Brusti – 16 to Super from Bitchslap Media on Vimeo.

Absinthe Films have come an awful long way since they were founded 13 years ago. Brusti takes a look back at a decade and a bit behind the camera and how it all began. Hard to deny he’s documented a huge period of our sport’s growth, and introduced the world to so many great talents. Let’s hear what the he has to say for himself and how the avalanche of rider edits on the youtubes is keeping him on his toes.

With the teaser let loose, we hit up director Patrick Armbruster for the scoop on their new shred porno.

The teaser for Absinthe Films‘ highly anticipated shred flick, NowHere, dropped last night and if you have’t seen it yet, stop reading and press Play – it’s heavy.

We wanted more meat with our two veg, so we hit up one of Absinthe’s co-founders, Patrick ‘Brusti’ Armbruster and managed to drag him away from the edit suite for a couple of minutes to answer a few questions about filming and what we can expect from the flick. We can also now announce the Premiere Tour dates for Europe, so check ‘em out at the bottom and book the day off already…

Onboard: How does a new project develop in the minds of yourself and Justin [Hostynek - Brusti's partner at Absinthe]? Do you have a clear idea of what you want from the movie before you start shooting?

Brusti: There is usually a few ideas around that we try to realise every season. At the end of the day the flow of the winter dictates a lot of the feel of the film. It can be a pain in the ass waiting for the goods but other times all the factors come together and magic happens.

OB: How do you manage to improve the team every year? Are you always looking out for new riders?

B: We try to keep a healthy balance. As you can see, you always know at least half of the guys that are in there from the previous movies. In fact, the guys that you keep seeing since almost the beginning seem to just get better every year – still! The riders are loyal to us and so are we. At the same time we are open to suggestions when the riders recommend someone. It’s always that much more fun and productive if the crew vibe is up.

OB: Is it difficult to find a new concept each year or do you just go with the flow of what happens when shooting?

B: The concept really develops over the season. The experiences you had, the snow you rode, the weather, the places you went… all these factors create the rough story line. What we are doing at this very moment is honing it, bringing it all together. Finding this fine balance of conveying the past winter and packing it up so people are looking ahead to that next snow fall is what we are trying to achieve.

OB: Who’s new to the team and what do you think of those riders?

B: Jake Blauvelt, Lucas Debari, Tadashi Fuse and Taka Nakai have never been in an Absinthe movie. It’s also the first time that we have a Japanese presence! Fredi Kalbermatten is back, Terje Haakonsen, Blair Habenicht and Bjorn Leines as well. Jake and Lucas definitely have an impressive debut at Absinthe. Terje has very entertaining footage in there. Bjorn had the gnarliest accident …well, actually that was probably Marie-France Roy who broke her neck. Bjorn broke his elbow very badly on the Pyramid Gap.

OB: What can you tell us about this year’s movie?

B: It’s gonna be great! I’ll have to get right back to it. Get ready and support us by buying your own copy.

OB: What trip stands out most for you guys?

B: For me it was the trip with Fredi, Brisse, Sylvain and Jules to Courmayeur in Italy. Another highlight was the trip with Terje, JP and Fredi to far east Russia – Kamchatka. I always wanted to go there and it was spectacular. Baloo and his crew took great care of us. A trip of a lifetime.

OB: Any part you think will stand out?

B: Dan Brisse is showing a very diverse part. Killer shots on the streets and on the mountain. Everybody has highlights, I think it will be a great movie.

OB: Looking forward to it! Thanks heaps for your time, Brusti.

Absinthe Now/Here European Premiere Dates

presented by Bench and LAAX

07.09.2010 Zurich (Switzerland) – Kino Corso
08.09.2010 Chur (Switzerland) – Kino Apollo
09.09.2010 Innsbruck (Austria) – Kino Metropol
10.09.2010 Munich (Germany) – Kino Sendlinger Tor
11.09.2010 Stuttgart (Germany) – Kino Gloria
12.09.2010 Oslo (Norway) – Fugazi
13.09.2010 Freiburg im Breisgau (Germany) – Kino Harmonie
14.09.2010 Lyss zwischen Bern / Biel / Solothurn (Switzerland) – Kulturfabrik Lyss
15.09.2010 Luzern (Switzerland) – Kino Bourbaki
16.09.2010 St. Gallen (Switzerland) – Club Kugl
17.09.2010 Wien (Austria) – Gartenbaukino
18.09.2010 Graz (Austria) – Postgarage
20.09.2010 Rome (Italy)
21.09.2010 Grenoble (France) – Cinema Les 6 Rex
22.09.2010 Lausanne (Switzerland) – Cinéma Atlantic
27.09.2010 tbc – Paris (France)
28.09.2010 Antwerpen (Belgium) – Cinema Zuid
29.09.2010 Den Haag (Netherlands) – Filmhuis
30.09.2010 Hamburg (Germany) – Zeise Kino
02.10.2010 Saas-Fee (Schweiz) – Living Room / Popcorn
tbc St. Moritz (Switzerland) – Kino Scala
30.10.2010 Köln (Germany)

Dan Brisse at Chad's Gap. Photo: Bob Plumb.