A DAY WITH TYSHAWN JONES

Dir : Danilo Parra
DP : Danilo Parra & Zach Sky
Edited : Danilo Parra
Music: Steve Reich

Tyshawn Jones comfortably flew down the crowded streets of Lower Manhattan as we struggled to keep up and capture all of his amazing tricks. He would just go through the city and if we were able to capture him doing tricks then we were lucky. He was non-stop!
My DP, Zach Sky, brought an Alexa Mini camera to the shoot that was around 30 pounds. Since I had more experience skateboarding, I ended up shooting most of the skating because I was able to stay around the same speed as Tyshawn but after 5 blocks and 4 avenues of constant action, my right arm started to pulsate and shake on me. Meanwhile, Zach Sky was catching alternate angles from a rented City Bike using a handy cam. Surprisingly the handy cam and Alexa Mini ended up cutting together really well even though they had a 20 pound difference in weight. Tyshawn's friend Karim showed up as we filmed and brought out the more emotional side of skateboarding when they spoke to eachother near a fountain in a small city park. This was commissioned by NYT Mag whose focus was on the Tyshawn story but the directors cut is meant to show a more atmospheric look at friendship and community within the New York skateboarding scene.