring 13 Collection

With his unique approach to skateboarding, music, photography and art wrapped into one project, the Evan Smith Experience is much more than just your typical video part. Watch the teaser and stay tuned for the full Evan Smith Experience on 3/21/13.

Take a trip down memory lane in “Past To Present” starring the entire Element team. Written and Directed by Kirk Dianda, and narrated by Chad Muska, the team goes back in time to relive the fashion, music, and iconic moments of skateboarding’s past.

“The concept was to show skateboarding through snapshots of the times, creating a mini documentary. I took a satirical route with the concept and direction, loosely paying homage to the icons, fashion, and design that defined how we got here today. Ultimately, I wanted to commend skateboarders for their creativity and individuality. Since day one, we’ve been inventors that see the world differently, and that gene has been passed down from generation, to generation. The entire piece is strung together with a narrative by Chad Muska, told in the first-perosn perspecitve. I wanted to give that sense of the narrator telling the stories of his generation, almost like a Forrest Gump-esque walk down memory lane. It’s meant to be humorous, but has a sense of truth to it too.” – Kirk Dianda

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, and stay tuned for behind-the-scenes coverage, downloads special giveaways, and unseen footage. #skateandcreate2013

Watch the new video, as the Element team took the newest collection of product, and hit the road on a quest through our own backyard; California.

For the past two decades the one thing that has remained constant is our continued drive to see the world differently. Element has taken inspiration from all environments; from the top of the Sierras to the city streets. From the moment we hit the road, the ability to discover never ends, and our enthusiasm for the next adventure is what drives us forward…

Keep Discovering

“The harder you work the luckier you get.”

It’s a rare thing these days, in the age of the internet and all, when you can honestly say an amateur skater paid his dues to earn his way, but for this individual, there’s nothing truer than that. Skating his ass off, and getting noticed the old fashioned way…

On November 3rd, we will announce the newest Element pro right here.

Backside Biggie Down Ten

360 Shuv the double-set, with a little backside 180º to top things off.

Hardflip through the Trees.

Text book style, Frontside Shove Crooked grind to Fakie.

Make sure to follow Mason (@masonsilva) and Keith Oshiro (@keithoshiro) on Instagram.
And don’t forget to check out Mason in FUTURE NATURE, The Element Am Video available in iTunes and on DVD.

Episode 1, Mallorca Migration is now playing. Mallorca, the Spanish island in the Mediterranean was the first of many stops while filming for Future Nature. This is a behind-the-scenes look at what we captured while stalked these animals through the coastline, mountains, and into the plazas.

Episode 2, Costa Rica Migration airs on Friday, August 31st. While following Amateurus for Future Nature, we ended up in the jewel of the equator, Costa Rica. We trailed the pod from the sunken seas to the highest mountain tops, surrounded by a volcanic skyline.

Episode 3, Basque Migration airs on Friday, September 7th. The final location of this exodus was the northern providence of Spain, known as Basque Country. We stalked Amateurus from Bilbao to Madrid, and everywhere in between.

Don’t forget, you can always watch these videos and all of our commercials and videos on our YouTube channel and via our podcast.

Over the past year, we had 45 MAKE IT COUNT events in 30 different countries, with one goal; to get the most dedicated skateboarders from around the world for a life changing experience.

On August 11th, 23 finalists flew in for an all expenses paid trip to California for one week, and to compete in the global finals at Element YMCA Camp.

During that week, we went to San Diego and skated the Transworld park, hung out at Element headquarters, and had a day all to ourselves at The Berrics. In addition to skating, we hiked to the natural waterslides at Stony Creek, launched in Lake Sequoia, and saw a slew of wild animals in the Sequoia National Forest.

In the end, it was Jon Cos who took first place and a year’s sponsorship from Element, while Dustin Blauvelt came in second, and Nate Greenwood finished in third.  Some left with trophies and prizes, but everyone went home with something much greater; friendships were forged, and our Element family grew bigger.

Thank you to everyone who contributed in making this series an experience of a lifetime.

For more info, to see the finals video, and to see the #elementmakeitcount instagram feed, go HERE:

Evan and Levi

Kershnar displaying an American cannonball

Boo, Nick, Evan and Todd at the Berlin Wall

Evan hopping over the wall

Evan and Nick

Cole

Cole, myself, and Todd

From Top Left to Bottom Right: Evan Back Smith, Nick & Madars, Van Life, The Homies

Can’t wait till next year.

The European Finals for the 2012 Element Make It Count Contest Series will be held in Berlin, Germany on July 6^th at Bright Tradeshow.  There’ve been 24 qualifying events with each winner competing in Berlin for a place in the Global finals in Sequoia Lake, California!

Element team riders currently attending: Mark Appleyard, Nyjah Huston, Levi Brown, Nick Garcia, Boo Johnson, Julian Davidson, Madars Apse, Michael Mackrodt, Karsten Kleppan and Nassim Guammaz. And they will be doing  a demo after the main contest.

Click here for more info about the 2012 Make It Count Contest Series

Element is holding a signing session with the Element Pro Team at Titus in Berlin on the 5th of July, starting at 7 pm. There will also be a live painting by Element Advocate Mike Kershnar.

