The Manboys know how to make an entrance. The new Whistler filmmakers group, which got its start in December, took both first place and the Peoples' Choice Award at Intersection on Wednesday, April 16.
Not bad for what team member Robjn Taylor calls "the first real thing that we've done" as the Manboys.
Manboys won over the judges, and the crowd, with humour — showing they know how to jump a painted toy cow, are adept at flipping the bird, and can tear down moguls while playing Pictionary.
"We didn't have any expectations. We were very proud of our film. Winning did surprise us, only because we didn't want to think about it too much," Taylor says.
"It's satire but we really believe that's the value of what watching snowboard should be in terms of keeping it light and keeping it enjoyable to watch.... We wanted to keep it real to what we like about snowboarding."
Six finalists showed their films at the Whistler Conference Centre as part of the World Ski and Snowboard Festival (WSSF). The Manboys took home the $10,000 first prize with their self-named flick.
An experienced filmmaker, Taylor has won the WSSF's 72hr. Filmmakers Showdown twice in the past.
Intersection and the Best of the Festival are the only time the film will be shown in its five-minute entirety. It won't be online.
"We're going to be breaking it up into pieces and the will be used in episodes that will be released online starting in the fall, maybe a bit earlier," Taylor says.
They are going to be part of a project that the Manboys have been working on this winter, an episode series for next year.
"We already had that framework in mind and when we were shooting for Intersection we decided we would keep it as a preview locally and use the footage for the episodes at a later date."
