Bicycle Film Festival New York

BILENKY JUNKYARD ‘CROSS
USA 2011 | HD 7 min.
Dir. Bill Shenken
Get up close and personal with the world’s premier junkyard cyclocross race. This film combines race footage and interviews from the 2010 Bilenky Junkyard ‘Cross. It also rocks.

KEIRIN: LEADER DON’T CRASH
Japan 2011 | HD 6 min.
Dir. Jonathan de Villiers
Photographer-filmmaker Jonathan de Villiers takes a look inside the fast paced and lucrative world of Japan’s Keirin cycling phenomenon in a film for nowness.com.   

THE RENDEZVOUS
USA 2011 | HD 4 min.
Dir. Casey Neistat
The Neistat Brothers have made a movie for the BFF for many years. This year Casey races through New York, to make a date.

LE TOUR DE KAGAWA
Japan 2011 | HD 7 min.
Dir. Nobuhiko Tanabe
A group of young foodies travel as far as necessary for a bowl of udon.

SNACK TRACK
USA 2010 | HD 1 min.
Dir. Lori Samsel
Japanese rice crackers!

OF STEEL (D’ACCIAO)
Italy/UK 2010 | HD 15 min.
Dir. Ben Ingham
Ben Ingham, whose photography has been featured prominently over the last few years with Stella McCartney, Adidas, Rapha and Rouleur directs a short film about Dario Pegoretti, legendary frame craftsman and philosopher of steel. Ben visited with Dario at his workshop in Trento, Italy over several days.

BIKERS ARE PEOPLE TOO
Serbia 2010 | HD 8 min.
Dir. Milos Tomic
Darko, a bicycle man and street philosopher, takes us to the places where he used to live and shares with us his views of the world.

STEFAN AND SIMONE
Spain 2011 | HD 4 min.
Dir. Matty Lambert
European pro BMX teammates Stefan Lantschner and Simone Barraco escaped the colder climate of Italy for a winter in the year round street haven of Barcelona.

RACING TOWARDS RED HOOK
USA 2011 | HD 20 min.
Dir. Jessica Scott & Hyde Harper
In “Racing Towards Red Hook,” three cyclists of diverse backgrounds compete in one of New York City’s biggest underground events, the 2011 Red Hook Criterium. The rules are simple: 20 laps, one gear, zero brakes. Each March, more than 80 mostly-amateur cyclists pin on the numbers to race through the streets of Brooklyn’s industrial Red Hook neighborhood, navigating a technical course. Illuminated only by streetlight and moonlight, the 2011 course is extremely challenging and lined with hundreds of spectators, despite windy, sub-freezing temperatures at the 11pm start. Riders dream of winning the famed cobblestone trophy, and with every passing year, the competition gets fiercer.
Frank Warren, a Brooklyn coffee shop owner, hopes to shock the field and win his first-ever crit as a virtual unknown. Al Barouh, a seasoned rider who works at a local bike shop and teaches New York children how to ride track bikes, finished third a previous year and looks to take a step up on the podium this time around. Defending champion Dan Chabanov, a bike messenger and rising star in the cycling world, hopes to use his experience cross racing to power ahead of the field once again.
Unique and daring, the Red Hook Crit brings together athletes of all sorts of racing disciplines and varied backgrounds to compete in an event that’s like no other. It’s a type of race that’s on the verge of a worldwide explosion, and the Brooklyn riders are the heartbeat of the fixed gear criterium movement.

THE BICYCLE CAP MADE WITH LOVE BY A BIKE
Spain 2011 | HD 8 min.
Dir. Sarah Okrent
A bicycle and sewing machine fall in love. They make a bicycle cap.

THE BIKE SONG
UK 2010 | HD 5 min.
Dir. Warren Fu
Just as dog owners are said to resemble their dogs, the same can be said for bike owners and their bikes.  In this clip, a boy (Falconer) meets his match when a red bike follows him home one day.  An adventurous ride involving a thief, an international man of mystery (Ronson), a smooth-talking poet (Spank Rock), and a trio of bike-riding beauties unfolds.  This is a love story between humans and bikes.

BILL CUNNINGHAM NEW YORK
USA 2010 | 35 mm 90 min.
Dir. Richard Press
VIEW TRAILER 
“We all get dressed for Bill,” says Vogue editrix Anna Wintour.The “Bill” in question is 80+ New York Times photographer Bill Cunningham. For decades, this Schwinn-riding cultural anthropologist has been obsessively and inventively chronicling fashion trends and high society charity soirées for the Times Style section in his columns “On the Street” and “Evening Hours.” Documenting uptown fixtures (Wintour, Tom Wolfe, Brooke Astor, David Rockefeller—who all appear in the film out of their love for Bill), downtown eccentrics and everyone in between, Cunningham’s enormous body of work is more reliable than any catwalk as an expression of time, place and individual flair. In turn, Bill Cunningham New York is a delicate, funny and often poignant portrait of a dedicated artist whose only wealth is his own humanity and unassuming grace.

