Dear Rider: Snowboarding Legend Jake Burton
HBO's original documentary Dear Rider tells the inspirational story of Jake Burton Carpenter, who pioneered the sport of snowboarding.
Fernando Villena, award-winning filmmaker and the director of Dear Rider, discusses Jake’s life as a snowboarding legend. The film shows how Jake took his favourite childhood toy and turned it into a global cultural phenomenon.
Fernando not only talks about Jake's vision and passion for the sport he invented, but also how multiple diseases tragically ended his life prematurely. The legacy Jake left behind inspired millions including Woody Harrelson, who narrates the film.
“His mind exploded and he thought, oh my god, I can actually surf on snow. And that became his obsession, that along with making a lot of money.” – Fernando Villena
Time Stamps:
00:00 - The trailer for Dear Rider.
03:19 - Jake Burton Carpenter’s entrepreneurial journey.
06:11 - What made him so successful at turning snowboarding into a sport.
10:09 - Jake’s passion for sport and his talent for marketing.
13:00 - The target market for Jake's snowboards.
14:20 - How he influenced the creation of the film.
16:56 - The snowboarding community and the value Jake put on human connection.
19:50 - How Jake communicated with others despite having Miller Fisher syndrome.
22:03 - How the project started and how Fernando ended up directing the film.
26:57 - How Covid affected the production of this film.
29:30 - What it was like making a snowboarding film without being a snowboarder.
31:50 - The title Dear Rider and why they used Woody Harrelson as the narrator.
36:24 - What it’s like working with Red Bull.
39:00 - How Fernando transitioned from editing to directing.
40:12 - The next project Fernando is working on.
Resources:
Dear Rider (2021)
MovieMaker Magazine
Innersound Audio
Alamo Pictures
Connect with Fernando Villena:
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Transcript for Factual America Episode 84 - Dear Rider: Snowboarding Legend Jake Burton
Fernando Villena 00:00
Hi, well, my name is Fernando Villena, and I am the director of Dear Rider.
Jake Burton Carpenter 00:10
My earliest positive memories were definitely about snow; not having to go to school, sledding. So, I started the company in '77. I remember I went out with 38 snowboards and I came home with 40 because one dealer said, 'I don't want this crap'.
Speaker 1 00:29
He said his name was Jake, and he made snowboards. I was like, Oh, that's cute! He had this spark. He was so damn determined.
Jake Burton Carpenter 00:40
Once I just focused all of my energy and my love and my time into making it a sport that's when everything sort of started to work.
Speaker 2 00:58
Snowboarding made this transition from something that people were afraid of to something that people embraced.
Speaker 3 01:04
33 million people watched Shaun White win the Olympic gold medal.
Speaker 4 01:09
Snowboarding just exploded.
Speaker 5 01:14
Where would my life be today without Jake? He was always there to support and back me.
Speaker 6 01:19
He wanted to get 100 days every year.
Speaker 7 01:22
How am I going to say 'slow down'; Jake could look at us and say you guys need to speed up.
Speaker 8 01:27
He's really that badass grandpa snowboarding.
Speaker 9 01:32
Snowboarding was that light that drove him.
Speaker 10 01:37
Surfing on snow.
Jake Burton Carpenter 01:41
From the very beginning, I was passionate about it. In the back of my mind, I always knew it could be a sport.
Matthew 02:01
That is a trailer from the documentary, Dear Rider, and this is Factual America. We're brought to you by Alamo Pictures, an Austin and London based production company, making documentaries about America for international audiences. I'm your host Matthew Sherwood. Each week I watch a hit documentary, and then talk with the filmmakers and their subjects. This week, it is my pleasure to welcome the award winning filmmaker, Fernando Villena, the director of the documentary Dear Rider. The film tells the inspirational story of how Jake Burton Carpenter, the man who pioneered the sport of snowboarding took a favorite childhood toy and developed it into an international cultural phenomenon. Fernando, welcome to Factual America. How are things with you?
Fernando Villena 02:44
Hi, Matthew. Things are really, really great. Thank you for having me.
