Under Exposed with Ian Ostrowski

In this Under Exposed interview we chat with Ian Ostrowski, the Seattle raised and LA based videographer, Jenkem contributor and the man behind the Genesis videos and brand.

Let’s jump into some basics Ian, where did you grow up? Tell me a little about it? 

I actually grew up in Beacon Hill! I went to Kimball Elementary and lived right next to what's now the Beacon Hill Light Rail Station. We ended up moving to Seward Park while the station was under construction tho cuz the drilling was so loud everyday hahah. But yeah been in Beacon/south Seattle for most of my life!

Tell us about about the Southend for people who don't know the zone?

South seattle is super cool! Lots of good restaurants. Not a whole lot of skateparks/spots available growing up tho. Until Jefferson Skatepark was built! That's the local.

Dude, wish we had a Jefferson in Tacoma… What led you to skateboarding?

Funnily enough, I was actually the last of my friends to get into skating. They all started in 6th grade and I didn't start until 7th. My friend Raphi Smither really put me on game with watching skate videos, we would walk to his house after school and watch sk8rat edits, mikey123xyz and lots of Cory Kennedy. He actually gifted me Beware of Sasquatch on DVD and it was the first skate video I owned! Definitely a game changer for me haha.

That video was and still is such a legendary piece of NW skateboarding. How did filming start for you?

In middle school me and all my friends would take turns filming each other, passing a lil Flip camera around. At some point I think I kinda became the designated person for whenever anyone needed to film anything. From an early age I think I really loved being able to pick the songs and choose how the clips synced up to it!

Shout out the flip cameras haha what a time! How has your camera setup evolved over the years?

Flip camera to gopro hero 2 to nikon D3200 then HMC150.

So I dug into your Youtube to look back on the timeline and it looks like your first projects posted were the SK8D8 episodes, the earliest one being 2016. Was that the beginning or was there stuff before that?

Yeah so there was stuff before SK8D8! In the early Jefferson park days (2011-2012ish) we started a video series called BEACONTAGE. It was actually pretty insane in retrospect. I had two friends with gopros and would take turns borrowing them to film everyone at the skatepark. It got to the point where I was taking their cameras home every night and importing all the footage. We would spend months filming skatepark clips and everyone would pick songs and it would turn into these 30-40 minute skatepark full lengths called BEACONTAGE. Kinda started as a play off of Grant Yansura's "Weekendtage" series. Through the years we started skating street more and the series got a little more montage based. At the height of our highschool hype we dropped our only full length street video called "JIGSAW”. It premiered at 35th north and like 15-20 homies showed up. Mostly just homies who had parts in the video but I also remember Pat Haynes being there and I was super hyped. After highschool Beacontage kinda fizzled out, most of my friends got serious jobs and were pretty over trying to skate and film. I was still super juiced on skating though. I had just got a new camera, my dream cam at the time, the HMC150. I decided to start a new youtube channel to mark this transition under my real name.

Ah ok, see this is why I like to ask! That helps illustrate the timeline a bit. And then those SK8D8 episodes were kinda just cruising with the homies, shorter type edits, what inspired those and that format?

I think I was really into Johnny Wilson in that stage of my life. I loved his lil raw skate clips with no music. I was also really into Strobeck at the time and I really wanted to learn how to film like him and I guess those videos were kinda just camera practice for me in a way ahahah. Lots of good memories were coincidentally captured tho.

The first longer more typical skate edit project on your channel was 'ANDNOWWHAT'. What was that one about?

Oh yeah ANDNOWWHAT was a silly one! I was skating with Finn Pope a lot at the time, as well as Bao and Troy and the younger BEACONTAGE alumni. I was also kinda experimenting with a lot of things outside skateboarding at the time. I started making more friends who made music and other types of art and wanted to include all these other things I was out doing in the video as well. I had a friend Marvin who lived in downtown Seattle and we would skate around downtown late at night, go to house shows in the U district and go to parties and all sorts of other schenanigans. 

So nowadays a lot of people know you and the crew from the Genesis videos, the first of which dropped in 2017. Tell us about making the first one?

