• Since 2016, Arnaud Wolff from Strasbourg has been regularly called upon by the Vans brand as a BMX filmer.

  • A result for this enthusiast who led him to follow pro-riders in Morocco, Iceland, Thailand and Spain.

  • Eventually, the 28-year-old would like to make it his full-time job.

He doesn't quite have the same gear, but he has the same passion.

Since the age of 12, Arnaud Wolff has practiced BMX (or bicycle motocross).

Very quickly, the native of Strasbourg began to film his exploits and those of his friends: “I had borrowed my mother's little camera.

I filmed everything and anything, as long as it was BMX.

It led me to what I do now.

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Today, at 28, the Alsatian has already made several videos around BMX for Vans.

Latest project to date: a trip to Barcelona between October and November 2021 with pros from the brand, which the filmmaker took on the task of documenting "in its entirety, from filming to editing", all "while assuming [his] touch of end to end ".

Decisive meeting

A culmination for the young man who established his credibility within the BMX community over the years and whose work has not escaped Alexandre Valentino, pro-rider at Vans since 2008. "I met him there about ten years old", says Arnaud Wolff.

“From 2013, I helped him film for his brand of clothes during trips with friends, the videos were unpretentious.

»

A few years later, the Strasbourg resident received a phone call from Alex Valentino, who had meanwhile become BMX team manager for Vans: "A filmer was not available, so he thought of me since we were getting along well, that he liked my work and vice versa.

»

Filming in Morocco, Iceland and Thailand

The adventure took shape in 2016, when Arnaud Wolff embarked on a trip to Morocco, then another to Iceland: “My first real experience as a filmmaker.

Rebelote in 2017, heading to Thailand: “We were between seven and eight and we had a minibus.

We tried to meet the locals and share BMX with riders from other countries.

»

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And Arnaud Wolff's job in all this?

Follow riders in their inspiration and capture them in action.

Equipped with his “Fuji” camera and his two lenses (fisheye and long focal length), the videographer scrutinizes each spot in search of the best angle and the most beautiful light.

“There is no storyboard before filming, it is played by instinct”, assures the Strasbourgeois.

“There is of course a guideline for the project, on the atmosphere or the music, but you never know in advance the figure that will be made.

»

Paradoxically, this accomplished rider abandons his BMX bike when filming his friends: “I always have a BMX with me to get around, but never to film because it's really not practical.

For moving sequences, he favors the cruiser skate “with big wheels to avoid small pebbles and big bowls (laughs)”.

With experience, this “street photo” enthusiast has also forged his own style: “I like when it breathes, when it's quite minimalist, but I also like to try things.

As soon as an element of decor intrigues me on a spot, I will try to do something about it.

»

A “spirit of freedom”

Driven by "this spirit of freedom", Arnaud Wolff would like one day to be able to make his activity as a filmmaker "full-time" and gradually abandon his activity as a manager of a motorcycle store.

"The stamps are correct," he says without going into detail.

“It's close to a normal job, but the prices generally depend on the brand, the importance of the project, the workload and the risks taken.

»

Here he is now, “like any filmmaker”, waiting for a new project: “I am open to all kinds of reports, as long as they stimulate me artistically.

» With one objective: that of having one's head in the handlebars again soon.

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  • Great East

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