REPEAT OF PROGRAM 1 (SEE P.1 for descriptions) 

REPEAT OF PROGRAM 1 (SEE P.1 for descriptions) 

URDAMONIA: THE URBAN GOOD LIFE
England 2010 | HD 4 min. 
Dir. Alexander Host & Jacob K. Brown
A brief glimpse at the beauty and tranquility of cycling in a city compared to other forms of transport.

TUFF WHEEL TWO'S
USA 2011 | Super 8mm 1 min.
Dir. Matt Gee
Found film footage with a found audio recording.

DOWNHILL IN A SUIT
Brazil 2011 | HD 3 min.
Dir. Mateus Araujo
Two athletes venture themselves into a challenging trail in the jungle wearing very elegant suits.

WITH MY OWN TWO WHEELS
USA 2010 | HD 44 min.
Dir. Jacob & Isaac Seigel-Boettner
VIEW TRAILER
A moving and evocative documentary weaving together the experiences of five individuals  - a health worker in Zambia, a teenager in India, a disabled Ghanaian woman, a farmer in Guatemala, and a teenager in California - into a single story. This film is testament to how the bicycle can change the world—one pedal stroke at a time.

FABRIC BIKE
Canada 2011 | HD 8 min.
Dir. Laura Mensinga & Kirsten White

Canadian all-girl midnight bike gang, The Deadly Nightshades, comes together to create a bicycle that combines their love of fashion, art, and cycling. These women document this 3-month process step by step.

LOS ANGELOPES
USA 2011 | HD 4 min.
Dir. Richie Thomassen
A musical visual video of the day's events

Bike messenger, Nathan has an antidote to the sirens, the garbage trucks and the drills of New York.    

A moment with Jason Wood as he experiences his dog’s struggle with cancer as it finally comes to an end.  May he rest in peace and his memory be eternal.

A four-day BMX trip to Denton and Fort Worth, Texas, filled with fun and bromance, featuring Randy Taylor, Brandon Hoerres, George Boyd, Mikey Luplow, and Deven Ferrer.  

Mark Gonzales, one of the most influential skateboarders to this day, demonstrates his skills on a bicycle in this short film by Spike Jonze.

A lyrical film about a man who loves to ride his bike across his city, Mexico City. 

On a remote road, two friends try out a magic chalk that was bought online. According to the site, if someone crosses a line drawn with that chalk his head explodes. They draw a line and wait for someone to come by. But, are they ready to face the consequences if this turns out to be true?

Flipping through old, late-night TV.

A film about the rapidly emerging fixed gear culture in Jakarta, Indonesia.  

A soon to be demolished swimming pool in East London is transformed into a world class park in less than two weeks.  "The Pool" was more than a BMX comp, it was one of the most extra-ordinary gatherings of the BMX community with 40 world class international riders.

An escapee uses his bicycle to reunite with his forbidden love.

FIRE BEARS WORKS
USA 2011 | HD 6 min.
Dir. Carlos Charlie Perez
This is a film that offers a poetic twist of the musical genre. The plot explores the commonplace theme of love. Richard is in pursuit, riding his bike searching for his ideal lover, Betty. Although Richard never gets to meet Betty, it is through his imagination that we get to experience who she is and watch her dance across the weird magical landscape of Florida.

A portrait of the photographer and pioneer of BMX street riding Edwin De La Rosa.

LUCAS BRUNELLE VIDEO 2011
USA 2011 | HD 10 min.
Dir. Lucas Brunelle
Follow the man, the legend, Lucas Brunelle on his annual adventures around the world. Lucas Brunelle has the most amazing helmet cam perspective from New York's Monster Track Race to a ride down the Atlas Mountains into the Medina of Marrakech.

REPLAY OF PROGRAM 6 (See P.6 for descriptions)

REPLAY OF PROGRAM 6 (See P.6 for descriptions)

BIKE RIDE 
USA 2000 | 16mm 6 min.
Dir. Tom Schroeder
When two friends stage a bicycle race to determine who is the best racer of all time, Eddy Merckx or Lance Armstrong, a love triangle develops.  This is the sequel to Tom Schroeder's BFF Greatest Hit BIKE RIDE

ALONE AGAINST THE WORLD
France 2010 | HD 7 min.
Dir. Ulysse Dikoume
A recorded session with Alex Prenveille, French BMX rider

TRANSBIKERS
Taiwan 2011 | HD 7 min.
Dir. Will Lou
Following a group of youngsters on the periphery of Taipei as they find their passion in modifying their bicycle with motorcycle parts found in the junkyard, Transbikers shows the Taiwanese interpretation of the scraper bike.

PAQUERIA A MEXICO
USA 2010 | HD 5 min.
Dir. Charlotte Buchen
Antonio Mendoza has been living in Oakland and sending money - and bicycles - home to Mexico for 13 years.  Bicycles are a way that Antonio can provide his son with something that a father's hands have touched and loved - even in hard times. 