Genesis was super fun! I was 19 when we started filming. I think what really sparked it was getting my Xtreme lens, I think that was when people were really like oh shit this is getting more serious! People were a lot more motivated to go film after that. It was a really random crew though. Cooper Phillips would bring out his friends Ray Weiss and Josh Lee and we would all film together, they were a year or two older than me I think. And at the same time I was trying to get Bao, Xavier, Jasper and Troy out of the skatepark and into the streets more. These guys were a lot younger than me but I saw a lot of potential in their skating and Tony at 35th was trying to get them hooked up with sponsors but wanted to see more street footy of them first. Pablo was also filming with us a lot in the beginning, he actually coined the name Genesis from Josh Lee's car lol 

Ahhhh so that’s where it came from! The genesis of it all, you might say...

Dude one really memorable moment during that era was leaving my camera on this hill in LA. I was on tour with some music friends at the start of summer 2016 (when we first started filming for Genesis). I was kinda playing the videographer role trying to document everything I could. After playing a show at a venue in Echo Park my friend Aramis asked me to take a Polaroid of him outside the venue. I set down my camera on the ground leaning on a telephone pole. We all left to go to a pizza spot down the street, once we got to the pizza place I had realized I left my camera leaning on the pole. I remember thinking to myself damn I saved up for months at my restaurant job back home saving up for this camera, if it's not there I'm probably not making this skate video. My friend Aramis drove me back to the venue 20 minutes later and there it was! Still sitting on the sidewalk, felt like some kind of sign from the universe hahah.

Damn, always such a good feeling when that type of shit happens. Like the universe really is on board. So after the first one then Genesis 2 dropped a few years later in 2020. From my perspective, it felt like this one really blew up, how did that all happen? And how was this one different from the first?

Genesis 2 kinda felt like the perfect storm! We had our original Beacon Hill crew of Bao, Troy, Jasper and Xavier, and these guys were getting ready to graduate high school at this point and their skating was becoming a little bit more refined. Around the same time we started skating with the Kent crew a lot (Dylan, Jacob, KJ, Rafi, Mike) these guys were just as hungry to get out as we were, and it kinda was only a matter of time until we joined forces hahah. I also started skating with Cass and Elise a lot the summer of 2017 and I was very adamant about getting them in the van once we started filming. It was a super wholesome crew and it felt like we had all the pieces we had been missing the first time. Then the pandemic hit and we were unsure if we were gonna be able to film at all. Once things started easing up, we started skating Westlake at night and those were the best sessions. The entire plaza would literally be empty and we would pull our cars up and park right in the middle and kick a soccer ball around, it was insane. All in all it was a very special, once in a lifetime crew and we created memories that I'll cling onto forever.

So sick, you can tell in the footage it was really just some good homie shit. That’s why it resonated I think. And finally Genesis 3 came out in 2023. Let's talk about that one.

We didn't know if we were gonna do Genesis 3 at first. Troy, Cass and Elise all had moved to New York and it felt like things had shifted a little. Then we started taking Caden out to film and he kinda got us all juiced to skate again. We filmed one solo part with him and then that summer we started filming a little more seriously. I think my favorite part of Genesis 3 was being able to film full parts with Jacob, KJ and our up and comer Darrian. A lot of times these guys would have single clips in friend sections or be part of a montage but I really wanted them to get their shine, I was hanging out with them practically every day so it felt pretty natural. I think not everyone understands Genesis 3 as a video and that's ok. It's less about the skating and more about highlighting a very special summer spent hanging out with my friends, going on road trips, taking bong rips, fishing and doing bullshit haha.

Yeah I think a lot of people (myself included) come in with their previous expectation of what a skate video is supposed to be or look like or sound like or whatever, but you’re really not doing that, you’re doing your own thing. Documenting both the skating and what’s happening around you with the homies, and then packaging it up into skate video form, and I think that’s an interesting way to see it and think about it. So a lot of people might look at your Youtube and IG and be like Ian makes hella good short videos, why even make a full length anymore? Why not just feed the algorithm with these small edits?

I like making both! I think short edits give you the freedom to experiment and try weird songs and take editing risks that you wouldn't otherwise, whereas long form allows you to really refine your style and try to make something that people will return to. I think putting on the homies and letting their personalities shine matters a lot to me as well. Short edits also kinda get lost in the feed, instagram doesn't have the best search feature. It can be hard to dig thru and find a random little short video. Someone was also telling me that they were at a house party and someone was watching Genesis 2 in its entirety as background ambiance for the party and I thought that was so sick hahah

That’s really true, the shorter stuff does get lost in the void. Alright how about some bigger picture stuff... I think a lot of people get stoked on filming for a bit, and then get overwhelmed with what to do with it, how to progress or how to keep moving forward in skating with it, especially these days. How do you manage to stay inspired and keep going after all of these years?

