PBS NEWSHOUR- Once in Afghanistan, there were ton of difficulties in shooting the film – the budget, the weather, faulty equipment and a very tight deadline, to name a few. However, I think most people watching the film would think that the biggest difficulty in making it would have been the security situation. Afghanistan is definitely not a safe place to be, and the evidence of war and fighting is pretty much everywhere you look; however, we did not actually ever feel threatened while we were there. Funnily enough, the times we felt most scared was when NATO army convoys would drive past. The 16mm camera we were shooting on looked just like a bazooka (black metal with a giant lens) so we spent a lot of time jumping up and down and waving at troops trying to convince them that we were just stupid foreigners and not insurgents! Pretty much all Afghans we met were very friendly to us with complete strangers, often offering Franklin Dow (the film’s cinematographer) and myself cups of chai and even lunch.

Before we went to Afghanistan, my housemate and I were having a chat about whether spending money on a skateboard park was a legitimate use of scarce resources, especially in a country where people outside of the cities don't have safe water or electricity. However, after spending time with the project, I really do believe that it is worth every penny given to it.

Kids in Kabul grow up very quickly, with many working on the streets by the time they are 8 years old. Skateistan is like an oasis where children can be children, and where for a few hours they can forget about the hardships of daily life. Seeing their happy faces charging around on a skateboard was very special. It is also a place where they get an education and get to mix with children of different ethnicities and classes, something the country as a whole needs to encourage if it is ever to get over years of social and ethnic conflict.

Garis Besar:pembuatan film tentang skateboard masi taboo di Afganisthan, terlihat ketika pembuat film membawa kamera dengan lensa besar dan konvoy pasukan nato lewat, tapi malah dikira bazooka. perkembangan anak di Afganistan sungguh pesat semangat dan keinginan akan hal baru sangat tinggi,

SkateBoard Is Not a Crime, War Is Hell