Supreme filmmaker, William Strobeck, shooting Dylan Rieder.
“I wanted people to feel like they’re in on the big secret,” says Supreme filmmaker, William Strobeck, to 032c of Supreme’s skate film “cherry.” The brand’s two feature-length skate films have drawn critical acclaim. The films are of interest not only to core skate video fans, but also to casual fans of the sport who are more interested in the brand and the red box logo. Watching the films gives one an undeniable idea of who the brand, Supreme, is for and the type of culture they quietly cultivate. The “if you know you know” (IYKYK) attitude that follows Supreme is compounded in the films as the skaters attempt tricks while unwitting bystanders appear in the background unaware of what’s happening.
Supreme’s growth over the last five years is arguably spurred on by the release of “cherry.” Serving Strobeck’s desire of inclusivity, the film likely served as many fans’ first real look into the brand identity behind the clothing. What you see is an amalgamation of things that make it easier and harder to explain the cult of Supreme. On the one hand, you have young skaters like Tyshawn Jones, Dylan Rieder, and Sean Pablo, making everything seem effortless. While they fall every once in a while, their falls are handled with a grace and a sense that they’re unfazed, always cool. On another hand, some of the older skaters who’ve been around the brand for years and some of the younger, grittier guys like Aidan Mackey, are not effortlessly cool. The films show who the brand is for and makes it implicit that it can be for everybody.
Jason Dill laying on the sidewalk in “cherry.”
Hard work, persistence, and personality follow each skater in both films as they fall and fall until they get their tricks right. Smaller clips of different interactions between skaters and bystanders provide even more in-depth understanding of the unique personalities that make up the roster. Watching the follow up to “cherry,” “‘Blessed’” gives the viewer a sense of the growth of each team member who reappears, as well as an understanding of the type of new young kids the brand looks to cultivate for the future.
The new additions in “‘Blessed’” of kids like Vincent Touzery and Kevin Rodrigues, two Parisian skaters who skate for Blobys Paris, expands on the diversity initially seen in “cherry.” The films deliver everything you could want from a feature-length skate film: they’re widely diverse; they deliver a sense of edginess and endearment; most importantly, they communicate the community that Supreme has cultivated over the last 25 years. Scroll down to read more about the two films and what sets them apart.
“cherry”
Supreme’s first-ever full-length skate film released in-store and online on March 20th, 2014 and was available digitally via iTunes one week later on March 27th, 2014. The film officially features skaters Tyshawn Jones, Sage Elesser, Sean Pablo, Nakel Smith, Kevin Bradley, Aiden Mackey, Paulo Diaz, Mark Gonzales, Dylan Rieder, Alex Olson, and Jason Dill as well as several others who frequently associated with Supreme. The film clocked in at 40 minutes and was filmed in L.A. and New York. Strobeck wished he’d been able to take things international, filming in London and Paris as well, but he didn’t have the chance with “cherry.” The film’s title, “cherry,” comes from a scene where the bottom of Sean Pablo’s board can be seen, revealing the words “Take My Virginity Away”— enough said. After “cherry,” Strobeck stayed on with Supreme and released other smaller skate videos that can be found at the end of the article.
“‘BLESSED’”
“‘Blessed’” cover image.
Supreme’s second full-length skate film released in-store and online on November 23rd, 2018 and was available digitally via iTunes on November 24th, 2018. The film was more than twice as long as its predecessor, coming in at 84 minutes. “‘Blessed’” officially features skaters Tyshawn Jones, Sean Pablo, Ben Kadow, Aidan Mackey, Rowan Zorilla, Sage Elesser, Na-Kel Smith, Kevin Bradley, Mark Gonzales, Kevin Rodrigues, Vincent Touzery, Gregorie Cuadrado, and Jason Dill. Similar to “cherry,” the film was shot in New York and Los Angeles, but also included Paris. With the expanded locations, running time, new skaters, and styles, “‘Blessed’” is the more complete film. It does an excellent job of building out its characters in different ways. For instance, you get the sense that Aidan Mackey would try any trick, any time, anywhere. He can be seen multiple times attempting and failing, attempting and failing, and attempting and eventually landing tricks throughout the film. He even spends a decent amount of his part trying to off-road down dangerous dirt hills and skate over grass between sidewalks. He skates fast and wipes out often with no stopping of the camera, at one point he lands on his tailbone and is filmed reacting to the pain for longer than 15 seconds. Skaters like Tyshawn and Vincent have the opposite type of air about them, something of grace and ease. They don’t attempt as much as Aidan, but even their falls look like they didn’t hurt at all, everything seems effortless.
Without question, the film does an excellent job of not understating the amount of work and focus goes into the landing of these tricks as frustrations and victories feel as if you were there, watching and celebrating with them. Paulo Diaz, Alex Olson, and Dylan Rieder were the only three who appeared in “cherry” who did not get featured in “‘BLESSED.’” Dylan Rieder, who passed away in 2016 as a result of Leukemia, was given a touching tribute in the film. The film’s release was accompanied by three products that could be purchased in-store or via the site. These products included the DVD and a photobook, the “‘BLESSED’” tee, and the “‘BLESSED’” bundle, which contained the tee and the DVD + photobook. While not sold on our site, promotional posters from the movie are also highly coveted. Similarly to how Supreme has posted their photo tee posters in the past, they covered NY in “‘BLESSED’” posters last November which quickly were pulled down by fans.
The rest of Strobeck’s videos for Supreme can be viewed via his YouTube page here.
