1. FFF: How did you get into your industry (skateboard/filmmaker)?
ARIAN: I got into skateboarding as an alternative to surfing way back when. When there weren’t any waves, it was fun to go cruise around and carve down hills. Years later the whole discipline of Downhill Skateboarding became mainstream and we happened to be on the cusp of the whole thing. Going fast on our boards was just us trying to push the boundaries of what we originally had never thought possible. At the time, I was going to school for photography, so documenting the whole scenario as it played out felt like the next step to connecting my pursuits with my passion.
2. FFF: What do you like best about producing films?
ARIAN: I genuinely enjoy the process, the mission. The most exciting part of production was always the story and the creative journey behind making it happen. Whether it was us renting a van and driving out to the middle of the woods to skate some road we found via satellite mapping, or spending 12 hours waiting for a connecting flight in a Turkish airport in order to get to an event, every single time the adventure became the take away. So for me, the best kind of films are the films that tell the story. Taking the time to exhibit the story telling angle in the best way possible, and that is what I like best about producing films.
3. FFF: Where do you find inspiration?
ARIAN: A lot of the origins of my creative inspiration come from the tricks of the trade my late mother taught me about the process of self expression. My mother was herself, a creative powerhouse who in 2014 passed away from breast cancer, but during her life, taught me that creativity is a part of our being that we must hone and develop. She taught me the discipline of design, the beauty of free creative thought. So while she may not be around physically, she definitely lives on through the dedication, passion, and joy I instill in all of the things that I do. A lot of my drive to produce comes from those ideals she ingrained within me as, not only a person, but as someone who lives to constantly make and produce.
4. FFF: How would you describe your style of work?
ARIAN: I create based on my lifestyle and what I feel. If I’m happy or sad, my work definitely tends to reflect that. I try to make art that embodies my mood. A lot of the time, my need to constantly create exists as a kind of therapy. An outlet to vent whatever is on my mind. I guess if you were to catagorize what I do into a style, it would exist as thus. I also like being unique… if my work doesn’t have some aspect of uniqueness to it, it needs more time to marinate ha.
5. FFF: What are some of your favorite films?
ARIAN: I really enjoy the Coen Brothers films, as well as the films of Luc Besson and Jean-Pierre Jeunet. All of these directors have such a unique style, it genuinely becomes their trademark, and I think those stylistic nuances are what makes them all so fantastic at what they do. Movies from these directors include; The Big Lebowski, No Country For Old Men, Oh Brother Where Art Thou?, The 5th Element, The Professional, Amelie, Mic Macs. All wonderfully stylistic films, and all equally as unique.
6. FFF: Do you have a person on your wish list to work with?
ARIAN: As an athlete, I’ve always wanted to work with Redbull Media House. All of their films in regards to depicting action sports are just a cut above the rest. It would be a dream come true to produce something with them.
7. FFF: What’s next?
ARIAN: Well, I’m almost a 12 year veteran of the incline oriented skateboarding world, so while I feel like I’ve had my good run of the gamut, I’m still at it. Working closely with my sponsors still, hoping to make it on a few more trips to foreign destinations. Doing a lot of music related work these days as well, the other side of my life. Working as a Marketing Director with Film Festival Flix, taking more of an administrative roll while letting the next generation have their turn. The bottom line, I’m living the dream, and as long as I’m able to feed myself, produce new material on the regular, and follow my passions, I’m a happy camper.
