Fancy doing a bit of philanthropy on a thursday afternoon?  Girls Just Wanna Grind is a new girls skateboarding documentary following five teen girls (Lizzie Armanto, Julie Kindstrand, Julie Westfall, Abby Zsarnay, AmeeJay Papelera… And others) as they take on the challenges they face in life and skating. It follows them from finding out that the X Games and Dew Tour cancelled their women’s divisions to the upcoming Oregon Bifecta, where they will all compete.

Having already gained widespread support from the skateboarding community and interest from television networks, the films makers have started a Kickstarter Campaign in a bid to raise extra funds needed to keep the filming going.  Head over to their Kickstarter Page, read all about the project, and donate a little of your pocket change to keeping this enterprise alive.  This is your chance to help give women’s skateboarding a stronger voice!

GIRLS JUST WANNA GRIND

“They’re not blonde, sexy, California babes. They’re hanging out with boys and dressing like boys. They’re not generally pinup models. They’ve got bruises on their knees and scratches on their shins.” according to Circe Wallace, that’s how the industry erroneously perceives girl skaters. Wallace, a passionate advocate for female athletes, snowboarding pioneer and sports agent, is frustrated by this perception and would like to see it changed.

So do we! Not only are these girls are beautiful… (if you don’t believe me check out Julian Bleecker’s photo project http://HelloSkaterGirl.com) but more importantly, so what? Why does pretty matter? Does anyone think, “hey, that guy sure can sink a lot of baskets, but he’s not very good looking.” We have to stop giving girls the message it’s not what you do, it’s how you look doing it. And that is exactly why we decided to film the documentary Girls Just Wanna Grind.

This is a story of love, adventure, friendship, sacrifice, competition, family, injuries, and well, some pretty wicked skateboarding too. In a time when girls get famous by being bad, these girls are struggling to be good. Help us get their story to the world.

MAKING THIS FILM

Two years ago we met some girls practicing for a skateboard contest in Portland, OR. These girls were ripping up the skatepark while the local boys stared in shock. We wondered… why aren’t we seeing this? Why did we have no idea that girls were skating to this level? What other amazing things are women doing out there that we aren’t hearing about?

The world needs to see there’s more to girls than trashy reality celebrities, and our documentary effort was born.

It’s a story about remarkable girls who have a passion and a talent. These girls make incredible sacrifices to pursue a sport commonly deemed too dangerous for females. Fraught with challenges and obstacles at every corner, their stories are incredible and mesmerizing: from dealing with cancer to devastating injuries to torn families.

OUR GOAL FOR THE FILM

Simply put, we are so inspired by the energy, talent and courage of these young women that we want to share their stories with as many people as possible.

Girls need to see other girls doing great things. Statistics tell us that girls involved in sports have increased self-esteem, leadership skills, confidence, health, body image and more.

If this film helps anyone find the courage to pursue what they love, regardless of what other people might think, then our job is done.