For everyone who’s not familiar with Legs of Steel (is that even possible): This crew from Innsbruck stunned the ski world with unique movie projects over a decade ago and has kept making films ever since. Their latest production titled “We Can’t Not” is arguably their biggest effort yet and is based on one of LOS’ original members, Paddy Graham. We met Paddy at the world premiere of the film in Innsbruck October 23 to talk about the project. Following the interview, there’s a short review of the movie and also a link to watch it online. So stay tuned.
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HighlightLOS Strikes Again
You Can’t Not… Miss this movie!
Many people involved in the production of the movie, but still not all of them.
Hai Yen
Downdays: Paddy Graham right before the world premiere of “We Can’t Not” in Innsbruck, just in front of me. Well, I saw the trailer, so I have to ask, how do you get from behind a bar in Sheffield, England to the insanely steep slopes of Alaska?
Paddy Graham: That’s a very good question. I mean, it all comes back to our director [Adam] Gendle. He’s very creative. He had a big vision for the film… and there’s a lot of random stuff in this ski movie, you could say. But all of it has its place. It’s all about the story. It’s all about entertainment. It all makes for a very nice, well-rounded movie that can be enjoyed by everyone, not just the freeski fanatic.
Downdays: The Legs Of Steel crew’s been around for a long time. You’re basically the one guy left from the original crew who’s still skiing in the movies…
Paddy Graham: Yes!
Downdays: How do you feel about that?
Paddy Graham: Very honored. You know, I never wanted to hang on to something. I always believed that if it’s not your turn anymore, you need to accept it. When I was a kid and saw some old guys in movies, I’d be like “Oh, why are they still doing this?” Now I realize that they just loved it. You know, that’s life. I’m still skiing and a lot of the other guys from our beginning, they don’t ski in front of the camera anymore. But a lot of it came down to injuries and then their lives just moved on, different responsibilities came in. I’ve tried to balance all of that and I feel like I found a place, where I’m still skiing in a film without being someone who shouldn’t be there. Because there are only a few seats in a helicopter and I get one of them. It’s very nice.
Paddy Graham at the premiere.
Hai Yen
Downdays: Let’s revisit this after I’ve seen the movie. (Laughs) No, honestly, it’s great to still see you around. So as I understand, you really came up with the concept for this movie, right? Looking back to when you started as a pro skier, that was the time when traditional ski movies were still the big thing and every year a new release from MSP and TGR came out and everybody was really looking forward to it. This anticipation seems to have disappeared over the last decade, right? We’re living a totally different world now. The media landscape is dominated by shorter edits where storytelling often isn’t a primary concern. So is that something that you wanted to point to with this movie by kind of maxing the storytelling?
Paddy Graham: Yeah, I think it’s a generational thing. Like growing up with ski movies in that traditional sense. At LOS we are actually quite traditional. We weren’t maybe perceived as that when we started but we’re still routed in that time. Nowadays, there are plenty people out there who ski great stuff and make very good movies but there’s this problem with over-consumption of social media. When you don’t get a viral clip out every week or at least every month, most people don’t recognize you. Our passion is to make traditional ski films, so to say – spend time doing them and going to great lengths to make them perfect. Also, to make them a bit humorous and witty. If someone can sit down and hold their attention for an hour-long movie, then we’ve won. Hopefully our trailer does a good job of marketing the film… then when people press play on the full movie, hopefully they’ll stay till the end. (Pause) Does that actually answer the question?
Paddy in AK
Downdays: Yeah, it does in a way. I mean, it’s great that you guys are still doing this and I truly hope it works out. Well, it definitely works out here. I’ve never seen so many people at a ski movie premiere. It’s crazy!
Paddy Graham: It is. Like it’s definitely the biggest movie we’ve done and the biggest premieres we’ve got. We’re having Innsbruck tonight. We’ve rented the whole cinema complex and we opened one room for starters. It got filled up, people bought all the tickets, we opened another room. Again, all tickets were sold, but it kind of went slowly. And then right at the end, it just went crazy and we had to open two more rooms today. People kept buying tickets. They want to come. We’ve got London. It’s on in Krakow tonight as well. 700 people there at a film festival. We’re doing a really cool tour in the UK. I’m taking all the boys in the film back to where I learned to ski in Sheffield. We’re having a rail jam there. We’ve got over 60 people who have signed up for a rail jam on Sunday, that’s awesome. We’ll even get some real snow, because usually it’s all on plastic slopes back home. Red Bull are putting on this event. Then we do a big one in London, go into a snow dome in Tamworth and then we do a dry ski slope in Scotland. It’s really fun!
Downdays: So is that kind of a renaissance of the classic ski movie, or is it more like capping off a long story?
Paddy Graham: Well, it’s not like any other ski movie, I’ll tell you that. So we won’t be able to replicate it. But it’s not meant to be an end statement of any sort. Like, I don’t know if we can make another movie. This one has been long in the making. You know, we’ve approached every movie we’ve made so far differently, we’ve always tried to follow a different theme and not do the same thing again. This one’s really pushed our capabilities both from a creative standpoint but also from a company standpoint.