Some weeks are harder than others! Sometimes I definitely get kinda discouraged and it's hard to get the ball rolling. With so much skate content coming out sometimes it feels like your stuff gets instantly washed away by the tide. But overall I got a really solid team who is super motivated and down to get out and keep pushing. I also find a lot of inspiration in movies and non-skate videos. Sometimes hearing a good song in a coffee shop will inspire a whole montage/part. Sounds cheesy but sometimes when you're feeling stuck you just need to go outside and hang with some friends and the answer will find you.

Get outside. Good advice right there. What about camera stuff, is there anything gear wise you wish you knew back in the day, that you know now?

I think as a kid you get really caught up in gear. Growing up I've realized gear hardly matters at all. I've seen some of the coolest skate videos shot on $20 point and shoot photo cameras from Goodwill. I think having a vision for what you want to create matters a lot more than gear. It's also crazy the things that we can do on iPhones now. You can make a lot happen with what you have at your disposal! Don't think you need the fanciest camera just to get started, I've known plenty of homies who go out and buy a really nice camera and just let it sit.

Yeah for sure. I really like the idea that the camera you have on you is the best one haha. How do you think you developed your filming style and perspective? Was it thought out and deliberate? Mimicking your inspirations? Completely random? Just going with the flow? All of the above?

Yeah definitely a mix of all of the above! Kinda just happened naturally being a kid and mimicking things I liked. At first I wanted to be Delistatus, then Sk8rat, then Illegal Civ, then Strobeck, then 917 and it kinda just warps into a combination of all those things. I was really focused on making things colorful and vibrant though, I think that came from watching a bunch of Odd Future music videos in high school. Oh and Wes Anderson movies definitely play a big part in the things I make today.

Who gets you hyped now?

Lately I'm super hyped on Daniel Dent, Shari White, Olaf Trevilla and the good homie Alex Greenberg. This kid Kona Russi from Ventura has been making some really amazing videos, it's been sick to watch his comeup. I also really like the stuff Logan Lara is doing with Limo, I think watching them break off and do their own company got me really inspired and feeling like we can do it too. At a much smaller level of course though hahah.

Yeah I’m a big Limo fan as well, Max and Cyrus are goats. So some folks might not know, but you recently left Sea and moved down to LA. How has living down there been and what’s it like spending time away from home?

I love LA! It's definitely very different from Washington and I still find myself missing home a lot. But it's been a very necessary change of pace. It's been nice being out in the sun and being able to skate pretty much whenever I want. 

Glorious sunshine! Who are you skating with most out there? 

It's been me, Jasper, Dylan and Greengage for the most part! Every once in a while we'll get an offer to hop in the Sk8rat van which is like a childhood dream come true. We also met these kids Larry and Mercer out here, they're part of this crew called vivid and we've been skating with them a lot as well. Sometimes we'll get to go out with Ryan Lee. Dylan's filming for this Venture part with him right now which is super sick. Our first week moving to LA we got him to wake up at 6am and meet us at this bump to rail that you can only skate early in the morning. Ryan's a real one for that!

So rad. Ryan has filmed so many good videos. Speaking of good videos, we’ve been seeing your name on a few Jenkem videos as of late, that’s been cool to see. Are you a regular name we will be seeing on Jenkem now?

Yeah! I've been working as a video contributor for Jenkem. Super stoked to be a part of the team. Kinda felt like the perfect opportunity with us finally making the move to LA and Ian (Michna) making the move as well and looking for a west coast contributor. My main role is filming and editing documentary-style videos for the youtube channel but every now and then I'll help with social content as well. I've gotten the opportunity to cover some sick events as well, it's been super fun!

For sure, how did you initially get linked up with them?

I got linked up with Jenkem thru twitter actually hahahha. I think they were watching my videos for a while in the early days and reached out to Elise to do a Genesis 2 interview with me and it all kinda took off from there. We started our ongoing series "G-files" and I started helping them with some docu style video content for the site and it just felt like a great fit. 

