Next week is the premiere of Lives Of The Artists, a fresh take on the usual macho “bigger, faster, radder!” coverage used to paint a picture of the surf and snowboard scene. Director Ross Cairns combines incredible cinematography and in-depth interviews with those involved to bring out a more romantic and passionate side to these sports. Dazed speaks to twice snowboard World Championship winner Xavier De Le Rue about snowboarding and filming Lives Of The Artists.

Dazed Digital: What stands Lives Of The Artists apart from other sports films?
Xavier De Le Rue: It’s not all about showing your skills, it’s more about telling a story. Ross Cairns, the director, as well as being able to shoot beautiful scenes, he was also able to capture the layers of the characters in the movie. He was able to pick out who we were and capture way more emotion and portray us very deeply.

DD: Greenland isn’t famous for snowboarding. Were you excited about filming there?
Xavier De Le Rue: I wasn’t expecting anything that great. To start with I thought it would be fairly flat and windblown terrain, but when I got there I was really surprised.

DD: Will it become more popular for snowboarding?
Xavier De Le Rue: It could be. Maybe people will go there for tourism. Personally I don’t wish that at all because it’s one of few pristine places to snowboard.

DD: Did you have any brushes with death whilst filming?
Xavier De Le Rue: Not in Greenland. I had a close call once in Chamonix that made me think a lot. I could see that a ridge was a little bit dangerous, but I got greedy and went for it. It didn’t break at first so I got confident, then it broke and it took me over a cliff face. It was more of a slide than an avalanche, but the fact that it took me over some rocks really made me think.

DD: Does that stop you being more adventurous in other filming?
Xavier De Le Rue: Especially after last year, I’ve been setting myself some rules like making the decision to say “no”; not to go. If there are rocks or boulders that I’m not a hundred percent sure about, I’ll not go for them. I’ve been really strict with that.

DD: Did having a family influence you to set these rules?
Xavier De Le Rue: Well it did, but I didn’t want to die before I have a family anyway. For people who don’t know what I’m doing, it may look like I’m crazy, but I don’t act like that in a conscious way.

DD: How do you hope Lives Of The Artists will inspire people?
Xavier De Le Rue: Not necessarily to snowboard, but if they like something, even if it’s dangerous, you can do beautiful things and push yourself to that goal. I hope people see the passion I have for what I’m doing, and that I can communicate that to them. I’m living my dream, basically, and I hope people will want to do the same when they see me.

Dazed Digital are giving away 40 pairs of tickets to the premiere of Lives of the Artists at Shoreditch Town Hall in London with music from Black Teeth and Filthy Dukes. Click here for details of how to enter.
Check out the Lives of the Artists trailer here and you can join Relentless's mailing list, The Order to keep up to date with what’s happening.