Currently attending from the Element Pro Team: Mark Appleyard, Nyjah Huston, Levi Brown, Nick Garcia, Julian Davidson, Boo Johnson, Nassim Guammaz, Madars Apse, Michael Mackrodt, Karsten Kleppan.

On May 1st, FUTURE NATURE then released for free on the Element site for one day only. Over the next twenty-four hours, the video racked up hundreds of thousands of views.

Meanwhile, in iTunes, FUTURE NATURE climbed its way to the #20 spot in the Top Movies charts, and held a steady #1 spot in the Top Sports category.

So if you haven’t seen the video yet, go to iTunes to download a copy, or cruise over to your local shop for a DVD.

In March 2012 the Element Europe team spent 10 days in Saragossa, Spain to film the riders’ last few tricks for their parts in Element’s latest AM Video “Future Nature”. Here we follow Nassim Guammaz on the last day of filming before the deadline for the project – the pressure’s on to get everything down on film…..

Future Nature is available on iTunes now

For more information about Future Nature check out the site here

Hot off the heels of FUTURE NATURE (which is now available on iTunes), Nick Garcia and Julian Davidson are given the royal treatment over at Skateboarder… Senior photographer, John Bradford, put together a collection of  his photographs from a recent interview with the two. And as the title of the blog would indicate, “Daily Film Blog” the skate photos and portraits are all shot on, well, you guessed it, film. The article, in all its entirety can be seen here.

The FUTURE NATURE collection is available here. And their dilapidated decks from filming the video have been given new life through Element’s “No Board Left Behind” program, which will soon be available here.

Element proudly presents FUTURE NATURE, now playing today only on elementskateboards.com, also available worldwide on iTunes.

FUTURE NATURE is a visual exploration of skateboarders in their natural environments. Around the world, two major species co-exist together. They are Amateurus and Professionalli, or better known as the amateur and professional skateboarder. FUTURE NATURE focuses on Amateurus, documenting the extravagant behaviors of Nick Garcia, Julian Davidson, Evan Smith, Boo Johnson and introducing Madars Apse, Trent McClung, and Nassim Guammaz.

Etnies has released a full Nick Garcia part in support of the Freeport shoe. Enter to win the shoes along with an Element board and Stance socks here.

Also, check out this exclusive interview with Nick via Skateboarder Magazine which coincides with his Etnies part. Click here to see full interview.

When DC’s Chris Ray was asked to be one of the 13 filmers to submit a part for TransWorld SKATEboarding‘s latest film, The Cinematographer Project, he naturally gravitated towards Element am Evan Smith. With Evan’s effortless style and unique approach and Ray Ray’s mastery of the angles, editing and HD, Evan’s part excerpted from the full length DVD is your most recent glimpse to how talented of a skateboarder Evan Smith really is.

The Cinematographer Project full length DVD, with 13 parts submitted by skateboarding’s greatest filmers, is available now at http://www.skateboarding.com, your local skateshop, or for download on iTunes.

Twelve year old Element team rider Tom Schaar has landed the first ever 1080º. It has been amazing to watch Tom’s progression over the past. He first caught our eye when at 7yrs old when he entered the Element am contest series, and his special talent for transition was clear. While we were sure his career would blossom, the rate at which he progressed is alarming. From his quick adaption to vert and the mega ramp, to becoming the youngest ever to do a 900º, he continues to blow minds and set records. We congratulate Tom for his accomplishment, and can’t wait to see what he does next.

California RampWorks was strategic in helping Tom see this trick to its reality. Check out exclusive interviews and the feature built by CRW that helped make it all possible. See further documentation and photos here.

Click HERE to go behind the scenes with Nyjah as he revisits some of the worst slams during filming of “RISE & SHINE.”

For more information on The Transworld Skateboarding Awards and to see all nominees click HERE.

You can watch the video here

In conjunction with stop #1 of the MAKE IT COUNT International Contest series, Nyjah Huston, Levi Brown, Evan Smith and Donny Barley traveled to Orlando, FL for a team signing.  The diverse crowd of people visiting Universal from around the globe made for a great event. Special thanks to everybody who came out and made this event possible. For more photos from the signing see the Flickr set HERE.

The Element “Make it Count” 2012 International contest series is scheduled to kick off on Jan. 7th, 2012 in Orlando, Fl at Midtown Skate Park.  Entry fee for the contest is one canned food item that will be donated to local food banks.  The overall winner of the contest will win a trip to California for the Finals and get a private session at The Berrics with the Element team for the summer of 2012.  Element special guests Nyjah Huston, Levi Brown, Evan Smith, Donny Barley and Matt Fink will be on hand to help judge the contest.  See you in Orlando for Stop #1!

For more information on the contest check out our events page or click HERE.

In part four (of four), Nyjah walks through the steps what it took to film his last trick of his video part, and the surprise ending that nobody expected.

Nyjah Huston goes behind-the-scenes with an exclusive interview, discussing some of the worst slams and best tricks of his video part, “RISE & SHINE”.

Filmed by: Kirk Dianda, Marc Falkenstien, and Nathan Groff
Edited by: Kirk Dianda

“RISE & SHINE” is now available worldwide on iTunes.

http://bit.ly/Nyjah-iTunes