Tony Manfre is a Bay Area native that has consistently held it down on his skateboard. Both the switch ollie and switch 180 at Wallenberg were ground breaking at the time, and if you haven’t seen his Static 3 part I suggest you seek that out pronto. Aside from being a good skateboarder, Tony’s also a creative individual who spends his downtime working on music and his upcoming Super 8 film project. With a Shut promo set to release in the not too distant future, I’m sure we’ll be seeing some of the footage Tony’s been stacking soon enough.

Interview By Shawn Whisenant 

Shawn: So you grew up in Sonoma, CA a small town about 30 minutes north of  San Francisco, how did you get into skatebaording?

Tony: I got into skating with my cousin Richie and my neighbor Andy. We used to push around on our knees and stuff.  That was when I was like five and then when I turned eleven I got into it for real.

Shawn: Do you think where you grew up effected your drive to be creative and persue your skateboarding?

Tony: I think the drive was there because I loved skateboarding and my friends at the time were super inspiring and ripped pretty hard.

Shawn: Let's talk about Santa Rosa Skatepark. I remember seeing you there at a young age doing some crazy kickflip indy grab's. How do you think skating there helped you out and do you have any good story's about the park?   

Tony: I used to go there with my friends. Usually somebody's mom would take us there. It was tight. There were a lot of sick skaters who used to skate there. I remember skating with Charlie Watts and all those guy back in the day, and Jessie Palmer and TnT and that crew. The one thing I won't forget was when Tom Penny and Chad Muska showed up there. It was the one day I decided not to go. I still haven't forgiven myself. 

Shawn: Living so close to San Francisco you got a chance to skate legendary skate spots such as EMB and Union Square, Do you remember your first time skating in San Francisco?  

Tony: Yeah - I got ripped off by some punk immediately at EMB. He was like "where you from" and then he pretty much just took my board and skated off with it.  When my mom came to pick me up she was like "where's your board?" When I told her what happened she went across EMB, found the kid and said "where did you get that board" the punk says "I got this from my homeboy." My mom's all "I bought that board motherfucker" and took it. The whole bench of people where like "OOOOOOHHHHHHH" and I got my board back. I was twelve or thirteen.

Shawn: Where did you learn those mean Tuck-Knee grabs? Did you skate alot of jump ramps growing up or was that from skating transition?

Tony: Growing up I used to watch John Cardiel in videos and people like Phil Shao. I wanted to do sick airs like that so I practiced them at my friend Justin Bovie's house on his miniramp. Then I just wanted to tweak them so I did tuck knees.

Shawn: What video really inspired you growing up?

Tony: Stereo Visual Sound. I got that video from Ari Marcopulos when I was thirteen. I ran into him in my hometown at some party my mom was at. I was wearing an Alien Workshop hat and he was like "hey kid, you're a skater, I shoot photos for Big Brother here’s a video and some stickers." I watched that video for years and still have it.  

Shawn: So it must be rad for you riding for HiFi Wheels. How did that all come about?  

Tony: When I skated for DLX back in the day I met Chris Pastras. Over the years I'd run into him. He would flow me boards from Stereo while I was unsponsored, then he got me on WeSC and HiFi wheels. Chris has helped me out a lot. I'm super honored to be hooked up by him.

Shawn: You rode for Real Skateboards back in the day, how did the whole sponsorship thing come about?  

Tony: I got on Deluxe flow from Mic-E Reyes at a People's Park Demo in Berkely. He gave me his card and it all kinda started happening from there.  I would go into the city and pick up product. Sometimes Mic-E would pick me up and we would go skate with the Gonz or other dudes that were on Deluxe at the time. It was pretty insane hanging out with those guys. You kinda never knew what you would get. I would get to bring a friend along usually.  It was really dope.

Shawn: After Real, there was a time when you were unsponsored - how were those times for you?

Tony: I think back on those days and trip out on how far things have come since then. It was really fun to lurk

Shawn: You skated for Powell for a bit, what was it like working with them? 