Downdays: How long was it in the making?
Paddy Graham: We filmed for two years. We did pre-production for a year before that, because we had to make a pilot of the film to get the funding from Red Bull. And even before that, Tobi [Reindl] and I developed this idea for quite some time. It actually goes back to the summer of 23, like the first pages. Well, and then I had a little baby and I was like “Wow, I’m going to Alaska to send it.” But I’ve never been, so I still wanted to do that. And then three, almost four years later, I’ve got another kid and I’ve gotten way older and I’m like “Dude, we’re going to Alaska!” Like, oh my God, I need to keep ready for this, you know? So, a lot of things have changed. Four children have been born during the production of this film within the Legs Of Steel crew. So yeah, it’s been a big one. Funnily, there’s a lot of nostalgia in this movie. Like, we’ve got old ski movies and we’ve got old ski magazines—which actually you provided from your archive. I went to a photocopy shop in Sheffield photocopying all these pages, so I could stick them on the wall. And I was like getting out all my old stuff, it was awesome!
Downdays: The skiers in the movie… it seems like they’re basically your friends, right?
Paddy Graham: Yes. Like when we came up with the idea, we thought “Who do we want in this film?” It quickly came down to who’s got a personality that we want to show. How well do we know these skiers? Tom [Ritsch] and Markus [Eder] are guys I ski with all the time, really good friends. Then we’ve got Finn [Bilous] from New Zealand. That’s another part of the globe, which is nice, and he’s an amazing character, insane skier with great energy. He wanted to be part of the movie and we were so stoked for that. And then Kye [Petersen] as kind of a veteran.
Downdays: You’re referring to Kye as a veteran, but aren’t you older than him?
Paddy Graham: I know, we’re almost the same and I’m just a bit older. But he’s been around for so long. He was already skiing in the movies when he was a kid, so that means when I was a kid, too. All in all, we had a solid crew to go to Alaska and it was actually the first time in AK for Tom and myself. But with Kye and Markus, we figured that they’d give us so much guidance and they’ve got so much experience that it wouldn’t be a problem. And then Finn is just like, if a helicopter takes off, he’s in it. And then he skis something sick, does a 720 in the middle and when he’s down, he wants to go right up again. Lots of energy!
Downdays: So he was the young guy, right?
Paddy Graham: Yeah, Finn’s 26, so he’s the youngest. The rest, we’re all in the 30s. I’m the oldest at 38. Markus is 35. Kye’s 36. Tom’s 30 something. 33, maybe? Well, we’re still going.
Downdays: Awesome. Well, thank you for that interview!
Paddy Graham: You’re welcome.
Downdays: Very curious to see the movie now.
Paddy Graham: I think, you’re gonna love it.
Downdays: I think so, too. Actually, I’m very confident.
After watching the movie, I have to say I’m really impressed – and so was the vast majority of people watching in Innsbruck. Is it a great ski movie then? Well, I’d put it this way: It’s a great movie about skiing! The official communication calls it “a movie about making a ski movie,” but that’s not really the case. It’s really more a film about skiing, and does a really good job showing what skiing, and specifically freeskiing, means to so many people.
A short synopsis: Paddy tries to explain to his family, what he’s actually doing as a professional skier. So he takes them along in the making of his latest professional outing, the making of a ski movie. For the rest, better watch the movie! It just needs to be said, that Paddy is really good in his role that demands almost more acting skills than skiing skills. But he also lives up to the skiing expectations, so he’s definitely the right person at the right place. For the rest of the crew, the skiing abilities are not even a question.
So yes, there’s also a lot of great skiing to be seen, including some stunning street skiing by Markus. I just feel a bit sad for Paddy and Tom, whose first trip to AK coincided with what was the worst season in Alaska in recent memory – and the film cannot fully hide this. But, as already stated above, this isn’t a movie to watch when solely hunting for the latest mind-blowing ski stunt. In fact, there’s at least as much non-skiing in this film as there is actual riding; but that’s not a weakness, it’s a strength. Rarely has a ski movie achieved to show what skiing actually means to us skiers, and it all comes so naturally that it’s a joy to watch. Shout out to director Adam Gendle, who’s done an amazing job, and the production pulled off some crazy technical tricks on the way.
Well, ’nough said. Now watch this movie. Go and watch it on a big screen, if you can – it’s worth it. I do hope, that lots of people will watch this film, and particularly lots of people who are usually not that much involved with skiing, since it has the potential to broaden the understanding for our sport. And it also has the potential to ignite the passion for skiing in many young viewers, thus growing the next generation that follows in Paddy’s footsteps. Therefore, thank you to Paddy, the Legs Of Steel crew and everybody involved in making this movie, you have our deepest respect!
The film premieres online on Red Bull TV November 1st 2026 18:00 CET.
You can also watch it on Red Bull’ snow channel on YouTube.
For further info, you might visit the official web presence:
