Cover photo: Arturs Pavlovs.
Location - Riga, Latvia.
Skilluminati is a crew of skiers straight out of Latvia of all places.
But you wouldn’t exactly call them well-known.
And it is not, it has to be said, well known for its skiing.
Historically there always have only been a few dozen people who are actively involved in freeskiing there.
There are no mountains, no indoor slopes, and inconsistent snowfall.
Which makes ODA all the more impressive.
And let’s be clear, even as without context, it’s a crazy movie.
It took six (yep you read that right, six!)
years to make thanks to several snowless winters.
Stunningly shot and produced, it’s like nothing else we have ever watched.
Photo - Arturs Pavlovs.
Location - Riga, Latvia
Presenting the work as a feature film is certainly a risk.
It oversteps traditional modern ski movie lines, perhaps that’s why they didn’t make the IF3 cut.
It’s certainly more than ski porn.
Odes were classically dedicated to an event or a hero.
The movie focuses on skiing the city streets, perhaps the ultimate end of that progression.
It’s mysterious throughout and does not reveal the full picture to the viewer until the curtain close.
ODA is certainly unique and well worth a watch.
After a Latvian TV screening, ODA will premiere online exclusively on Newschoolers on Monday 24th May.
