Snowboarding
Watch That’s it, That’s all; the movie that launched a legend
This film is a landmark in the history of snowboarding films, but above all, it features Travis Rice at a crucial transitional moment.
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Judging by pretty much any criteria you want to throw at it, 2008’s That’s It, That’s All was a landmark in the history of snowboarding films. It featured the best rider in the world, had the biggest budget and the most progressive riding of its time. But above all else, it’s a fascinating transitional moment in Travis Rice’s journey from a freestyle prodigy to the ultimate snowboarding incarnation: a big mountain freestyler. Watch the movie now in the player above.
Travis Rice and crew pointing it in That's it, That's all
© Brain Farm
Best of both worlds: the freestyle/freeride intersection
To understand why big mountain freestyle represents the true apex of the sport, imagine snowboarding as a three-pointed triangle. One corner is progressive freestyle, populated by slopestyle and halfpipe stars like Shaun White, Scotty James and Yuki Kadono. The second corner is big mountain freeride, populated by riders like Jeremy Jones and Xavier de le Rue. In the third corner, bringing these two completely different disciplines together, is big mountain freestyle. On the line between the freestyle and big mountain freestyle corners, there’s backcountry freestyle. For most pros, a career spent shooting backcountry video parts stacked with wedges, pillow lines and step-downs is as good as it gets. But, for the truly exceptional, the evolution must continue its logical conclusion: applying freestyle principles to the steepest all-natural freeride terrain. Following in the tracks of pioneers like Noah Salasnek and Craig Kelly, guys like Travis Rice, Gigi Rüf and Jake Blauvelt all began their careers as outstanding snowpark riders, before progressing to the big stuff. It is in this realm where true snowboarding legends are made, and it’s here, right at the pinnacle, that you’ll find Travis Rice’s legacy.
Travis: the Absinthe years
Travis Rice in his Transcendence video part
© Absinthe Films
For Travis, the early stages of his journey from snowparks to gnarly terrain is documented between 2001 and 2008, during his tenure at Absinthe Films. In 2001’s Saturation, the fresh-faced rookie takes on a monster park jump no other pro would tackle. In 2004’s Pop, he becomes the first snowboarder to clear the infamous Chad’s Gap in the Utah backcountry. By 2006’s More, he’s got more technical, introducing double corks into his trick repertoire, but he’s also hitting more natural features, and taking on steeper freeride lines.
At this point, every riders poll is already calling Travis the best snowboarder in the world, but he’s just getting started. This is the beginning of the Brain Farm era, where Travis teams up with filmmaker Curt Morgan and his sponsors at Quiksilver and Red Bull, to produce the three biggest snowboard films of all time. Starting with That’s It, That’s All.
Brain Farm and beyond
1 h 17 min
The Art of Flight
Travis Rice and Curt Morgan's follow-up to That's It, That's All raises the bar of snowboarding – again.
Be sure to download the free Red Bull TV app and catch the snowboarding action on all your devices! Get the app here
Many – with good reason – will always regard 2011’s The Art of Flight as the definitive Travis Rice movie, launching him as it did, into mainstream fame. But for snowboarders, 2008’s That’s It, That’s All was equally game changing. Firstly, the production values were through the roof – the whole movie was shot on 35mm and super 16 film, unheard of outside Hollywood, and half the action was captured by heli cam. Secondly, the riding level was insane. Besides the memorable backcountry kicker sequence where Travis and his buddies fly headlong into and out of trees, TITA was where Travis nailed the first-ever double cork 1260, a new benchmark on the path of progression that riders like Mark McMorris, Marcus Kleveland and Max Parrot are still following on from today.
The Real Rice
Travis Rice and riding buddies
© Brain Farm
Still, 12 years later, it’s the documentary element that really makes That’s It, That’s All worth a revisit. Full of humour and horsing around, this film shows us the real Travis Rice – a powerhouse of a personality who lives to ride with his bros, and shine a light on his heroes. Heroes like Bryan Iguchi and Terje Håkonsen, who by turning their backs on the competitive freestyle scene, followed directly in the footsteps of their hero, Craig Kelly.
Be sure to download the free Red Bull TV app and catch all the snowboarding action on all your devices! Get the app here.
At this stage in his career, Travis is midway along the path to big mountain mastery: the action mixes everything from a stadium Big Air contest (Travis won) to gnarly Alaskan steeps. Looking back with hindsight, knowing what was yet to come with The Art of Flight, The Fourth Phase and his pioneering Supernatural backcountry freestyle contest series, is a fascinating reminder of what a crazy ride it’s been. If you start your evening with That’s It, That’s All, move on to The Art of Flight and end it with Roadless, you’ll not only have watched some of the most satisfying shred cinema to date, you might just learn something new about life’s bigger journey.
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