Tony: It was pretty cool. I met a lot of cool people through riding for Powell and went on some really awesome trips. It's just the image associated with that brand is kinda whatever so nobody really gets into it like they used to. All in all it was a good experience.

Shawn: Static 3 was one of your first full-length parts. How did you link up with Josh Stewart?  

Tony: I Called Josh because my buddy Mike Fox told me to. He was like "If you want a part get on these trips and bust out some footy.  If you can film a part by the time I'm editing then you got a part." So I just got on as many trips with those guys as I could. I went to Miami a couple times and a lot of other places. 

Shawn: Where have you gotten to travel and are you going anywhere soon?  

Tony: I've been to Europe and all over the US, Australia, and Mexico. I just got home from Montreal, Quebec, and Halifax Nova Scotia. I'm planning a trip to Japan this winter. I really want to travel to new places to skate and shoot photography.

Shawn: You’re into  music, how long have you been doing that and where can people listen to your stuff?   

Tony: I started out djing and collecting records back in the day. I was really into scratching and beats. From there I got more into making beats and producing music. I'm still working on my first EP. It will be out soon I hope.  

Shawn: You recently made a Great Super 8 film with some Danny Renaud footage in there – what’s up with that project.

Tony: That film that’’s on WeSC.com is the trailer for a film that I've been shooting for over a decade and includes traveling, skating, and art. I plan to have the full-length ready for fall / winter 2010.  I'm trying to get this film out there as much as possible and then I'll start another film project.  

Shawn: Who do you ride for? 

Tony: I ride for Shut, Indy, WeSC, Hifi wheels, Nike (flow), and Bones Bearings.

Shawn: Being from the West, how did you link up with Shut?  

Tony: I linked up with Shut through Todd and Tino Razo. I needed a sponsor and I like how Shut is an original brand with sick art and history so I went for it. 

Shawn: Your first pro board is on Shut, is that something that you knew was going to happen?

Tony: I never really planned on it but after working hard for so long there was a point where I could envision it coming. Now that it did happen it's dope.

Shawn: Do you plan on doing your own graphics? 

Tony: I hope so. There's a graphic I want to do really bad. Maybe I shouldn't give it up though.  

Shawn: Is there a Shut video in the works?

Tony: I guess they're doing an AM promo. It's some kids from back East that are putting something together. Then the Pro promo comes out. And then????

Shawn: Do you spend much time in New York? 

Tony: I have in the past. I would go there for like a month or two at a time. I haven't been back since I was there finishing Static 3.

Shawn: What's an average day for you? 

Tony: I get up with my girl Phoebe. I'm not gonna lie, she usually cooks breakfast. We hang for a bit. When she goes to work I usually either get ready to drive to SF to meet up with people to skate or I take care of things at home and work on photography and music. If I'm here I go to Sebastopol skatepark. I have a bunch of little homies down there I skate with. It's fun.

Shawn: Let’s talk Wallenberg - how did that swicth ollie go down at night in some busted Half Cabs mobbin switch down that hill! I don't think people realize how gnarly that was.  

Tony: I made the mistake of claiming I could do it to Luke Ogden. It was dark but he had these movie lights so I just had to bomb the hill in the dark. My heels got pulverized. I either had to land it or walk away destroyed. I feel like I just told myself I had to do it and it worked out.

Shawn: You also got switch180, how did those two trick change things for you?

Tony: I feel like those two experiences were highlights for me in the way that each trick had a really good story and day behind it.  And when People come up to me and ask about Wallenberg it's a trip because I don't really think about it too often; but it makes me stoked when they ask. 

Shawn: What projects do you currently have in the works?

Tony: I'm planning the release of my Super 8 film in 2010. Other than that, keep skating, filming, and making beats. I've been getting more and more DJ gigs as well so I'll be doing that too. I'm stacking as much footage as I can so I'll have clips ready to use whenever.  

Shawn: Any last words you’d like to say to wrap this up? 

Tony: I'd like to thank my girlfriend Phoebe for taking really good care of me. My Mom and Dad. All my sponsors and 48 Blocks.