Matthew 02:48
That's great to hear. Just to remind our listeners, the film is Dear Rider. It's released this year, produced by Red Bull Media House, out now in North America on HBO Max. And will be releasing through Universal in Europe and the UK in early 2022. So, Fernando, why don't you get us started and tell our listeners what is Dear Rider all about? Maybe you can give us a quick synopsis.
Fernando Villena 03:18
Well, Dear Rider is the story of Jake Burton Carpenter, who is the pioneer of snowboarding, one of the pioneers of snowboarding. You know, he is a, you know - ask for quick, I haven't been asked this question very much, like, tell us the synopsis, so...
Matthew 03:39
Yeah.
Fernando Villena 03:40
... so, let me work through it. You know, he's a, it's a classic entrepreneur story, you know, it's like, say, goes back to those guys that American entrepreneur spirit in the 70s, where people actually made stuff. But what was interesting about Jake is that at 12 years old, he fell in love - well, before then he fell in love with the ocean; he fell in love with this idea of surfing. Right, but he lived in Long Island and, you know, he would vacation in the winters in Vermont. And he was introduced to the snurfer, which is this little toy, like, this little, like, I forget, something like a $10 toy. And it was just, like, this piece of wood with a rope on it. And as soon as he got on it, like, his mind just exploded and he was like, Oh my god, I can actually surf on snow. And that became his obsession. And that along with making a lot of money, right; so, he tried his hand at Wall Street; wasn't working out. And then, you know, he figured, you know, he needed a get rich quick scheme. And he was like, that toy from when I was a kid. That thing - that's a sport that can be a sport And I think that's the key to me, to me getting wealthy, right. And so, that's what he did. He started up this company and he made a bunch of prototypes, took him about a year, made 100 prototypes, and finally came out with his first snowboard. And then, you know, as the story goes, it was very rough going from there.
Matthew 05:23
But like you say, it's the classic American entrepreneur story. I mean, you can go even further back, he's straight out of Thomas Edison, or those types, you know. I would say cut of the same cloth, and he was very hands on, wasn't he, and, you know, you've got scenes of him, actually, in the workshop, really, you know, working on each board and each prototype. So, very classic, in that sense, a very classic American story, but maybe you can give us a context, because for - I mean, I'm sure a lot of our listeners are younger, snowboarding has been around as long as they know. I mean, give us the context of how ground breaking he really was.
Fernando Villena 06:09
I mean, he - you got to go back to the late 70s, like 1977, right, there was no internet. There weren't any chat groups or anything like that, right. So, he's in the Northeast, and he's trying to make this toy into, like, a real sport, this hobby into a real sport. So, he's up there doing it in Vermont, which is - I don't know how well your listeners know about, you know, the topography in the US but, like, in Vermont, the snow is hard and icy and wet. Colorado, it's soft and beautiful and fluffy and super deep, right? So, he's trying to develop snowboards in this rougher environment, right, and he initially, you know, very early on, he figured out that we need to get under resorts, right, we need to get snowboarding under resorts. And so, I think more than anything, you know, Jake was responsible for getting the sport on the resorts in that period in the 80s, which was hard. They had a ton of pushback, right; like, skiers just weren't having it. They weren't into snowboarders. They weren't into snowboard. They weren't into sharing their mountain with snowboarders. But he persisted. And he was resilient. And, you know, there were other people doing it. There are other people doing it on the West Coast. And what's funny is when the East Coast and the West Coast when Jake, finally, when the worlds collided, if you will, that you know Jake had a rival in the West Coast, and his name's Tom Sims. And through that rivalry, the sport really developed, really exploded, not just in style, because the West Coast was very more freestyle and creative in that sense, and the East Coast was kind of more in the downhill skiing tradition. But also, in how technology just, like, evolved exponentially during that time. And Jake was always at the forefront, right, and the thing that separated Jake from the others was he had a tremendous business sense, right, being an entrepreneur. And he was just able to combine his passion for the sport, for making snowboarding a sport, along with his resiliency and need to win. And also, his business sense. And, you know, coming out of the 80s Jake was on top.
