ESPERANTO: The Official Trailer & Words from Director Jeremy Grant

Esperanto is TGR’s latest action-packed mountain bike film with an added twist. Mixing the rock stars of the sport with a cast of unknown and up-and-coming heroes, the film explores how we share our dreams through a universal two-wheeled language no matter what our native tongue may be. The sacred ritual of the ride might sound different all across the world – whether it’s a full-face getting pulled down to drop into a big jump line or wheeling a beat-up bike out of a mud hut to pedal to school – but it’s a universal process no matter what language we speak. Find Tour Tickets to Esperanto Here.

In the lead up to releasing the Esperanto trailer, we talked with  the film’s director Jeremy Grant about the project as a whole:

What does “Esperanto” mean in the context of the film?

Jeremy Grant: The past few years have seen our global community divided more than ever by pandemic-related restrictions, as well as any number of divisive issues. The biking community has been heavily affected by travel restrictions and lockdowns, major hurdles for a tight knit group of athletes and artists spread around the globe.

Esperanto, a language created to unify in the aftermath of a global conflict, symbolizes the common language of bikers around the world. Separated by geography, culture, and language, riders are unified by their love for and understanding of biking, which transcends any other divisions. In many ways, biking is a universal language, inspiring the film’s title.

So what’s the film about?

JG: Our vision for the film was to combine riding and stories from around the world into a cohesive tapestry. Despite our differences and the distance between us, bikers are brought together by mutual love for the sport. The film showcases the world’s best riders in the coolest places, but instead of leaving the segments to speak for themselves, we use the overarching theme of a universal language of expression to tie it all together.

In the home stretch before the film is released, can you share some of the special moments from production?

JG: There were so many cool moments, places, and people involved in the film. Working with Gift [Puteho] in Zambia stands out. Biking was not given to him; he fell in love at a young age but circumstances took it from him. It really comes through how much he loves it and how hard he fought for it. Biking films have so much downhill, but he’s a cross-country athlete, showcasing a different discipline of the sport but the exact same love.

With trying to shoot global stories, I was forced to explore different locations and disciplines. Anything from South American riding high in the Andes among volcanoes, riding in the African savanna alongside elephants, zebras, and giraffes, and many more unique locations around the globe.

For a film like this to work, you need top names, but there are so many up-and-comers and people with incredible stories. Some of the most interesting are not the most well known, and coming from North America we tried very hard to share stories beyond North America. Once you start looking outside the continent you find so many incredible people and places worth sharing. The film highlights unique stories from around the world but also familiar biking, told through the lens of the special people and places we worked with.