During Sundance, fans of Wayne Wong will have an opportunity to share a meal with the Hall of Fame skier and help bring his story to the big screen.
On Monday, Jan. 26, at 6 p.m., as part of ChefDance’s Dinner Series of Legends: Asian Fusion Night, with Iron Chef Viet Pham, Wong and Black Rhino Creative filmmakers will present a teaser for their documentary in progress, “Ski the Wong Way.” The crew will then be launching a Kickstarter the next day to crowdfund the production.
Wong has carved a unique presence in the ski community throughout his 55-year career. A Canadian of Chinese descent, he wore white aviator sunglasses and long black hair in the days before helmets were de rigeur, and developed a fluid hot-dogging style that would become the freestyle discipline.
He was Skiing magazine’s 1972 Freestyle Skier of the Year and his parts in ski company K2’s videos helped develop the sport. His signature move, the Wong Banger, is a pole-propelled forward flip that helped him land movie roles and spots on winners podiums during the ski culture boom that coincided with Park City’s rebirth.
In 2024, Deer Valley tapped Wong as a ski ambassador to help roll out its East Village expansion.
And now, at 76, he’s two years into development of the film that will encompass his legacy. When Black Rhino approached him with the idea, Wong recalled the words of two recently departed loved ones, mentor Yosh Nakagawa and Wong’s wife, who had both encouraged him to tell his story.
“To have had a career that has existed since 1971 to today is pretty significant for anybody,” Wong said. “As we got into it, I realized it’s not just about me skiing. It’s all about the friendships. It’s all about the emotions. It’s all about the effect I’ve had on individuals and their life careers.”
One person Wong plans to feature is three-time Tour de France bicycling champion Greg LeMond.
“He came to my summer ski camp many, many years ago as a teenager wanting to be a freestyle skier,” Wong said of the program he ran at Whistler, British Columbia. “He asked me what I did in the summertime for cross-training. I was riding my 10-speed bike back in the day, so that summer he went home, back here to Reno and started riding his ten-speed bike. Well, the rest is history.”
Daniel Berish is a co-founder of Black Rhino who is directing the documentary. He grew up skiing and moved to Vancouver, Canada, for its mountain proximity, which is where he learned about Wong.
“I was walking past a museum and I saw this poster of Wayne,” Berish said. “It was that classic, iconic poster of him doing the Wong Banger and I’m like, ‘Who is this guy? He looks like Bruce Lee on skis.’”
Amazed that such a figure had escaped his notice, Berish and his crew have immersed themselves in Wong’s oeuvre and are making the film so that others can share the joy of learning about Wong’s life.
“This story is going to be driven by archival footage and great, kickass music of the era, so that Kickstarter campaign and the funding is about getting enough money so we can license all that beautiful archival footage that has been shot over the years of Wayne and put it to a killer soundtrack,” Berish said.
The film will also include current footage of Wong skiing at Deer Valley and Sun Valley, a reunion at Glacier ski camp where Wong taught, and a 50-year Canadian freestyle anniversary event.
“Skiing the Wong way to me, at first it’s all about freedom, freedom of expression,” Berish said. “He was an artist, a rebel, a misfit, and that speaks to his skiing style: very smooth, very rhythmic, effortless. I think over the years that ‘skiing the Wong way’ brand has turned into a camaraderie. It’s about helping others around you, bringing others up and being generous with your time and energy.”
As a philanthropist, Wong has raised over $34 million to help fight cystic fibrosis. He has taught skiing for decades after his pro career and sees this documentary as a way to expand his personal reach.
“I want them to come away with the emotional connection with me,” Wong said. “I want them to connect and say, ‘It’s more than the skiing.’ Friendships are more important than the skiing and I want people to realize that’s what carries you through, carried me through anyway, this amazing journey being involved with the ski industry. The skiing is great. I’m recognized for my skiing, but I’m also recognized for my accessibility and the emotional connection I have with people.”
The Kickstarter will include tiered rewards such as Wayne Wong limited Vallon sunglasses, signed posters, T-shirts, VIP screenings and “First Tracks with Wayne” ski sessions.
“It would be amazing to put this all together within a year and kick it off for the inaugural year of Sundance in Boulder,” Berish said. “I think that’d be a really cool transition period between the two cities and having Wayne be that bridge would be so cool.”
Tickets for ChefDance are available at ChefdanceSocial.com and film information is at SkiTheWongWayMovie.com.