Amman might not be the first place to come to mind when it comes to underground skateboard scenes, but much like Palestine and Lagos, the city’s scene is having a major moment.
Thanks to 7Hills Park, skating has become huge in the Middle Eastern city for last few years. The non-profit organisation is behind Jordan’s first skate park and has used the sport to bring together locals as well as Somali, Syrian and Palestinian refugees. And now the collective have dropped their first skate film, which delves deeper in to the little-documented scene in Jordan
The film—which premiered on Dazed this week—tells the backstory of the non-profit, and the hidden figures that have made it all happen. Among them iss 7Hills co-founder Mohammed Zakaria.
“The skate community was reborn through the skatepark,” he tells us, “suddenly there is a space for people to come and goof around on a skateboard, and skateboarding allows you to act as a child.”
According to him, with skateboarding culture thriving, “the city has transformed into a huge playground”. With local rapper Basher Saleh’s music in the background, the film proves that this much is undoubtable.
Directed by Stanley Brock—who was a former volunteer for the organization’s skate program—7Hills shows how skateboarding has united everyone in the local community. The film also features interviews of both the kids and volunteers behind it all.
