THE MAYOR INITIATIVE: This week's guest is filmmaker Eric Iberg
I was introduced to Eric about six summers ago. Aspiring to become a professional skier, I was intrigued with his movies. He always had the riders I wanted to watch, and the raw film-producing talent that only the most determined had. You may be thinking that Warren Miller, Poorboyz, Teton Gravity and the likes of the bigger companies are the most determined. Year after year, those companies produce great ski films. But Iberg’s work was different. It wasn’t rare that the athletes’ salary for the year was more than his budget to make a film.Yet he still made the best from what he had.
His second film, Royalty, showcased a style of riding that would eventually be labeled “ahead of its time.” Cut the flashy tweaks and jerky spins from most movies, add fluidity and control, and you have yourself Iberg’s second film. (I skipped his first, Spun, because I’m not sure if I’ve even seen it…)
His next film had the same approach as Royalty—fluidity, control, and another year worth of riders progressing their skills. Eric Pollard shared a segment with Pete Mithoefer. Not many people liked this, because Pete didn’t use ski poles. This again was ahead of its time as hundreds of kids are now grabbing their skis and not their poles to go to the hill.
As stated above, I was intrigued with his films, and hoped that one day I would be one of the athletes featured in one of his movies. At the end of my second season as a professional, I cracked two vertebrae. Iberg ended up driving my truck and me from Breckenridge, Colorado, to Mammoth, California, where I had plenty of time to sit and think about what I wanted to do next. I felt as though my opportunity to film with Iberg arose. I pitched him the idea of doing a film with Pep and Pollard. Once I got confirmation from the two of them, it was on.
For the last few interviews, I talked directly with the person. For this one, I wrote out the questions and gave Iberg the chance to think things through a bit, as apposed to being put on the spot and not giving the answer he might want to provide. Here is what he had to…well, type.
Name?
Eric Thomas Iberg
Age?
27
Place of birth?
Edina, Minnesota
Currently residing?
Brightwood, Oregon
What motivated you to move here?
To be centralized with the crew. I moved in with filmer Justin Wiegand and we live three miles from Pollard. Also, Schwags (friend and filmer) and Andy are only 3 hours away in Washington. It only really sucked for Pep. But it sucked in Utah this year so it worked out.
This isn't the first movie you have made. What are the others in chronological order?
Spun 2000
Royalty 2001
Stereotype 2002
WSKI 106 2004
IDEA 2007
What made IDEA different from all the others?
I have always worked with "crews" in the past film projects I have done. But this "crew" was a crew for the whole season. We pretty much were together one way or another for the last year straight. I think this really showed in the film, and made the movie more on skiing than on skiers.
I know from being involved with the project that it wasn't easy to make this movie. List a few problems that came about? Remember, I said a "few problems."
-finding $
-getting $
-spending $...
-eliminate that damn dollar sign and it was a perfect year with no problems in my mind. We always found solutions for our problems together.
(Not to forget Schwag’s camera that got run over by a truck. It broke, but still worked.)
If you could have changed anything, what would it have been?
NOTHING! Imperfections are perfect.