Black Sheep 2

When we heard North Carolina’s Black Sheep Skateshop was making a new video we were hyped! So much so we hit up Drew Adams (Black Sheep Filmer) to get the scoop on spearheading the massive undertaking, How the crew held up and when we can expect the video to drop.

#BLKSHP2 Squad

Drew Adams – Photo by Ty Brown

First off, give us a little back story on yourself & how you got into skating & filming.

I’m 30. Happily married with a 6 year old son. Back in 97 my friend Steven Patterson and I saw Bob Burnquist on the ESPN and were juiced. There was a shitty single tail skateboard in the garage with a ninja riding a horse graphic, it all started there. After watching a hand me down of Planet Earth Silver around age 15 or 16 I started filming everyone we skated with. Hi-8 to Canon GL2, one Sony vx1000 turned into four. Did a local crew video in Salisbury, NC moved to Charlotte, NC. Did an independent video called “Eyes like Static” with some of the Black Sheep guys. Saturday Skateboards is a local board company out of Charlotte, we worked together and did a lot of cool stuff, along with small Black Sheep projects here and there. Then finally got into the HD world around 4.5 years ago.

The skate scene in NC seems really tight knit, with Black Sheep Skateshop at the center of it all. How did you first get involved with the Black Sheep crew?

Skate Perception. Meet some people online (Aim chat days). Meet up with them, enjoyed the city and scene. Hung out at the shop. Went from there.

Black Sheep owner Josh Frazier has created a platform that has given so many people opportunity to thrive from. Don’t forget about Endless Grind! (Raleigh, NC boys)

The first Black Sheep video was rad – the whole crew killed it. Did you guys set out to film a full length video?

Thanks! We did set out to do a full length, It seemed right place right time. It was tried before but never panned out with another filmer. I didn’t think it was going to turn into 12 full parts with 3 montages and a hour long though, haha. It was a little much for nowadays attention span. The premiere was killer though, over 600 people attended! Overall it was a great experience and a chance for all generations of Charlotte skateboarding to get together.

Filming a full length video is a huge undertaking. What did you take away from working on that project? Any lessons learned?

Totally. Be prepared to self fund and make sure you have a right hand man that has your back. Ty Brown filmed probably 15% – 20% of The Black Sheep Video. He’s from the Charleston, SC area. (local shop Continuum) also lived in SF for a bit and has been in Charlotte for the last few years. Huge help.

Make sure your boys are committed to the project. Once we created a system and a schedule for filming it all just fell into place. Also remember there is no big reward for making a local skate video. It’s all about making your team shine and having fun.

Did you guys start filming for #BLKSHP2 right after finishing up the first video?

Bob Reynolds and Tyler Tufty were at the premiere of The Black Sheep Video. After it ended they started talking Power Point presentations, dollar signs, contracts, and corporate endorsements. WE SAID YES!…joking, but Black Sheep has always had a tight partnership with NikeSB. They (Bob & Tufty) said it would be cool to do another small video project. So we started right away. Bob and Tufty are great people. They have been seeding shoes to all the people involved with the new project since. To be clear this isn’t a NikeSB project. Just supported by.

Have you taken any trips for this project? Best place you guys went?

Charleston, Greenville, Columbia, Atlanta. Surrounding cities of Charlotte. We went to NYC to visit / film former Black Sheep employee Ian Isenhour. Charleston is always a great time…

Who’s been going the hardest for this video? Getting dirty in the streets….

Travis Kirkpatick, Jackson Davis, Kyrin McNair, Malik Jordan, and Ty Brown.

What’s next for the Black Sheep crew?

Not sure. More online content? Might do another independent.

Who surprised you with their footage and got a full part you might not have expected?

Travis Kirkpatick, Jackson Davis, Kyrin McNair, Malik Jordan, and Ty Brown.

Any young bucks in the video that are coming up?

No. We’re all in our mid 20s, most of us pushing 30. Looking for the next big thing though.

What’s the wildest thing you saw go down while filming for this video?

Jay Pitser’s stuff so far. Lipslide fakie kinked handrail to switch manny off the curb. 4^th or 5^th try? Fakie flip CPCC 13 stair has been claimed…

For all the filmers out there, what camera(s) did you use and any other tools to help get the job done? Totally cool if you want to keep them a secret.

Panasonic HPX170 with the Xtreme Century lens. Back up cams : Canon t2i with Peleng 8mm fish, Panasonic HVX200. FCPX.

Having wrapped this video up, what advice do you have to shops or crews out there who want to make their own video?

Have fun with it. Do it for the squad. Stop bitching, if it’s cold dress accordingly. #LETSGO #BLKSHP2