SDSFF co-creator and director Pierce Kavanagh and his team have created a wave of stoke. Photo: Gage Hingeley
The days of sitting in a packed, musty theater, with popcorn smell barely masking that of sea water, sweat and neoprene-stink have faded with the images of Taylor Steele’s reels on a screen. Today, the screens are as tiny as our pockets, and our attention spans can barely handle a five-minute clip. Perhaps the saddest part: the smell is gone. We view these clips alone in our workplaces, homes, or traffic-jammed cars. Watching a surf film with our community has become a rarity.
Pierce Kavanagh, co-founder of the San Diego Surf Film Festival, is bringing the funk back to our viewing experience. Beginning May 7, the SDSFF will have four days of events with a total of 32 films, beginning with a community paddle-out in Cardiff and ending with final screenings and awards on May 10 at Bird’s Surf Shed in San Diego.
To get a feel for the event, some inside tips on picking events (as all nights are not an option for everyone), and an interesting look at the man behind the projector, Kavanagh generously gave the following interview:
How is this year’s SDSFF shaping up?
Well, there is not one film that I would not watch a couple times, and that’s saying something. If you just open the schedule, close your eyes and point, you’re going to dig the film you’re seeing. Also, with every single screening, we have filmmakers in attendance to do Q&As, like for every single one, whether shorts or features. That’s the most special part to me because you get to hear from the filmmakers themselves. Anyone can approach them, and that’s what I really dig.
We have a bunch of good sponsors this year too: Honest Tea is giving everyone beverages, Daphne’s is feeding everyone. You come, you get food, you get drinks. It’s always a really fun event. There’s no “cool-guy” contest; no one gets vibed and everyone is treated like a champ. It’s just a good time. To me, it’s a no-brainer.
What would you tell surfers who feel like they don’t want to go because it is more Korduroy TV than 1990s Taylor Steele?
There are definitely some films that are geared more toward ripping and shredding. I can appreciate that. Every once in awhile I can enjoy “surf porn.” I’m cool with watching 15 airs in a row. We try to find the perfect blend: films that have really high quality, hardcore, gnarly surfing with a killer story. Those days [of 1990s Steele] are pretty much over though, because people are taking it really seriously. People want to tell stories. There are more intelligent minds in surfing now. I don’t think those movies represent where surfing is and where surfing is going. Like my friend always says, “Spicoli’s dead.”
You give out multiple awards like Best Feature Film and Best Short Film. What is the Spirit of the SDSFF award?
Every year, we have gotten one film that perfectly defines our festival. Last year it was this film called “Stokefest.” The joy that was created was perfect. We will see a film and go, “Yeah, this is why we do what we do.”
Is there any type of charity event involved?
We do a fundraiser every year. We wanted to do it in our own backyard with about 11 high school or middle school surf teams, trying to raise money for every surf team. The kids sell raffle tickets, and the money goes right back into their program. It just makes it easier for these programs to flourish.
What are some standout films?
I really like Beyond the Surface. It’s a film about these women who go to India to surf. There’s a film about going to the Patagonias called Tierra de Patagones. It’s amazing because I’ve never seen that part of the country. Learning to Float is amazing too. But every single film is great.
If you had to pick one night because you were strapped for cash, which night would you choose?
Well, this is one of those things that, even if I were broke, I would scrape the money together all year to go to the festival, but not everyone has money to throw around, and we understand that, so we also have free events. We are starting this thing called “In-Depth,” which is a photography workshop. This year we have Todd Glaser on Saturday from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Even if you’re strapped, we have free events. But if I could only pick one event to go to, I would pick the closing night films and award ceremony. On Saturday night, starting at 9 p.m. and going until about midnight, we are going to show about six different films of a really broad spectrum that shows what the festival is all about. We are also going to have a band play, Sister Juanita. We are going to give out all of the awards and have a little party. But opening night, Thursday is going to be raging. Friday night is going to be raging too. It will all be fun, every night.
For more information on films, pricing and times, visit the SDSFF official site.
