Following the Fall Line begins with a monologue of Bryce Young describing the cleansing nature of a good thrashing. “That humbling beat-down that the ocean always delivers,” he says in voice-over during the opening credits. “I mean, sometimes you’d rather do without ‘em, but I think there is a lot to be said for just getting pummeled in the ocean and coming up choking a bit of water and just going, ‘Wow, that was a bit of a wake-up.’ It does cleanse, and does such wonders on an emotional level, on a physical level. I think without the ocean I wouldn’t be much good to anyone, I don’t think.”
The film, produced by needessentials and edited by Milo Inglis, then slams into dynamic footage of Bryce, a self-described “ocean-dwelling human being,” carving down the face of a wave. However, Following The Fall Line isn’t interested in just surfing. Later on, we see Bryce at a skate park, a half-pipe and a full pipe. We even see brief detours of Bryce woodworking.
The film endeavors to delve into not only the wide range of physical expression for a multi-hyphenate like Bryce, but also the even greater variety of influences that can lead to an athlete’s style. Fall Line takes detours for Bryce to skateboard with his mother, longboard with his father (famed surfer Nat Young), and remember his childhood home. Throughout, Bryce describes the influences that have helped shape his approach to waves and terrain, along with how people such as Ti Deaton-Young, Nat Young, Ryan Burch and Laurie Towner have played formative roles in his development.
Cinematographers Ti Deaton-Young, Milo Inglis and Gabe Roxburgh were inspired by the 1977 film Fall Line, directed by and starring Nat Young. Halfway through, Bryce interprets the title of the film, while also exploring his relationship with his father. “The fall line to me is very up to interpretation. Following the fall line is following the best feeling. The optimal line is going to give you the best feeling. So, if followed, you’re gonna have the most fun, I think. Coming into a turn, and all that loading up, but not just like a physical release on a turn, but letting your whole breath exhale through a turn. [Nat Young] said the same in the mountains, and he’s told me the same in the ocean. For him it’s maximizing the most out of the wave. He feels that it’s being focused on the breath.”
The film ends with Bryce passing on that influence to the next generation, showing footage of him with his own family. “Following what inspires you and what fills your cup and what makes you happy, and doing it with the people that inspire you and the people that you love. I just think there couldn’t be a better way to spend life,” says Young.
