What's the synopsis for "Operation Golden Eagle"?
I'm not going to spoil it, but we've got a summer-love couple who, like anybody, want more out of life than they have. And, like lots of people, their ambitions just don't match up with reality. So they have planned a crazy stunt -- jumping the Golden Eagle River while their buddy films it -- that is supposed to make them famous, and ultimately make their relationship stronger. That's the big idea.

Sean KearnsCheese wedge Dukes of Hazard jump ramp. Yee-haw!

So you've got rural kids looking to make their mark by doing something exciting and stunt-ish, and the medium is a gigantic cheese-wedge Evel Knievel gap? How much of an influence did your snowboard life have on your script?
Shin Campos and his co-producer Stuart Andrews were responsible for the jump. That's funny, when I saw it, I was like, "Wow, it's a cheese wedge for a car!" Shin has built a lot of jumps in his day, so it's second nature for him.

But, the jump and all story elements in this film are born from the script's characters: Travis [played Matt Friesen -- Sean Kearns' cousin] and Kara [played by Jenna Romanin]. The characters are based on people I know from snowboarding. These are people who, like me, are emotionally intense, ambitious, and down for a physical thrill. The jump part at the end is because the "characters" are into action movies and Dukes of Hazard style stunts. A classic Dukes move is to launch the car. I love this move, so I guess it's natural that the characters I created would also be inspired by this move.

Are there going to be any shred references?
Not really -- except that the language that the characters use is totally from shred world, dude.

Sean KearnsThe is how Gabe Langlois spends his vacations away from the Brain Farm.

Your crew was stacked with snowboard people. How did the production turn so shred centric?
That was awesome. For starters the film was produced by Whistler Creek Productions, a company Shin Campos [pro snowboarder] helped start with Stuart Andrews [an old Whistlerite]. Our Director of Photography was Christian Begin, who has been shooting snowboard movies for like 20 years, and then Sean Kearns [MDP mogul] came to shoot second angles. Derek Heidt [ex-pro] and Gabe Langlois [shoots the Travis Rice movies] were assistant cameras. Garry Pendygrasse [just shot Jeremy Jones' movie "Deeper"] did sound, Anthony Vitele [shoots for DC] came to help for a day. Snowboard photographer Brian Hockenstein helped. Pro snowboarder Rube Goldberg plays one of the secondary characters.

It turns out that a lot of snowboard people have crossed into the film industry or are interested in getting involved. I think, it's because the work environment and lifestyle is quite similar: no office walls and non-traditional daily work hours. Also, it seems that snowboard cinematographers are interested in the new production challenges that fiction filmmaking offers. You don't just set up the camera and shoot talent. The cinematography and staging of the camera is such a crucial part of the fiction film process.

Did anything from snowboarding carry over?
When I was professionally snowboarding, I always really enjoyed the collaborative aspects of it, like people agreeing where to make jumps, or helping out others gets shots. The best snowboard movies I have been involved in resulted from everybody working together, not necessarily for the best individual part, but for the best overall movie. This style of teamwork is what fiction filmmaking is all about. Everybody needs to be onboard and stoked on the project/set vibe in order for the shoot to go well.

When will we be able to check the short?
TBA. I should have a polished cut by September 1, 2010. But, then we're gonna submit it to festivals before any online release. By mid-winter it will be out there.

Lukas HuffmanThere's a little part about a robbery, too.