Matthew 08:52
Yeah, yeah. I mean, I'm originally from Texas, and they say if Texans were meant to ski they would've made bullshit white! But I did do enough skiing to know - in early sort of 90s period and this is when, you know, snowboarding really was starting to take off as you document in the film, and I just remember that reaction. You had your traditional skiers who were, like, who are these guys who're are taking up all, you know, our slopes and nearly knocking me down while I'm trying to go, you know, and all this bad press that they had, so, but he did - I mean, I think, as you said he's this entrepreneur. I mean, he's like a Steve Jobs character, isn't he? Because it's not just innovation and he's - it's like the ultimate example of disruption, isn't it? Taking and making a product, you know, that people didn't realize they wanted or needed. But, you know, and then creating this sport. Absolutely, practically from scratch. I mean, as you point out, there were others. There was the West Coast and other people had been looking at this, but his drive in doing this was incredible.
Fernando Villena 10:07
Yeah, he saw it as a sport, you know, and I think that's where the difference lies is that Jake loved competition. He loved sports, he loved the Giants, loved the Celtics, he loved the Rangers, right? He was passionate about sports and he loved the competitive side of it. And he loved the competitive side of snowboarding. You know, maybe if Jake hadn't come along, snowboarding would still be around, but it would be more of a hobby, right? It would be more of something, you know, that's done in the back country, maybe. I don't know.
Matthew 10:39
Yeah. Yeah.
Fernando Villena 10:39
But Jake put everything he had into making it a sport. And, you know, in very short order, it's in the Olympics.
Matthew 10:49
Yeah.
Fernando Villena 10:50
And it becomes this just kind of global phenomenon. But he saw something that wasn't there. And I can only speak about Steve Jobs, people like that, you know, entrepreneurs like that. They see things that aren't there and they envision things that people they don't even know that they want but when they hear about it, they're gonna really want it, right, you know whether it's the iPhone or snowboard. But he changed winter, in a lot of ways. He changed winter sports and, yeah, it's an incredible legacy: a legacy of having fun.
Matthew 11:26
Yeah, exactly. I mean, I think in your film, I think - I do remember even - I think it was one of his sisters stressing that the one thing their dad stressed was being passionate about something. And there's that element, too; he was passionate about, like you said, this early beginnings, fell in love with the ocean surfing, snow; he talks eloquently about how he fell in love with snow. So, he just had this - and, you know, he was, as you said, he tried Wall Street and it just wasn't working for him in that sense. And he did have this passion and he followed it. But I think as you're pointing out, I mean this whole cultural awareness he had; what he tapped into that others didn't see, this sort of nonconformist - you know, he's a baby boomer, but he's this nonconformist Gen Xers, now, millennials - he's a brilliant marketer isn't he, you know, it's like art meets...
Fernando Villena 12:21
Oh, for sure.
Matthew 12:21
... sports meets alt culture, I mean, it's just incredible, this whole thing that he tapped into.
Fernando Villena 12:27
And, in those early days, he had his hands in everything: in the design, the design of the boards, and the graphics on the boards, and the marketing. You know, he would, you know, like, he would send out the brochures; he would write the intros to the brochures. He did everything, right. And what were you saying in the beginning of that, because I wanted to follow up on.
Matthew 12:50
Well, they're just tapping into this culture, this market, you know,
Fernando Villena 12:57
Initially, Jake thought that the people who were going to buy his boards, were going to be 25 and 30 year olds, right.
Matthew 13:07
Yeah.
Fernando Villena 13:07
Kind of his age 25-35. You know, maybe guys that grew up with the snurfer and knew what that was. But. Very early on, he realized that people who were buying snowboards were 14-15 years old.
Matthew 13:20
Yeah.
Fernando Villena 13:21
And that was his core audience, right, these buyers, right. And, he adjusted, and that's what he always did. He always adjusted, he always adjusted. And he was like, Wow, snow, the future of snowboarding isn't downhill racing, it's freestyle. He made a correction. You know, he always corrected, and I think that gave him the ability to, you know, keep up and always be innovative.
Matthew 13:49
I mean, I think that's a great example. It's kind of a hilarious scene, in some ways, the scenes of his team showing up in these sort of aerodynamic suits, you know, like downhill racers and then running into the West Coast guys who are like, had their little whole, you know...
Fernando Villena 14:05
We're way cooler!
Matthew 14:06
... way cooler. Definitely way cooler! Those other guys look like something straight out of a comedy, really.
