CK9 Studios

Brand overview and significance

CK9 Studios is a boutique production house best known in freeski culture for cinematic shorts and branded stories that feel like films first and ads second. Co-led by director Clay Mitchell and producer Simon Shave, CK9 came up through athlete-driven projects and now partners with leading outdoor brands while staying nimble enough to chase storms and windows. Their calling card is polished, narrative-forward ski filmmaking—projects like “Over Time,” “Passage,” and “Space Craft” that mix high-end visuals with authentic rider voice. For Skipowd readers, there’s also a quick internal hub at CK9 Studios on skipowd.tv.

CK9’s profile spans the global scene but is rooted in the Kootenays of British Columbia, with frequent forays to Alaska and the Alps. The studio has earned recognition at marquee festivals and award nights (including iF3 categories and Powder Awards honors), and it frequently collaborates with athlete-led brands and outerwear powerhouses such as Arc’teryx and The North Face. The result is a body of work that influences how freeskiing is seen—on big screens, on brand tours, and in the social clips that keep the culture moving.

Product lines and key technologies

CK9 doesn’t sell skis—it crafts moving pictures. Its “product line” is threefold: short films that tour and stream; brand anthems and athlete profiles; and campaign assets that scale from hero edits to social. The studio’s portfolio shows range across backcountry, resort, and travel narratives, but the connective tissue is consistent pacing, color, and storytelling.

Technically, CK9’s in-house capabilities cover the full stack: pre-production (story, budgets, permits, music licensing), on-snow production (cinema bodies like RED, certified aerial cinematography, specialty rigging), and post (edit, titles/graphics, color). The team’s “film-first” approach carries into camera movement—heli and drone for scale, long-lens compressions for speed, and sled or rope work to place the viewer inside a line. None of this is tech for tech’s sake; the tools serve a signature feel where weightlessness, control, and consequence read clearly on screen.

Ride feel: who it’s for (terrains & use-cases)

Translate “ride feel” to viewing experience and project fit. If you’re a skier who loves style-forward backcountry—and a brand that wants that feeling captured—CK9 shines in soft-snow zones where flow, sluff, and landings matter. If your world is resort laps and parks, the crew adapts to jump lanes and rail gardens with repeatable angles that show trick mechanics and speed reads. And for athlete portraits, CK9’s interview and archive craft gives context without killing momentum, so viewers come away knowing both the skiing and the skier. In practical terms, that means a CK9 film can serve as a season capstone for a rider, a hero story for a product launch, or a festival-ready short to anchor a tour.

Team presence, competitions, and reputation

CK9’s reputation is athlete-powered and award-validated. “Over Time” with Sammy Carlson earned Best Cinematography recognition at major ski awards in 2019, while “Passage” with Tatum Monod took iF3 wins in 2021 (including Best Short Movie and Best Editing). In 2023, “Space Craft,” presented by Arc’teryx and starring Sam Kuch (with Cole Richardson), landed on iF3 shortlists and headlined brand channels. CK9’s films appear on official outlets (for example, Red Bull premiered “Passage”: Red Bull) and on festival stages highlighted by the official iF3 program (iF3). The studio’s competitive edge isn’t podiums—it’s consistent recognition for image-making and edit discipline that riders trust.

Geography and hubs (heritage, testing, venues)

Home base energy comes from the Kootenays—Nelson, Whitewater, and the Selkirks—where interior storm cycles and gladed terrain are ideal for stacking days without long transfers. That local web extends naturally to Baldface Valhalla’s tenure (Baldface) for sled and cat access when the brief calls for pillows and old-growth lines. On the resort side, CK9 projects frequently intersect with Whistler-Blackcomb for park mileage and alpine scale, while Alaska’s spine fields are a recurring canvas for big, stable windows later in the season (Alaska). Occasional shoots in the lower 48 and the Alps (think long seasons and dependable terrain parks) round out the map, with places like Mammoth Mountain and Innsbruck’s park scene offering repeatable laps and quick resets.

Construction, durability, and sustainability

For a studio, “construction and durability” means crew systems and risk management. CK9’s production notes emphasize permitted access, avalanche-informed decision-making, and specialty rigging that keeps operators and athletes safe around cornices, glaciers, and tree wells. Certified aerial work pairs with ground teams to reduce exposure while still getting dynamic angles. The ethic is simple: plan hard so the on-snow day looks easy.

On sustainability, CK9’s partners increasingly foreground repair and circularity—programs like The North Face product stewardship and Arc’teryx’s re-use initiatives (Arc’teryx ReBIRD / Regear)—and those values tend to show up in brand briefs and tour stops. Film production still has a footprint, but smart logistics (smaller, mixed-sled crews, consolidated travel blocks, local operators) keep impact and cost in check without compromising what ends up on screen.

How to choose within the lineup

Think in formats and goals. If you’re an athlete or brand launching a story-driven project, a 7–15 minute headline short gives room for character, place, and lines that build—ideal for tour screenings, brand events, and a premium online premiere. If you want a fast, campaign-friendly asset, a 2–4 minute anthem showcases a product or destination with strong voiceover and a motif that ties social cutdowns together. For park or technique-led work, plan around venues that guarantee repetitions (e.g., Innsbruck’s Golden Roof Park on skipowd.tv at Golden Roof Park) so shots progress efficiently. Meanwhile, backcountry films live or die on logistics; anchor to reliable hubs (Kootenays, Coast Mountains, or heliski regions) and build weather buffers into the schedule. Finally, match music rights and deliverables early—CK9’s pre-pro and licensing flow is built to avoid hiccups when the film is ready to launch.

Why riders care

CK9 Studios matters because it consistently captures skiing the way skiers want to feel it—light on its feet, honest about risk, and beautiful without distraction. The films celebrate flow but keep it real when conditions get complicated; they champion athletes while letting mountains be the main character. Add a home base in snow-rich British Columbia, partnerships with brands that shape the sport, and repeated recognition from the scene’s top festival platform (iF3), and you get a studio whose work sets the tone for modern freeski storytelling. Whether the setting is a Kootenay pillow line, a Whistler park lap, or a spring spine in coastal Alaska, CK9’s lens turns good days into enduring chapters of ski culture.