The Bunch have released their 2023 film, “SENSUS” for purchase on their site. Buying a movie directly from a crew supports the skiers and projects you love. Below is our unbiased review of this intriguing film if you want to know before you buy.
The progression of freeskiing would be severely stifled without The Bunch. That’s as close to a fact as one can get in this realm of subjective art. “Keep the culture moving” is the slogan for their company, 1000 Skis, but they seem to apply it to all endeavors. Whether you’re talking about ski films, culture or just the skiing itself, members of The Bunch have contributed to it all, maybe more than any other group. From street to backcountry, the crew has stayed innovative in their skiing, no matter the setting. They built their name from the ground up while cultivating new styles of swerving and slashing. Whether you hate or love swerve skiing, this ground opened up the door to make skiing more accepting of anyone who wanted to get down the mountain creatively.
Over the last 10 years, they have curated movies that have paid as much attention to cinematography and sound design as they have to skiing. Normally, this kind of detail was reserved for the big-budget studios of our sport. Not out of courtesy but necessity. It’s tough, expensive and time-consuming to put in the work like this. Yes, Poor Boyz, Stept and others have utilized great production capabilities, but their time has come and gone. (Not that Stept has really gone away, they’re now at the forefront when it comes to upscale video crews.) Level 1 would certainly be an exception, as they continue to tell meaningful stories in many different ways. The point here is that The Bunch has done what no one else has been able to do. The skiers of the crew, from Magnus to Pär Payben, have progressed the sport itself, while the group has simultaneously managed to innovate how they tell their stories.
This year, the Swedish production powerhouse has delivered a brain-twisting, startling, engaging masterpiece titled “SENSUS.” It’s far from a typical ski film, even for The Bunch, so we wanted to break it down for those interested. With incredible animation, and discussions on AI and evolution, this is a film that goes well beyond skiing and speaks to us as more than skiers; as humans.
It’s important to point out that this is not a typical ski film. If you expect and want that going into it, you’ll be confused at best. There is fantastic skiing throughout the film, but it’s mixed in with visual themes of evolution, artificial intelligence and our place in the cosmos. Check out the following description from The Bunch before watching.
In the midst of our modern distractions, “SENSUS” emerges from the void as a cinematic revelation, a journey that challenges perceptions and invites us to ponder the infinite in the everyday.
In the outskirts of the Milky Way Galaxy, a group of hominid life forms sculpted by 13.8 billion years of cosmic evolution have not only mastered the art of sliding on frozen water but have recently stumbled upon a swarm of profound and enigmatic technology. This newfound discovery sparks a universal exploration, delving into the mysteries of existence and the astonishing chain of events that led to this moment and what may lie beyond.
The film navigates the eternal dance between light and dark, it probes the enigma of consciousness and the transformative potential of emerging technologies. Exploring the interconnectedness of all things, intertwining the thrill of freeskiing with a contemplative look at life’s deeper questions.
“SENSUS” is a voyage into the heart of mystery, a delicate unraveling of the intricate threads that bind us to this moment in time and a compelling thrust towards the mysteries that stretch out, vast and untamed, beyond our understanding.
So yes, not your average ski film. From the description alone you’re stuck with the question of, “What the f*ck am I doing? My ancestors ate berries and hunted wild animals, and now I can ski. How did we get here?” The Bunch expands upon this idea, looking at how we got here and where we might go.
The film begins at the ultimate beginning, the big bang. (Huge shoutout to Alric Ljunghager who is credited with the Space VFX for the film.) We’re throttled through the early reaches of the cosmos, and as planets form and the eons go by, we arrive at our very own Milky Way galaxy. Descending in, we soon reach Earth, settling at none other than Ruka, Finland to follow a skier through a forest illuminated by drone light. The scene is very reminiscent of something out a George Orwell novel, with the drone keeping an ever watchful, almost menacing eye on the skier. Our friend is joined by others, and they tear their way through the forest. Quick-cut animations depicting early biological evolution are mixed in with shots of the skier’s eyes. This gives the hint that the two, while unrecognizably different, are indeed related.
As we leave the hills of Ruka, a rising sun greats us over the ocean. The blue light of the drones previously seen is replaced with a stark contrast of black and white scenery. Ripping through both low tide strips as well as powdery alpine faces, our nameless skiers are seen taming new environments. Much like human expansion over time, we see the skier master new tricks and environments beyond the resort. Our pals are throwing backflips and skiing bigger lines as they expand their knowledge.
13 minutes into the film we’re met with some of the most attention-grabbing shots. As the music shifts, we see a successful corked hand drag over a street wall. Animations of cave drawings and Neanderthals combine to show a growing human brain. Then we see color. No longer taking isolated lines or features, the skier is now weaving massive faces together connecting jumps in a single line. Religion, philosophy and mathematics (even DMX) are all overlaid in the chaos. Houston, we have liftoff!
Our skier progresses, and so do the animations. The technology grows, life creates other life and images of screen-addicted humans are ever present. Even still, our skier continues to ride, signaling a kind of hope that not all is lost. We still have a choice.
I’d say that I won’t spoil the ending for you, but the film doesn’t have a clear or direct ending to spoil. We’re left with an uneasy sense that there is no clear finale, and maybe that’s what The Bunch was hoping for. To show us that the future is yet to be decided, and we can have a say in shaping it.
While “SENSUS” is extremely abstract, even by The Bunch standards, it isn’t too far out there to follow. Like a good Grateful Dead song (and there are plenty of bad ones), the movie takes you for a ride and although you don’t know where it’s going, you know there is a destination in mind. The project is really an experimental film that uses skiing to convey its point. This seems to be the natural progression as the team moves on from the beautifully framed films of recent years, such as “Is There Time for Matching Socks?” and enters a new era of storytelling. Overall, “SENSUS” does what any good film does, and that’s bring you into a world bigger than yourself. Skiing can feel like a niche at times, but in truth, we’re all just as connected to the world as anyone else. Climate changes, new technologies and social uprisings will affect skiing just as they have affected any other art form before. It’s up to us to make sure skiing is allowed to adapt and stay alive for future life forms to enjoy… no matter if they’re carbon- or silicon-based.
With everything we’ve discussed, it’s easy to lose track of the fact that there is indeed skiing in the movie. It’s certainly not the in-depth street skiing that we saw in “LOVE YOU TOO,” and the backcountry segments are not filled with the tricks seen in “Many Fantasies Later,” but the skiing is still fantastic. Magnus, Emil, Pär, Alex and the crew are some of the best in the world. But what makes “SENSUS” a success is that it brings together different people and skills, from Jens Nillsons Directing to Alric Lujnghager’s animations to Hugo Bruvall’s original score, and creates a meaningful piece. Anyone can throw people together in a room and have them create, but The Bunch manages to make a thought-provoking movie out of the creativity.
There are plenty of details and scenes in the film that we did not mention here, so it’s certainly worth it to see the film. Words don’t do justice to the visual story that’s presented in “SENSUS,” so grab a doobie, rally your friends and get watching!