Fernando Villena 14:11
Yeah, yeah. And I think, you know, Jake spent a lot of time with Ben Bryan, from Red Bull Media House putting this film together while he was alive, right, maybe for - maybe over a year, doing the timelines, doing the research. And, you know, one of the things that Jake wanted, and was important to him is that, you know, the whole story be told. He goes, I didn't invent snowboard, right, you know, and I wasn't the only guy out there and I wasn't always right, you know, like, it all has to, we're going to tell the story we should tell, like, the story in its entirety. And it's funny, and I love it, because in a lot of the 80s Jake is kind of, like, you know, he's in a lot of ways catching up to other people who are kind of, who have maybe a bit more innov- like, their innovation of their boards and the design is maybe a little bit ahead of Burton's, so Burton's catching up. And especially in the culture, right, like, you said these guys show up in speed suits in, like, onesies, right. It's like, tiny gloves and giant helmets, and then the dudes from the West Coast were, like, in T-Shirts and jeans.
Matthew 15:28
Yeah.
Fernando Villena 15:29
But, yeah, I mean, I think to Jake, it was obvious from pretty early on that freestyle was the future.
Matthew 15:40
I mean, one thing, then, because I do want to talk more about, you know, how the project came about, and Red Bull's involvement, and things but one thing that strikes me, we've - I don't know if you're familiar with Stuart Brand and the Whole Earth Catalog but it's very similar - we had a doc on about that a while back - but it's very similar that; he did something similar: an annual catalog that would go in that he'd write this letter, and that's how he would - and he created this huge sort of underground movement. Now for him it stayed relatively underground but for Jake, I mean, this - hence where 'Dear Rider' comes from, right, the title of the film is this annual letter that he would send to his - but his ability to create this connection is amazing to me, with not just snowboarders, just general public, but also the professionals as well, who have really quite a sense of loyalty to him for all that he did for them. Because I mean, I guess you think about it, if he hadn't been one of the creators of this sport, what would they have done? You know, he created a sport that then made them who they are. So, quite amazing.
Fernando Villena 16:54
Yeah, I think connection for Jake was everything, you know; connecting to his riders, connecting to his friends, to his family. And, ultimately, you know, I'm not a snowboarder, so I was embraced by this community while I was making the film, and they really are a community. Like, I don't think, like, unlike most sports, you know, it feels like a community; it feels like one giant, extended family, and I think, I don't know, but Burton's like that, you know, they have that kind of family vibe. And Donna, and Donna's and Jake's kids, they, you know, they guide that company and they put their influence on it. And, you know, of course, Jake did and Jake always led the way and he was kind of like the pied piper, like the cruise director of that whole crew, right, but yeah, for him it was connection and that is funny, because that's when I first got on the project that was my 'in', was how he needed connection during the Miller Fisher disease. Yeah.
Matthew 18:15
I think that takes us to a good point to just give our audience a quick break. But we'll be right back with Fernando Villena, the editor and director of Dear Rider, produced by Red Bull Media House, out now in North America on HBO Max, and releasing through Universal in Europe in the UK in early 2022.
Factual America midroll 18:35
If you enjoy Factual America, check out the MovieMaker podcast. That's all one word, MovieMaker, where our friends at moviemaker.com interview everyone from filmmakers just breaking in to A-Listers like David Fincher and Edgar Wright, about their moviemaking secrets, and behind the scenes tricks of the trade. They go deep and let the guests speak uninterrupted, to get you the most film insight.
Matthew 19:01
Welcome back to Factual America. I'm here with award winning director Fernando Villena. The film's Dear Rider. Recently released, it's produced by Red Bull Media House. It's out in North America on HBO Max, and for those in Europe and the UK, you'll be able to see it - it's being released by Universal in early 2022. Fernando, we've been talking about Jake Burton Carpenter, obviously, the pioneer - snowboarding pioneer. I mean, anyone watching this most likely knows that Jake is no longer with us. And so, you know, we've been talking about his life but I think one thing that comes out and you were mentioning this before the break how you got started with this - with his illness. He fought death as hard as he played, didn't he. I mean, that certainly comes out loud and clear.
Fernando Villena 19:57
Absolutely. Yeah. Like, that's articulated in the little bird story in the film, but he had a tremendous passion for living.
