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Henry Edwards-Wood is the director and editor of skateboarding movie City Of Rats.
City Of Rats was filmed in one city – London, bringing together different riders and calling on specialist riders, like Nick Jensen, to tackle the rough and difficult terrain.
Henry said Google Street View and skateboarding is a game changer, he used it to fill in the gaps and add depth to the overall piece.
Henry said: “It took me a while to realise the potential of it, but after a while I figured it was a great way to fill in gaps; areas I haven’t spent much time in, or even just a road I haven’t been down.”
“It doesn’t always work out though: sometimes you find amazing-looking spots but when you get there they’re too rough or they’ve been demolished since the photos were taken.”
It’s a 50-50 gamble relying on Google Street View, but he takes it all in his stride as a skateboarding director.
He said: “The success rate is probably about 50 per cent. The most satisfying part for me is that I kind of know the entire city now, every street, all the way out to the suburbs.”
On the rest of the year and his next project, he said he has to work out if he wants to carry on filming skating for money, as a job. If not, he’s going to start looking into non-skate film work.
Henry added: “I’ve got some music videos planned and I’d like to start working on some bigger films and actually have people to work with rather than doing it all myself. As bad as it sounds, I just want to make some money. Not loads of money, just enough so that one day I can get a mortgage on a house.”
Regardless of whether he scores a big contract or finds financial backers he’ll continue to make skate videos.
He added: “I’ll always film skating though, I’m already thinking about making another video, whether I get paid or not. I’d like to do a Hold Tight London film featuring the next generation.”
We’ll hold tight ’til then, Henry.