Cult - The First 5 Years Book - Adam Roye Q&A

When did you guys decide you'd like to put together a book to celebrate your five years of Cult? Why did you want to do it?

I started saving photos for an untitled Cult book project in 2012. It was after a filming trip for TIC and I ended up with an abundance of material. The concept continued to grow, but it kept getting put off for other projects. It made sense to put it out when I saw our five year anniversary coming up. I did it because I love books and printing, and I wanted everyone to see and realize what we did together in just five years... I'm just psyched to be a part and shit.

What exactly can people expect to find in the book?

I would say its about 80% photography; a lot of unseen photos from our team trips, or filming, but also reprints of some magazine covers and ads without copy... that type of thing. Any sort of notable event, in my opinion. The other 20% are graphics from shirts or flyers. There are five chapters, laid out chronologically by year, with a small pull quote from older interviews with various team riders. Clean/minimal layouts so the photos and art can breathe and speak for themselves... and a credits page in the back to sort of help fill in the gaps.

Which photographers work are featured?

Devon Hutchins, Trey Jones, Jeff Z, Nathan Beddows, Andrew Brady, Bob Scerbo, Kevin Conners, Dakota Roche, Russ Barone, Ryan Navazio, Joe Rich, Robbie Morales, Fernando Rodriguez Marmolejo, Javee Garcia, Robin Pearson, Nick Jones, Bobby Simmons, Nick Jones, and myself.

How much time did it take to sift through 5 years of projects and images?

Start to finish, it took 7 months... including juggling my other work. Not sure how many hours... but I think there were at least a couple of thousand photos to look through.

What's your favourite photo and your favourite piece of art in the book?

No favorites really... they all sort of exist together in a way that tells a complete story... so i put equal value in every page.

Is Cult where you expected it to be 5 years on?

I work hard to create and maintain the aspects of the brand i can control, and I have no expectations for things i personally have no control over.

Did you ever expect to be collaborating with The Simpsons?

Yeah, the night before they contacted us I dreamed i was in a squad with Bart called beans crew and we were all on cult bikes, so I knew it.

What's been the most rewarding moment working on Cult so far?

Being able to exist as an artist for a career is the reward for sure. Currently putting out this book and going to Hawaii last month stick out as high points also.

Hindsight is 20/20. Anything you guys look back on wish you'd have done differently so far with Cult?

Nah...

What's the importance of physical media to the brand? 3 DVD's and now a book in a digital/online era is quite something.

I'm not really sure to be honest... it's important to me for sure, and everyone involved really. Financially they're a gamble, and generally don't make a lot of sense on paper. That, in turn shows our dedication, support and genuine passion for the sport and our brand as well. I think the consumer picks up on that, but theres really no way to measure it.

You can pick up a copy of this awesome book, Cult - The First 5 Years, right here.