Matthew 20:08
Yeah. He had this rare disease. I mean, this was just incredible. What was that that he had?
Fernando Villena 20:16
The disease's Miller Fisher syndrome, which is a - it's horrible. It causes paralysis in the body, blindness. You're essentially locked in, right. But the thing about it is that you do recover from it. You know, you recover from it. But you don't know how long the recovery is going to take. But meanwhile, the person is locked in their body. But their mind is fine, their mind is functioning fine. Which sounds super terrifying. But in Jake's case, he could still move his hand, right, he can move one hand. So, he was able to communicate with that one hand, and there was that need to connect, a need to communicate, which really inspired me, you know, in the very beginning, because I didn't know who Jake was when I first heard about the project. And I put together a proof of concept before I met Jake for the interview. And a lot of that proof of concept was based on him and him needing to communicate while he had Miller Fisher through those note cards.
Matthew 21:39
Yeah, and you've got - so, I guess that they saved all this, there're stacks and stacks of these note cards, aren't there?
Fernando Villena 21:45
Oh, yeah, there's hundreds and hundreds. Yes.
Matthew 21:47
So, I mean, you were kind of mentioning it earlier. So, how did this project come about? You said he was already orchestrating or helping with this even before his death?
Fernando Villena 21:59
Yes.
Matthew 21:59
... is that right?
Fernando Villena 22:00
Yes, yes, for, like, a year and a half, he was working with Ben Bryan, and to, you know, figure out what it was going to be like, what they were going to cover during the timelines. I had worked with Ben on another film; like, he hired me to direct my first film, which is Any One of Us, and while we were in the finishing stages of that film, Ben told me about the Burton film, about Jake's story. And I didn't know who Jake was. But he told me, Look, if you're interested, he can definitely interview you, interview with Jake. But there's going to be a lot of other directors interviewing as well. So, I knew that the only way I had a shot was to actually show Jake something, right, cuz I had nothing that had even come out yet. I couldn't just like charm him into working with me, right? But I shot something. But I did a bunch of research. And I re-enacted a few scenes, and I shot a seven minute proof of concept, which when I met Jake, I did show him. I met Jake for 20 minutes in our interview, and he was, like, he is in the movie. He was very generous, kind, you know, trying to make me feel comfortable, right. And then we had this great session. But leaving, I think I realized, I thought, I don't know if I connected with Jake, yet...
Matthew 23:32
Right.
Fernando Villena 23:32
So, as I was leaving, as I was leaving the interview, I looked at him and I was like, You know, Jake, if we did this together, we'd have a lot of fun, right? And then, he looked at me, like a bit sideways, and I looked back at him and I was, like, I just blew that. Like, I, well, look lovely to meet you. And I left, and then he did choose another director at that time. But the funny thing is, I didn't know about 'have as much fun as possible' at that point. And it would be like that that was, like, his main theme, right? It just something that came to me, oh, that we'd have a lot of fun together because I really felt it because he was so awesome. Like, just, that's such a good guy, right. And he was really moved by what he saw. So, I was like, yeah, we'd have a lot of fun. What would happen was, like, months later, towards the end of 2019, the first director had to drop out. And so, they were going to open up the selection process again. But then Jake got sick, like, very soon after, right. And, you know, he passed a few weeks after his - right after his first chemo treatment. So, we had to, you know, they were, you know, the family and Red Bull and HBO were wondering whether the movie was still going to go on but the family decided that the film should go on, because that's what Jake wanted, right. So, at that point, instead of opening up the process to more to, you know, to more interviews, the family chose me, you know, to direct the film, and based off that 20 minute meeting, you know, because Jake wanted an established director to tell the story and we understood that, but he was still trying to figure out a way for me to be involved.
Matthew 25:34
Wow.
Fernando Villena 25:35
But I didn't want to be involved in any capacity, but as a director, so, I declined. But Jake passed towards late November 2019, and by January 2020, we were in Colorado with the family, myself and the family, and talking about the new creatives. How we were going to tell the story, now. And the thing that came out of that meeting was we're going to tell the story in Jake's words as much as possible, and Jake's gonna narrate his story as much as possible. But at that point, it was January 2020. And we came up with this whole new creative, that then we had to completely redo again, a month and a half later, when everything shut down.
