There is an independent skateboarding film festival held each year in a peaceful village on the northeast side of the Adriatic Sea, in Fazana, Croatia. Its name is Vladimir, and in the last days of September 2019 it celebrated its 9th year of welcoming skateboarders, artists, and like-minded individuals to spend some days doing nothing but what they’d like to do.
There is something more at Vladimir than lovely people, crystal clear beaches, skate videos, a clubhouse with a mini ramp, and a DIY behind it. I believe it is magic. Knock three times and think of what it is you want. If it’s sound, it will come to you.
The dedicated individuals behind Vladimir are magic. The work that Nikola, Oleg, Tibor, Marina, Marco, Nich, Aymeric, and the rest of the locals put into coordinating premieres and activities for 300 skateboarders from all over the globe is not easy. It may not even always be fun for them. They barely sleep, staying three steps ahead of the rest of us. They used an ancient castle from the 17th century to host a Josh Stewart exhibit celebrating 20 years of Static. They made it possible for us to roam an island full of zebras and peacocks, stoop on 2,000 year old buildings, and skate a mini in the middle of a dance party at 4 am. You can sit on the beach eating fresh pastries, take a short drive and go cliff jumping then skate on pre-war architecture in the same day.
Those things are amazing, but they fall in the in-between. The point of this whole event is to share skateboarding and all that comes with it. Every night you’ll be treated to a selection of photos, zines, and of course films, from all across the spectrum. Paintings by Brian Lotti hang next to Jordan Hills double exposures prints and stacks of his zine. Nez Pez makes plans for your tattoo while you flip through Peter Fettich’s book on Slovenian DIY, listening to Daniel Lebron perform a flamenco concert in the old square of Fazana. Some of the films were documentaries, covering a rural town in France and their fight for their first skatepark, or a skate school for middle eastern refugees in Sweden. There were also local Croatian videos, animations, crew montages ranging from English homies in the Pacific Northwest, to Russian homies road tripping through Eastern Europe. I haven’t watched that much skateboarding in a very long time, yet I never got bored. Imagine going to a premiere for your homies video and it lasts for four days. Everyone was hyped and cheering whether it was the last film of the night or the first. Magic.
What I really learned through this whole festival was that skateboarding is doing just fine. There are skaters and spots absolutely everywhere and we are all a part of the same community, no matter where in the world we find ourselves. Nothing can stop that. Do your research. Learn about the history of Vladimir and the Croatian skate scene.
Find out the dates for next year and if you can, come spend a long weekend. Sound good? Just knock three times.
