Editor’s Note: This feature was brought to you by our partners at KORUA Shapes.
KORUA Shapes is a company that was born from the truest intentions. Back in 2012, a group of friends who would eventually go on to found the brand was in Japan. It’s a place with powder unparalleled, and it sparked an idea in the minds of the group. Their new film, Neon Noir, is an ode to the places and experiences that lit that fire.
“We witnessed the country’s thriving snow-surf culture and their specifically ‘built-for-deep-powder’ boards,’ the brand’s website explains. “This spoke to our individual riding styles and interests. So when the opportunity arose to start our own brand, it was clear that the focus would lie on making boards that were easy-to-ride in our home mountains — the Alps, and that would turn exceptionally well.”
The designs they came up with in that initial run of KORUA Shapes featured a sidecut that allows the rider to both carve on groomed runs and float through powder with an ease that other snowboards can’t provide. Unlike other brands, KORUA doesn’t focus too much on ever-changing graphics that might encourage riders to buy a new snowboard based solely on looks alone. Instead, the brunt of their focus is on designing snowboard models that stand the test of time and ride they way a snowboard should ride.
“By putting more of an emphasis on building timeless shapes themselves, we chose to offer all of our boards with very minimal graphics that do not change each season,” KORUA wrote. “This allows us to invest more energy in the actual performance of each shape and stay free of seasonal ‘collections’. As a result, this makes production more sustainable, and also lowers the urge for one to buy a new snowboard each year based on updated graphics.”
Seeing as Japan was the place that kicked off KORUA Shapes, it’s fitting that the brand’s latest film, Neon Noir, features that bottomless well of powder. But it also put something else in stark contrast.
“Back home in Switzerland, we were met with the complete opposite conditions as those we experienced overseas – bone dry, a record low,” they said. “This stark contrast was the initial spark to explore further themes of opposition, but also the similarities between these two places we hold so dearly – Switzerland, our home, with its towering Alps, deep valleys, tiny villages and old European architecture; versus the serene rolling hills of northern Japan, and the dense, bustling and vibrant stimuli of Tokyo.”
Neon Noir stars a colorful cast and crew of friends, riders and creatives, including Nicholas Wolken, James Niederberger, Spencer O’Brien, Runar Hjörleifsson, Atsufumi Mizuno, and Daria Fuchs. Directed and edited by Eliel Hindert, it’s an exploration of two cultures, that, although thousands of miles apart, are connected through the act of riding mountains. The film is a lot more than just your average snow-shred flick.
“It’s a dialogue of moments and impressions, a narrative that dances in the light and shadows of Elle’s camera lens, capturing the essence of our shared experiences,” the film’s description reads. “The heartbeat of Neon Noir lies in its ability to take everything we ingested in a few short weeks and package it into a cohesive visual experience that at times feels hectic and urgent, and sometimes calm, patient and peaceful.”
See more from KORUA Shapes on their website and follow them on Instagram and Facebook.