Yes dude, so sick to see you traveling and hitting events all over with them! It was pretty crazy to bump into you at the AVE shoe release thing in LA, I was feeling hella out of place, so was nice to see a familiar face haha. And are you working any other jobs right now besides filming? 

Besides Jenkem I've been working part time as a dog walker. Mostly just to bring in a little bit of weekly spending money to keep me afloat.

Shout out all my dogs. Give me some of the challenges with being a skate videographer in 2024?

Oh man. Gas prices. Financial stress. No spots. Too many spots too choose from. Filming a clip that you wanna save for a video and the skater posts it on instagram. Someone asking you to film a clip on their phone that definitely should be on the camera. Finding out the song you wanted to use for your new edit was in a bronze video seven years ago. Skaters not wanting to leave the skatepark. Clip unusable cuz the fit sucks. The list goes on!

Hahaha, some good ones. Alright let's switch it up a bit for some fun NW stuff to bring it home... Who are a few of your favorite NW skaters of all time? Fav parts from them?

Cory Kennedy is my fuckin goat! Obviously his ‘Beware of Sasquatch’ part, but his chronicles part is def a close second for me. Big fan of the Dope Planet chronicles and ‘Where's Dad?’. Josh Jones ‘Seattle Sizzle’. Shoutout my guy Cooper. #storm2#brandon#lukas. Simon Bannerot's ‘Watercolours’ part, goated. Yoshi Obayashi's 35th part. I actually have a playlist on youtube with over 200 seattle skate videos, working on updating it.

Some bangers! What video projects are you working on or helping with currently?

Genesis is doing a collab with another company and we're working on a video for it, can't say too much right now but it's gonna be a good one. Also filming for another Genny promo set to come out in December. I have 3 short Jenkem docs in the works that I'm pretty hyped on. And then I think the plan is to start a full length in the new year but can't speak too soon!

We will keep an eye out for all of that. If you had to choose a few favorite edits you've made over the years, what would they be?

Windsor Warriors is super special to me cuz it was such a fun trip. The editing is super rough and kinda cringey at times but I think it's perfectly on brand for how hectic and chaotic that trip was. He had like six dudes in one hotel room at one point!

Zip pack deluxe also means a lot to me. It was super sick being able to go to Hawaii and have Jacob show us around to spots he grew up skating. The SZA song got blocked from youtube but it will forever live on The Den! Shoutout to them.

Last but not least I'd have to say Gfiles 003, that summer was super fun and I think it sums up our energy as a crew perfectly in a 12 minute bubble. 

Before we wrap up, I should probably ask about the evolution of Genesis the brand. You’ve been making some merch for a while now but you recently dropped some boards as well. How’d that come to be?

Genesis skateboards was a complete accident! We were gifted 200 blank boards from Daniel, an old Dwindle employee and decided to do a small run with them. It was kinda just the perfect storm where a lot of our homies didn't have board sponsors at the time and we're down to start riding them. And thus came the boards. "Genesis skateboards" still sounds weird to me tbh. I prefer to just call it Genesis in the same way you just call it GX1000. But so far so good!! I'm hyped that we've had a good response from shops. We kinda did things backwards in a sense with making a full video trilogy and then making boards but it actually worked in our favor. A lot of the shops we've been reaching out to are already familiar with the videos and are hyped to support our next leap. We're getting ready to put out our third official drop with boards, a collab with Michigan based brand "Stunt" and have secured distribution in Canada, Japan and the UK. Things are definitely movin along!

Love to hear it. I think in 2024 there is no right or wrong way anymore. All of the old rules are out the window, and I think you have really made your own lane in skating, which especially rad coming from our little corner of the USA. But I've probably asked way too many questions already, so we’ll wrap it up with some quick silly ones. I'm gonna give you a word, and you give me your thoughts.

YouTube.

The best! Just don't read the comments

Instagram.

Over it.

Dylan.

My goat.

Thrasher.

The bible.

Gifted hater.

Sworn enemy.

35th.

The best!

Alright that’s all I got dude. I just want to wrap up by saying congratulations on all of the success, you’re killing it and we’re cheering for you Ian. Any final thoughts? Shout outs? Words of wisdom?

Shout out to 35th North and 35th Ave and all the skate shops! We couldn't do it without you. And don't forget to charge those batteries!! Peace!

Thanks Ian, let’s skate next time your back home!

You can keep up with Ian by following him and Genesis on IG, and go subscribe on YouTube.