The Witching Hour and the Value of Doing Things Differently

"A perfectly lit bike check. A golden-hour edit shot almost entirely in super slow motion. A brightly colored bike and a rider in perfectly matching kit. Cheesy and predictable b-roll of loading the bike onto a truck, followed by an intense close-up of the rider's face. Add in a shaky push shot with the rider flying past the camera, and you have all the familiar touchpoints of many brands latest video all set to a slightly different-yet still eerily similar-song."

"Maybe I'm jaded as someone who works in the media production and marketing side of the sport. Or perhaps it comes from my background, which was so deeply rooted in skateboarding and snowboarding culture, where individuality is almost unequivocally the name of the game. But all too often, when I click on a video from such-and-such company, I feel this almost overwhelming sense of déjà vu."

Recent mountain biking media often follows a homogenized aesthetic: perfectly lit bike checks, golden-hour slow-motion, brightly colored bikes with matching kit, predictable b-roll, intense close-ups, shaky push shots, and similar music. This repetition creates a sense of déjà vu across many brand videos. Forbidden Bike Company emphasizes style, fun, and individuality, embracing slightly weird or artsy choices and leaning into the unique identities of riders and creatives. Forbidden's approach enables more distinctive edits, such as UK rider Billy Spurway’s short piece The Witching Hour, reinforcing the brand’s unique identity and industry impact within a few years.

Read at BikeMag