Matthew 26:26
Yeah. Yeah. Wow. That's quite an amazing story. I mean, an example of how Jake, you know, he's made a difference in a lot of people's lives, and obviously made a difference in your life as well. And, I mean, so with that, with Covid hitting, and - so you have to decide to tell the story a little differently. I mean, how much different is this film than what it would have been if Covid hadn't happened?
Matthew 26:28
Way different. Way different. Well, we were going to travel a bunch, we were gonna go to Chile and Austria, like all the big spots, right? We're gonna go to Vermont, you know. And it was, you know, it was still going to be an archive film, but it wasn't going to be so much of an archive film.
Matthew 27:18
Yeah, yeah.
Fernando Villena 27:19
Well, what we did was, you know, like, end of March, I was talking to our producers, and I was like, you know, we need to come up with a plan, that we can make a movie, right? We can make this movie and not leave our homes until we're finished. And they're like, what do you mean? And like, I just don't know how long this is going to go? I mean, if it goes months and months, and like, I don't want to, I don't think we should be planning on trips, and then not being able to, you know, to kind of, to pull them off, and then we have to figure something else out in three or four months. So, we decided to make, we decided to just like go deep into the archive, and make it even more of an archive film than we had initially planned, right. But here's the other thing that came out of it is that now we had more money for music.
Matthew 28:16
Right.
Fernando Villena 28:17
Right?
Matthew 28:18
Yeah.
Fernando Villena 28:18
And we, so we have, I love our soundtrack.
Matthew 28:22
I do, too.
Fernando Villena 28:23
Jonathan Hecht put it together - music supervisor. He just went above and beyond when needed, and to get these songs in our film. You know, I could work 20 more years. I don't know if I'll ever have a soundtrack... [Laughter]. But it was because more people weren't going to travel.
Matthew 28:44
Yeah. I mean, that's what I was gonna ask you because, I mean, because, I mean, was this a challenge? I mean, you come to this as, not as a snowboarder yourself. So, that has its benefits and its challenges, I imagine, especially working with this community. But what are the challenges of making a film about not just an iconic individual, but such a high adrenaline sport. And you've got to live up to those high energy standards that I think snowboarding has set, you know, and the cultural side which is the music, which is why I've got it written down here to ask you about the music. I mean, that's quite an ask, isn't it?
Fernando Villena 29:26
Yeah, I think, and especially, like, not being a snowboarder, you mean?
Matthew 29:30
Yeah.
Fernando Villena 29:31
Right. Right. Well, I did have snowboarders, I mean, most of our core creative group was made up of snowboarders. So, I ironically was the only one who wasn't, right. So, Rose Corr, who edited the film and is just incredibly gifted, is also a gifted snowboarder, Ben Bryan snowboarded since he was a kid, so, they all know, all very much plugged into that community. But for me, I think I actually prefer not to know anything about a subject while I'm working on it. Because I have no bias, I have no prejudices, and it just sparks my curiosity even more than normal. So, I like look everywhere, you know, and ways to interpret, ways to understand. So, a lot of times the film ends up being me figuring out what this is all about, right? As opposed to me telling you what it is, you know, because the cool thing about the last three weeks since the movie's come out, is that we've had a lot of snowboarders, a lot of old school Burton guys, a lot of old school people from - that've just been snowboarding since the 80s, come up to us and tell us, we learned so much watching that film; can't believe how much we learnt; I thought I knew the whole story. There was stuff in there that I hadn't even heard about, you know, and, like, that part of it really makes me happy, because it's a testament to how all of us just dug in, and we're just like, let's just keep digging and digging and digging and digging. And let's get the best stuff and let's find the best stories. Let's connect all the dots. But I also think like, you know, I edited for 20, almost 20 years, so, I have a good editorial sense in that respect. I know. I know. I mean, my - I think my instincts are good when it comes to pace and rhythm and style. And I knew the Dear Rider sections in the film needed to be a little extra, right? They needed to have a little bit more juice. And so, I brought in a big gun for that. An editor called Doobie White. Who's one of my oldest friends and a phenomenal editor, but he can do some crazy stuff, right, and, like, I need you. I need these three scenes to just really, just, like, Ha! You know?
