In this documentary, “The First Skateboarding Global Dream Team | Skating Changed Forever | 25 Years of e’S Menikmati” our host, Professional Skateboarder and Red Bull Skate’s very own, Torey Pudwill, takes us on a trip 25 years ago as we travel back in time to relive the making of e’s Shoes timeless video, ‘Menikmati.’ We celebrate the moments and chat with the superstars who made them. At the time of filming, it was 1999 and Tony Hawk had just done the first ever 900 at the X Games, followed up by THPS, so skateboarding was erupting. After Sole Tech released the Etnies ‘High Five’ video, they knew they needed a groundbreaking skate video to push the newer brand, e’S to the next level. Well, they did. To this day, ‘Menikmati’ is regarded as one of the most influential skateboarding videos of all time. Led by Director, Fred Mortagne aka “French Fred”, the video wasn’t just about the gnarly skateboarding, it was about the revolutionary production; the filming, the editing, the music, the traveling, the global skate team, THE RED VHS! It was the best of the best and it wasn’t just another skate video, it was a shift in the paradigm, a cultural milestone. The most innovative tricks at the most famous skateboarding spots; El Toro, Hollywood High, Macba, Wilshire and more. Fred and the ‘Menikmati’ team set a standard that is still being chased after to this day. The 90’s laid the foundation but the early 2,000’s changed the game for the rest of skateboarding history. This truly marked the beginning of skateboarding’s golden era. The video not only featured pro skateboarding legends Eric Koston, Tom Penny, Bob Burnquist, Ronnie Creager and Rick McCrank but it also introduced Rodrigo TX and Arto Saari (who would receive the Thrasher Skater Of The Year award just one year later). With such a stacked team of talent, it was considered to be skateboarding’s dream team of the time. The video launched not only careers but skateboarding as a whole to an international frontier. It showcased one of the first team’s to span the world, covering Brazil, Canada, Finland, France and Thailand. The new standard was set and it started with e’s Shoes classic, ‘Menikmati’. But what does ‘Menikmati’ even mean?
This documentary dives deeper into the individual stories of each of the riders. We sat down with Arto Saari who, shortly before ‘Menikmati’, was a relatively unknown skater from Finland who was getting flowed shoes from Emerica. Rodrigo TX was a “random skater” out of Brazil that Bob knew – and little did he know until the night of the premiere, he was having a full part in the legendary video. Ronnie Creager was an all star with one of the best selling shoes in skate history. Bob Burnquist was well established and a star in the video game, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater and would become a household name from his unforgettable moments at X Games. Rick McCrank was a rookie pro, riding for Girl Skateboards but was already one of the industries best and would follow up Menikmati with his Girl “Yeah Right’ part shortly after. Tom Penny’s legend and mystique only grew as French Fred, Don Brown, Mike Manzoori and crew at es’ footwear made the decision to compile Tom’s archival footage for his part and save his new footage for Flip ‘Sorry’. Eric Koston was the legend, the main guy, the last part…but it wasn’t always easy for him. In the end, the pressure shaped the diamond and Koston put out one of skateboarding’s most memorable video parts in history, unveiling never before seen tricks on handrails and capping it with a perfect Backside Noseblunt. To top it all off, French Fred reveals the creation of the new famous and standard, “rolling long lens” that wowed viewers with a new way to watch skateboarding that they had never seen before.