SOLO
USA 2010 | 16mm 8 min.
Dir. Jason Ryan
Steven Mueller stars in this beautifully shot, environmental BMX short film about a man that seeks and finds immense satisfaction in solitude.

THE BICYCLE CAP MADE WITH LOVE BY A BIKE
Spain 2011 | HD 8 min.
Dir. Sarah Okrent
A bicycle and sewing machine fall in love.  They make a bicycle cap.

THE LONDON COURIER EMERGENCY FUND
UK 2011 | HDV 9 min.
Dir. John O'Driscoll
The story of the London Courier Emergency Fund, a set up by couriers to offer financial and moral support to fellow injured couriers who have had accidents while working.

A moment with Jason Wood as he experiences his dog’s struggle with cancer as it finally comes to an end.  May he rest in peace and his memory be eternal.

ODSY VISION: PAINTING WITH TERRY
USA 2011 | HD 3 min.
Dir. Francis Delapena & Jim Bauer
A twist on traditional painting.

BIKE RACE
USA 2010 | Animation 12 min.
Dir. Tom Schroeder
When two friends stage a bicycle race to determine who is the best racer of all time, Eddy Merckx or Lance Armstrong, a love triangle develops.

THE JOB
USA 2011 | HD 13 min. 
Dir. Larin Sullivan
A female bike messenger tries to make it in New York by delivering a "different type of package."  Starring Kym Perfetto

Inspired by her Choctaw-Chickasaw roots as well as memories of childhood bike rides, Terri Saul's paintings combine classic Tour de France imagery with the regalia of Native American dancers.

Follow Canadian ultra-cyclist, Caroline van den Bulk, as she attempts to complete what is known as the hardest endurance race in the world: RAAM (Race Across America).  Caroline, an amateur rider and kindergarten teacher follows her dreams, passions, and obsessions in this grueling race which requires cycling with little to no sleep for days at a time. Very few people finish within the allotted time of 12 days to earn the distinction of RAAM Finisher

WE LOVE COLORADO
USA 2010 | HD 10 min.
Dir. Joe Rich
The legendary T1 crew heads out to the mountains in Colorado and tears up their parks while they’re at it.

SIMPEL DREAM
Estonia 2011 | HD 14 min.
Dir. Roman Neimann & Andzei Matsukevits
Following the dream-come-true story of an aspiring local BMX rider, the short film brings out the contrasts between the world famous wintertime BMX and skateboarding event, Simpel Sessions, in Estonia and the country’s own BMX scene.

Bikelordz is a film about the self-taught, self-invented bicycle culture which young people in Accra, Ghana have created and passed on to their younger contemporaries over time. It follows crews of these young bicycle gurus as they try and use their skills to make money, gain recognition, and live on their own terms.

Summer daze, bikes and babes, riding round, wearing shades. Feel the breeze, catch a wave, looking hot, like grenades.

A short film about a bike and where it was made, how it was made, and how the metal parts become a whole.

Natalie Wade

Greenville, North Carolina appears to be a typical small town, but over the past 15 years it has become Mecca for competitive BMX. With 34 professional riders, 20 X Games Gold Medals and countless other contest wins, Greenville has produced more top talent than any city in the world. All in a remote town of 60,000 people located 2,600 miles away from Southern California.

SAVE THE BIKE LANE
South Korea 2011 | HD 5 min.
Dir. David Jongkwon Kim
Seoul has invested in many bike lanes, however with poor planning and integration into the infrastructure. This is a video created to bring awareness to the existing lanes’ dysfunction and to aid in the creation of greater and better-planned bike lanes for a large city.

MY COMMUTED COMMUTE
USA 2010 | Video 5 min.
Dir. Rachel Brown
How this green lane left me jaded.

The Zurich Six-Days Race 2009 is almost history. There are only 30 laps to go for the riders in the famous “Wädlitempel (Temple of Legs)”. Tension is rising when local hero Bruno Risi attacks. It’s his last race. Afterwards, he’s retiring from a 20-year professional racing career.

After the disaster of earthquakes and tsunami hit the northern region of Japan in March, Ucchi, a world class BMX Flatlander from Japan decided to deliver smiles to those suffering with his mentor and BMX legend Kotaro.

Sunchasers explores the world of competitive cycling through the lives of three disabled women, each in distinct periods of their careers. Barbara Buchan (age 53) is a seasoned veteran who suffers seizures due to a traumatic brain injury, received while competing for a position on the 1982 US National Team; Karissa Whitsell (age 28), is legally blind and ranked number one in the world of tandem cycling; and Greta Neimanas (age 20), who was born with one forearm is in the early years of her competitive cycling career. Sunchasers shadows these cyclists over three years as they prepare for and compete in the Beijing 2008 Paralympics Games.  The documentary actively explores concepts of disability, competition, and the personal struggle for independence. However, Sunchasers resists single-issue politics; it is neither a polemic nor an advocacy film. It is a story that documents the transcendence of the body through athletic competition.