Features / skateboarding
New film shares the history of Dean Lane skate park
A film by Clockwise tells the story of how a small part of the city has carved out a place in one of the UK’s most recognisable subcultures.
Nothing Meaner is the story of Dean Lane in Bedminster, one of the the country’s original skate parks.
The park was originally a coal mine, but after an accident the area was given to the community to use and it became a skatepark. Built in 1978, it has remained a hot bed of culture for over 40 years, with some of the city’s most renowned DJs, filmmakers and artists listing spending time at the skate park as one of the most important points in their careers.
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Nothing Meaner is a love letter to Dean Park
“There are a lot of people all over the country who are massively passionate about the park,” says Dan Higginson, creative director at Easton-based Clockwise. “You get professional skaters coming from all over the world that will specifically come to Bristol just to come and skate this park. It’s got a global appeal. It would be nice to show the rest of Bristol that there is this pocket of the city that perhaps they weren’t aware of but actually has a massive amount of heritage within a certain scene.”
Clockwise have captured the sentiment that Dean Park holds for people in Bedminster and the skating community in Nothing Meaner.
“I had a very good idea about who were the core characters who have devoted a lot of time and effort to creating the skate park that it is today,” says Dan. “People who have devoted, say, ten years of their life to skating down there, building down there, socialising down there.
“It’s been around for 40 years now, so there are generations of skaters of all ages that skate there and skate together. It’s nice that you can go there and you might find a 45 year old skating with a 14 year old.”
The film is made with this sense of community in mind. While looking outwards to share skateboarding culture with a wider audience, it is also a homage to the people who spend time in Dean Park.
“It was important to make the film because there is a story that needs telling. You could see how important a place it is to people who have spent time down there so it was nice to be able to tell those stories. It felt like a bit of a privilege.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Iec279u3fA
While Nothing Meaner is undoubtedly a passion project, Dan hopes to see it have a deliverable impact on Dean Lane and skateboarding in Bristol.
“Skateboarding is in the Olympics next year for the first time, so it’s finding a new appeal to a bigger audience. It would be great if we could use this film to find more funding or find more support to add to it and make it bigger and better.
“The park was built 40 years ago, 20 years ago they did the revamp. 20 years on again it would be amazing if we could find some more investment and make it even better.
Nothing Meaner will be shown at House of Vans in London on the November 15. A wider release online and on DVD will be announced in the near future.
Read more: Bedminster shines in new film
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