Julien Regnier is back in the second episode of Fast Forward with a selection of photos taken by Elina Sirparanta and Louis Garnier while shooting. Showing more than just a month of hard graft and the endless arrangements involved in such a project, these snapshots are testament to the delicate balance struck between the desire to drink champagne with pretty girls and working on tricks under the eclipse.
A nod at Fast Forward I, made the day after the slalom shoot. We thought that a couple of hours’ sleep would be enough to take on a double-trailer truck. We managed to ski really tight for this sequence, which isn’t always easy. I actually slammed pretty hard because the landing was super soft but the last attempt was perfect. I think we’ll release a little clip of this section soon.
Shot towards the end of the shoot, this sequence required a lot of work from Charlie and Alban’s team to place the LEDs. Me and Kevin chilled like princesses until it was all ready. I’m really happy with this shot, it works so well and it’s such an original image.
At the start of the shoot in the Grande Rochette couloirs. A real La Plagne classic right under the lift. It’s not really too exposed but it is pretty steep in the middle of the couloir and really tight. We noticed that you get a lot more sense of steepness when shooting in the day than at night.
I’m holding the camera taking this shot of this pretty brunette in the bar. I really took this seriously and it took a while to get the right framing. In the end I think it’s one of the video’s best shots.
A lot of arrangement was needed for this segment in the canyon with a two-ton generator and huge light installations. For Kevin and I, it was definitely the toughest segment to ski: we hit each other in the landing, we tried the same shot like 10 times and Kevin took 15 more for his double cork. Basically, it’s not easy to ride from 11am till 4am. I love this shot because we are doing the same grab and so close to each other. It’s pretty rare to capture both of us with the same attitude in the same shot.
The final day of the shoot in La Plagne while the resort was closed for three days. A great moment of release after a month of intense effort.
Another great idea, luckily there’s a few pyromaniacs in the resort. The jump wasn’t too difficult but we still managed to collide…And as we had to do as many takes as possible while the flames were going strong, the sequence turned into a cross fit altitude session.
El gap: the thing that doesn’t work but ended up looking cool. Too short a transition, flat landing and getting pissed off after three totally shitty straight airs I opted for the backflip and seeing as the transition is so short, I was really worried about over-rotating. Hence the nasty exit when I realize it’s not going to be enough. This shot makes me laugh so much now.
The team gets to work before illuminating this big quarter. There were a lot of people helping out on most of our scenes. Thanks to all those who worked hard on making these night shots a success.
Another spot requiring hours of construction. As this was the very start of the shoot, the schedule would be tight and I was just back from a shoulder injury, I tried to start gently to find my feet again. So I rode under Kevin doing a kind of 270 safety. I originally wanted to do a lincoln with two quarters facing each other but we couldn’t find the spot. Maybe next time.
As I mentioned, I’d hurt myself and for my comeback I went straight onto the Fast Forward shoot. I wasn’t too comfortable in my plastic shoes but when you gotta go you gotta go. But not first! Kevin, sneaky youngster as he is, sent me in. With the wet snow and two kilometer run in, I didn’t get enough speed and hit the fence. Luckily they’d put a protective pad there so I didn’t hurt myself. I told Kevin to carry on because I wanted to move straight onto something else. So he skipped ahead and the session improved. The conditions were tough for tricks so I just did a little straight air as I still didn’t feel my best.
I’ve never done anything so scary in all my life. It wasn’t really that dangerous but neither of us knew how to ride this thing, which isn’t really that nice when you’re in the starting blocks. In fact, you just had to stay solid. The strip of snow was really thin and we couldn’t control our speed. I’d say no if someone asked me to do it again.
Hugo, one of our shapers wondering if it’s possible.
