5 questions with Ozef / Downlowdisco
I first met Ozef through mutual friends back when we were both still riding bikes a lot. It's fair to say after knowing him for a while, the dude is a legend and he is always down to help out where he can. Oz is currently working hard on a book containing a bunch of really good 35mm photos showcasing some of the coolest cars in Australia so I knew I had to snag him for a quick 5 question interview about himself and what he's been up to, so I'll stop rambling on and lets get into it...
First thing first, what was your initial introduction to cars?
My first introduction to cars was definitely through my old man and my older brother. Dad liked all sorts of cars but when I was little he had a sky blue Corolla ke70 5spd goodness lmao...in his heyday he had a 73 Celica gt that he crashed in Perth.
That being said, what are you driving or working on currently?
Currently driving a 1989 s3 r31, executive trim, factory auto swapped out etc. Simple car for good feeling driving. There’s a lot of potential in the chassis and one day I plan on completing Targa Tas in the car.
So what to you is Downlowdisco and what is the motivation behind it?
To me, downlowdisco is a vessel that allows me to make a small contribution back to the world of simple & fun cars. Before starting the project I had shot hundreds of different cars on the street, in parking lots or for friends and while doing so I realised that there is an abundance of amazing content online nowadays, regardless of what machine style you want to see. So I set about creating downlowdisco with the goal of putting out a collection of photos of old low down Japanese cars that like minded people can physically hold and show others. I won’t give too much away but there are some seriously special cars I’ve photographed for the book and some fantastic contributions from other states as covid prevented any travel last year.
What can we expect to see from Downlowdisco in the near or far future?
The Downlowdisco book will be complete very soon and off to the printers shortly after that, still looking into a small run of vinyls to accompany the book. In terms of future projects I’m not sure as the book has quite honestly been a huge effort to balance along with life, work and a partner but I am certain this book is not the last you will see of the Downlowdisco name.
Finally, any last words or shoutouts?
Don’t really have any last words haha but I will shout out Rich @ Motel Press huge driving force behind downlowdisco and anything I do creatively tbh, Shinzo Garage cause they on madness, anyone who has shown interest in downlowdisco, my boss for selling me my skyline and the boys at the workshop for always fixing the shit I can’t.
I would like to say thank you to Ozef for coming through and taking the time to answer these questions, the first instalment of what I hope to make a small series of. Thank you to anyone who bothers to check this out, it means the world so with that go sus the Downlowdisco book when it drops and remember to have fun, avoid defects and check out @downlowdisco on Instagram.
- All photos via downlowdisco taken from the book thats coming soon
-Shinzo Garage 🤍