Matthew 32:06
Yeah, yeah, exactly. Well, when you said 'big gun', I thought you're also going to talk about Woody Harrelson.
Fernando Villena 32:13
Oh, yeah, well that is the biggest of all the guns, right? Well, what happened was, you know, when we first started editing, you know, like, early, early days, I'm talking about like March, maybe not even April. I'm like, still in March and Rose's on. And so, we're talking and we're like, what about this? What about that? And then so, I'm talking to her, and I'm like, you know, these catalogs are really interesting. And she's like, these other ones are interesting, I'm like, yeah, there's something there. And she's like, Well, what are you thinking of? I'm like, well, what if we just string them out throughout the piece? And Jake narrates the rise of snowboarding in these little sections, right? Cuz that's what he's doing in the catalogs. He's, like, telling people, you know, where snowboarding is at that particular time in the history. So, we're working that out. And at the same moment, I think one of us said, you know, he always says 'Dear Rider' in the beginning, and at the same moment, we both were like, is that the title of the film? I'm like, that might be the title of the film. And so, we just - and then we knew that Woody Harrelson was a friend of Jake's, and he was on the interview list, but I just didn't want to interview him as a celebrity, like, subject, right. But as soon as we thought of the dear rider, you know, sections. He was the first person that came to mind, right, and he was, you know, generous enough to do it.
Matthew 33:55
Well, he's extremely generous, because I think this may be the second if not the third doc that we've had on that he's had narration. So, we know what he was doing during the pandemic: he was narrating documentaries, basically [Laughter]. But, it's a similar story. One filmmaker said, Yeah, indeed, they just - somehow they had this connection to him and called him up, and he's like, Yeah, sure, man. No problem. You know, I'll narrate your doc. I mean, it's just - so, he sounds like a very generous soul.
Fernando Villena 34:33
He's super generous, but he also knew Jake. And partied with Jake. And, yeah. So, he knew the man, right. And, I think, well, he just did a phenomenal job of helping us connect to those words. And by the end of the last couple of dear riders where they get a little bit more, kind of, they're about something more than snowboarding; they're about his personal life, like, at that point he's just channeling Jake, you know. And it's so great because it's not a long - they're not long narrations, but they're very powerful.
Matthew 35:18
Yeah, I would agree. And I think you're right about making - I mean, if - I think if you told people in a proof of concept or something that you're going to have, you're going to read sections of a catalog, and it's going to be an interesting, you know, documentary - but they do pop. They're just some incredible scene. Some of that footage. I mean, it's a - I'm not a snowboarder myself, but I'm wishing I had become one because it looks, like, amazing.
Fernando Villena 35:42
Yeah, those scenes, you play them in the audiences, during the film, people clap.
Matthew 35:50
Yeah. Yeah.
Fernando Villena 35:51
People clap after those scenes, you know. That's the only time they clap in the movie, during the movie, right? I think it's a combination of how cool those scenes are, be it the music and everything, but also, more importantly, like, Jake, it's like, Jake talking to the audience. And people get really - they respond to it, for sure.
Matthew 36:16
And what's it like working with Red Bull? I mean, is this your second documentary with them? Is that right?
Fernando Villena 36:24
This is my second documentary as a director, but I've worked with them, you know, on other projects, like, on the editorial side. I love them. I love them. I didn't even know they made movies.
Matthew 36:36
Well, that's what I was... yeah, exactly.
Fernando Villena 36:38
I didn't even know they made movies until I got - somebody suggested they hire me to do a polish on a film called The fourth Phase, which was a big, epic snowboarding. adventure film on, you know, snowboarder... sorry, yeah, so, they go all around the world, traveling, chasing winter, right? And then I, Jake- I mean, sorry, Ben and I just formed this really strong bond working on that film. And during the making of that film, he was like, well, we have this other project, which is more of a - it's about a mountain biker who suffers a spinal cord injury, and it's more of a, it's like, self shot. So, basically an archive film, though, hardly any shooting needs to be done. So, I was like, I'm in; I'll do it, you know. And it was, it was such a great experience. And that small film turned into a bigger film, right, and we explored bigger themes, than we initially had in mind, and it did very, very well. It got picked up by HBO, and - well, Red Bull, they're just very supportive of your creative kind of ideas; I mean, creative intuition, you know, especially Ben and his team, and, yeah. They do things differently than, like, normal production companies, right. But I like it. I like it. It feels like they want to put all the money up on the screen, and they want it to look - they want the film to be as good as it can possibly be. And, you know, I don't think that's always the case in my 20 years of experience. With them, it is. And it's such a pleasure, and it really is fun to work with those guys.
