Urban Isolation by Russell Houghten

This weekend, I was reading the latest issue of Huck Magazine, edited by Ed Templeton. Obviously it focused a lot on the Beautiful Losers scene and the crossover between skateboarding culture and contemporary art. The Beautiful Losers are all members of a strong subculture movement ,documenting it as it unfolds. It is also a fascinating insight into everyday California. A kid in suburbia gets bored, one day grabs a skateboard and it becomes this all-consuming passion that will shape his or her life. Serendipity.
This morning, I woke up and sniffed around on the internet as usual. And then I found this film by Russell Houghten, a young freelance L.A. filmmaker who started skateboarding when he was 11 and subsequently started filming skateboarding age 14, essentially putting us all to shame. His latest film "Urban Exploration" is portraying skateboarders taking over seemingly deserted freeways in Los Angeles. It is beautiful and atmospheric but also, if you have ever driven on the L.A. freeways, you will know the film is also a post-production wonder. Watch it below and once you are done, have a look at the raw version as well.
If you are into this, you should also read my post on Z-Boys.


Directed, Filmed & Edited by Russel Houghten
Featuring Jordan Taylor Tom Karangelov Tyler Surrey Jordan Trahan Kai Gormsen