PAVED Sessions: Inside Snowboarding’s New Creative Blueprint

In a season dominated by contest schedules, livestreams, and Olympic pathways, PAVED Sessions offers something different. Something slower, deeper, and arguably closer to the roots of snowboarding.

The series, built around the making of Burton’s PAVED film project, pulls back the curtain on what it actually takes to create a modern snowboard movie. Not just the tricks, but the process: the travel, the waiting, the dynamics between riders, and the constant negotiation between creativity and conditions.

Across six episodes spanning Japan, British Columbia, and Tahoe, PAVED Sessions doesn’t just document snowboarding; it documents the act of building it.

From Japan to BC: A Moving Canvas

The series opens in Japan, where riders like Ben Ferguson, Mikkel Bang, and Mark McMorris settle into the rhythm of storm cycles and tree runs. It’s less about stacking clips and more about rediscovering flow, finding speed, reading terrain, and letting the environment dictate what’s possible.

From there, the project expands into Interior BC, where the crew grows and the terrain opens up. Names like Danny Davis, Brock Crouch, and Mikey Ciccarelli bring different styles into the mix, turning pillow zones and natural features into collaborative playgrounds.

Tahoe shifts the tone again: less remote, more raw. Riders like Zeb Powell inject unpredictability and energy, blurring the line between technical riding and creative expression.

And then the series circles back to Japan’s backcountry with Zeb Powell, Ylfa Runarsdottir, Takeru Otsuka, and Maria Thomsen for a return that felt familiar but never predictable. From quick roadside missions to effortlessly flowing lines, the snow delivered exactly what everyone came for deep, playful, and worth every step. Between early-season laps, local insight, and evenings spent over ramen and onsen, this stop is a reminder of why Japan continues to draw riders back, year after year.

At Mike Wiegele Helicopter Skiing, Ben Ferguson, Ylfa Runarsdottir, and Takeru Otsuka dropped into conditions so deep that line choice became almost irrelevant—point it and hold on. In snow like this, control is everything, and simply staying upright turns into the real challenge. It’s raw, unpredictable riding where every turn disappears behind you and every landing demands full commitment.

Finally, in the Whistler backcountry, Mikey Ciccarelli, Mark McMorris, Anna Gasser, Brock Crouch, Danny Davis, Ben Ferguson, Mikkel Bang, and Zoi Synnott come together for a session built on teamwork, progression, and shared energy. From shaping jumps and dialing landings to pushing each other to go bigger and cleaner, it’s a process that goes far beyond the final clip. Heavy sleds, long days, and constant problem-solving are part of it, but so are the laughs, the slams, and the moments when everything clicks. Out here, it’s not about one rider, it’s about the crew.

More Than a Film: A Process

What PAVED Sessions does particularly well is showing that snowboarding at this level isn’t just about performance, it’s about decision-making: When to hit a jump, when to walk away and when to wait.

Heli trips in BC might look like unlimited access, but the reality is differt: weather windows, avalanche risk, light conditions, and fatigue all shape what gets filmed. The result is a constant balance between ambition and patience.

The Crew Factor

At its core, PAVED Sessions is about people. The mix of generations, styles, and personalities creates something that feels less like a structured production and more like a moving community. Veterans like McMorris and Davis bring experience and perspective, while riders like Zeb Powell and Ylfa Runarsdottir push boundaries in their own ways.

There’s no single narrative driving the series, no competition, no rankings. Instead, it’s the interactions between riders that shape the story: the shared sessions, the mutual support, and the collective push to make something meaningful.