Matthew 38:47
And is that how you moved into directing? Because as you were saying, you had this extensive editor experience, and then it's with them that they've, again, allowed your creativity to move - you're able to move into directing?
Fernando Villena 39:01
Absolutely. Ben gave me my first shot; gave me my first gig. And it's been something that I had been wanting to do for a while. 20 years of editing is a long time, you know? It's a long time. And you're basically in a dark - in a windowless room and...
Matthew 39:20
... that's what I hear. Yep.
Fernando Villena 39:21
Yeah, exactly. So, you know, by the time I was in my mid 40s, I was like, I'm kind of done. Kind of done with that, you know, and, but I really didn't know how to make the transition, because, you know, I'm in LA, a lot of - like, everybody wants to direct in LA. So, like, how am I going to do that? And then, you know, Ben gave me my shot, he gave me my shot. He gave me a chance and he supported me throughout that whole process, even in the very early days of that project where I really felt like I didn't know what was going on. He was, like, super calm and just teaching me the ropes.
Matthew 40:08
Okay. And what's next for you? In terms of projects?
Fernando Villena 40:12
Well, right now I'm directing a new project for HBO. It's about the life of Oscar De La Hoya, the boxer.
Matthew 40:19
Oh, wow. That's really cool.
Fernando Villena 40:23
Yeah, it's great. It's great. Super fun. And we're just getting started, but it's a big story. It's like, it's like a family. It's a family drama, really, you know; it's a family that suffered a great loss when Oscar's mom died, and he was 17. And it's really, as much as it is about boxing, it's about how that family has endured the last 25 years.
Matthew 40:54
Oh, wow. Well, if we haven't frightened you off, when that's done, we'd love to have you back on again to discuss that one.
Matthew 41:00
I'd love to do that.
Matthew 41:01
Yeah, that'd be great. And before - I think we're coming to the end of our time together, but before I let you go, is - are you an artist? Is that your studio behind you?
Fernando Villena 41:10
This is my wife's...
Matthew 41:12
Ah!
Fernando Villena 41:12
Yeah, yeah. She's wonderful. I did go to art school but I don't make art, anymore. This is her stuff. And it's the coolest room in the house so that's why I always do my - I park myself from here.
Matthew 41:26
Okay. No, I was gonna say it's looking very cool. I was gonna have you maybe give us a tour of all your artwork, but we'll have to give our compliments to her because I think it looks great. I would love to have a room like that in my house. So, yeah. Hey, well, Fernando, thank you so much for being on the Factual America podcast. It's been a joy having you on. Just to remind our listeners and viewers that we've been talking with Fernando Villena, director of Dear Rider, produced by Red Bull Media House. Out now in North America on HBO Max, and releasing through Universal in Europe and the UK in early 2022. Fernando, thank you so much.
Fernando Villena 42:10
Thank you, Matthew. Appreciate it.
Matthew 42:12
So, I'd like to give a big shout out to Sam and Joe at Innersound Audio in Escrick, England. And a big thanks to Nevena Paunovic, our podcast manager at Alamo Pictures, who ensures we continue getting such great guests like Fernando onto the show. Finally, a big thanks to our listeners. As always, we love to hear from you. So, please keep sending us feedback and episode ideas, whether it is on YouTube, social media, or directly by email. And please remember to like us and share us with your friends and family, wherever you happen to listen or watch podcasts. This is Factual America, signing off.
Factual America Outro 42:46
You've been listening to Factual America. This podcast is produced by Alamo Pictures specializing in documentaries, television, and shorts about the USA for international audiences. Head on down to the show notes for more information about today's episode, our guests, and the team behind the podcast. Subscribe to our mailing list or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @alamopictures. Be the first to hear about new productions, festivals showing our films, and to connect with our team. Our homepage is alamopictures.co.uk