"Three suburban skate punks hit the road to compete in a prestigious competition and pursue their dream of going pro. A deck grinding, wickedly funny coming of age about friendship and growing up. "

So reads the promoters' opener to the website for the new film, Deck Dogz, starring Sean Kennedy, Richard Wilson, Ho Thi Lu, and Tony Hawk *.

Boxing has Rocky and running has Chariots of Fire, but some would say the spectacle of skateboarding has been overlooked when it comes to great dramatic cinema.

Writer, director, and Sydney Oscar nominee Steve Pasvolsky says he set out with Tony Hawk to make the sickest skate film ever.

Pasvolsky has put together a drama about three rebellious teenagers who skate across Sydney to meet skate hero Tony Hawk at a competition.

New aussie actor Sean Kennedy plays Spasm, who wants to impress the American star with an impossible trick he has been perfecting and so become a pro skater. With his friends, Poker (Richard Wilson) and Blue Flame (Ho Thi Lu), reviews indicate that the three Deck Dogz run into loads of adventure and conflict on the way to the contest at Maroubra.

Said to be aimed with the teen moviegoer in mind, the movie contains some apparently invented lingo like "going hibiscus" for "going soft in the head".

The movie also features animated sequences associated with Spasm's deep interest in flip books. One reviewer felt that these seqences were the best part of the movie, wishing that "the whole film had been this good".

Originally designed to be a summer movie, Pasvolsky said he and the producers decided to promote the movie during the school holidays "because it was made for schoolkids".

To help give Deck Dogz authenticity, Pasvolsky pitched the script to world champion skateboarder Tony Hawk, who is regarded by many as the Michael Jordan of skateboarding. Hawk reportedly enjoyed the script but wondered whether he, the Birdman, was cool enough for the film's young audience.

"I was like, 'What are you talking about?'" Pasvolsky says. "There are a couple of really hard-core famous skaters. But Tony is cool and he's a good role model ... He's 35 and skating at the same level as when he was 16 or 17."

Hawk reportedly advised in the skating and the portrayal of the skaters in addition to playing a role in the movie. "I really took to the characters in some ways and mostly in the outcast element * because these kids are shunned at school and they're skaters," he says. "When I was growing up, the skaters were definitely not cool - the outcasts. Now, if you skate, you instantly have this cool factor so it's a strange difference today."

According to reports, given the needed mix of acting and skating ability, finding the three stars wasn't easy.

"I started off thinking all of them have to be the hottest skaters on earth," Pasvolsky says. "Then I realised the drama was quite challenging and a skater who had never been on a film set before might freak out."

Kennedy, whose most notable work has been guest roles in Water Rats and Home and Away, made an impact on the filmmakers at the Audition.

"Sean skated to his audition," Pasvolsky says. "I can remember hearing a guy wipe out outside the building. Then he walked in with blood all over him, all wired. It kind of gave him an edge because I thought he'd be willing to go for it."

The script draws on the director's experiences as a teenage skater in the northern suburbs after his family emigrated from South Africa *.

"I was an immigrant and I wasn't really accepted so I tried really hard to be something I wasn't, just to belong, during some of my high school years," Pasvolsky says.

He says that previous film potrayals of skateboarding, including 1989 *'s "Gleaming the Cube *" and 1978's "Skateboard" with pop star Leif Garrett, made some skaters suspicious of the latest film. Hopefully Deck Dogz won't be pulled down by what some have called an "undercooked script" and its appearance as an "enigmatic short" (the latter of which comments almost sounds like a compliment).

"If only skaters came to see this film, it would probably be a failure because the themes in there are universal," Pasvolsky said. "It just so happens that the platform is skating and we have tried to make it as authentic as possible but the story might have stuck if it was bmx riding or ice hockey."

"People are going to love the movie and people are going to hate it." Pasvolsky said. "There was some reluctance [from] skaters who thought all we wanted to do was exploit skateboarding. You've got to tread carefully. Maybe other films got put off by that."

The producers are Jennifer Cluff and Bill Bennet, and the movie is from b:j films.

This article was based on the articles "Little chariots of fire" found at http://www.smh.com.au/news/Film/Little-chariots-of-fire/ 2004 */12/30/1104344913067.html , from Megan Spencer's review at http://www.abc.net.au/triplej/review/film/s1275301.htm , and from "Skate flick gives Kennedy a chance" at http://www.seven.com.au/news/entertainment/150559

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