SkateGirl

Following in the footsteps of Tara Cooper, who produced one of the earliest documentaries on women in skateboarding, a 30-minute film called Live and Let Ride (1999) and AKA: Girl Skater (2002) featuring the Gallaz team on a tour of Australia, Susanne Tabata stepped up with one beast of a documentary.

In 2006, Tabata directed and released SkateGirl which explored the history of women in skateboarding. It’s loaded with skateboarding footage and interviews, and covers contests like the All Girl Skate Jam, Slam City Jam, the Soul Bowl and the Oregon Triefecta.

I was fortunate to go to the launch on February 3^rd, 2007 at AntiSocial skateshop in Vancouver and bask in this awesome one-hour production, purchasing the DVD.

There is substantial footage filmed by the legendary Lisa Whitaker, and skaters included are:

Alex White, Alison Matasi, Amy Caron, Annie Sullivan, Cara-beth Burnside, Danielle Bostick, David Everly, Donna Vano, Elizabeth Nitu, Elissa Steamer, Heidi Fitzgerald, Isabelle Caudle, Jen O’Brien, Jessica Starkweather, Jodi McDonald, Karen Jones, Kim Petersen, Laura Thornhill, Lauren Mollica, Lauren Perkins, Leo Baker, Lyn-z Adams Hawkins, Mandy Esch, Marisa Dal Santo, Melissa Dafnos, Mimi Knoop, Monica Shaw, Nicole Zuck, Patiane Frietas, Patty Segovia, Peggy Oki, Rebecca Davies, Tina Neff, Van Nguyen, Vanessa Torres, Violet Kimble, among others.

Tabata would go on to direct a 10-part ethnography series for the Japanese Canadian National Museum called Ohanashi: Stories of our Elders, as well as Bloodied But Unbowed (aka The Punk Movie) in 2010, focused on the punk music scene in Vancouver, BC.

The SkateGirl documentary is kindly shared in eight parts on YouTube.

Part 1:

Part 2:

Part 3:

Part 4:

Part 5:

Part 6:

Part 7:

Part 8:

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