We talk with "Moto 4" producer Taylor Congdon

Whats the vision with MotoXcinema?

MotoXcinema was made to fill the gap of an online store dedicated to motocross DVD’s. You can go to a lot of these big online motocross retailers and yeah they got some videos, but there is nothing that’s up to date, you can’t watch the trailers and its not very interactive. I thought that motoxcinema could kind of be a center hub for all the top movies, from action, to documentaries, to instructional.. MotoXcinema provides a focal point where you can find the top films in our sport.

Touch base on the moto the movies series and how you’ve gotten to moto4:

The Moto The Movie series started out 3 years ago when I stopped working with Transworld. The economy was kinda sucking and they couldn’t afford to produce a high-end moto film. I was left out on my own to figure out what to do. I always wanted to do something like the old Terrafermas. I had the equipment, the time and the resources with all the riders, so I just went at it. It took me a year to make the first Moto movie and it did very well; from then on it just turned into one after the next.. Right now we are on Moto 4. It’s kind of funny because the Moto series has turned into somewhat of a franchise and I have never been a fan of working on sequels. But, as the old saying goes, if it’s not broken why try to fix it!

Tell us about some of the equipment changes that you made this year and why you upgraded cameras?

Every movie I’ve shot Moto 1,2,3 and 4, have all been shot on different camera’s. The reason being technology is taking off so quickly and every year the manufacturers are coming out with something different that exceeds the quality of last years camerea’s.. In Moto 4 we stepped up big time and ended up shooting the film mostly on 4K, Red cameras. We were able to shoot at much higher speeds and the resolution is far superior to all other cameras, which has opened up a new style of filmmaking, because we can do so much more with the images.

 Whats been your favorite segment to shoot and be apart of on this project?

Tomac’s was really cool, I love going out to Colorado. We utilized the dactyl camera system (a flying cable camera system)  for that shoot and his property was perfect for it. The Tomac ranch has a lot of elevation changes and scenic backdrops. Eli and his dad were super motivated to work with us. We used all their tractors and equipment, which allowed us to come up with some very unique footage.

Photo Credit: Jason Lee

Tells us about the sponsors involved and the collaboration between you and the sponsors to create the film?

We couldn’t make the movies that we make without our sponsors.  Their support and funding is just so crucial. These films are so expensive to make and I couldn’t foot the bill out of my own pocket.. Its pretty cool to see companies like Geico, Fox, Monster, Gopro, KTM, Scott, Racerx, and bolt MC hardware, get involved… I think these companies have really started to realize how much they get out of sponsoring a film of this caliber. Its one thing to sponsor a rider, or an event, but to sponsor a film is unique and extremely valuable. These movies are going to be seen for years and years, over and over. That’s something that a lot of companies don’t realize, they think we just make DVD’s, and we might sell a couple thousand of them, but there is so much more to it. The online platform is huge; from downloads with iTunes, Playstation, Hulu, Xbox and Amazon. I mean there are so many different ways the movie gets sold and played. It’s a whole new marketing avenue that is worth their every Penny. Most importantly they are seeing a return on there investment and they are seeing it way longer than if they were sponsoring an individual rider or athlete.

Moto 4 is coming to its final postproduction stages, so what’s next?

Its one thing to make the movie, but there is another part of our business, which involves the promotion and marketing of the film. The holidays are a prime window of opportunity and we have to hype the hell out of the film! Right now I’m not thinking about my next project, I’m thinking about what it’s going to take to help promote and spread the word about Moto 4.

Check out: www.motoxcinema.com

and for updates on the film check out: http://www.facebook.com/pages/MOTO-The-Movie-Production/134823416597271