Call me old fashioned, but I still believe there’s a need for film festivals to bring a surf community together. Surfers are a predictable breed when we co-mingle outside of the water. We always feel the need to talk about where we were on the last swell. Someone will undoubtedly hoot when the first barrel of the movie goes down, and we all turn into self-proclaimed movie critics the second the screen goes dark.
All of these things and more are what make me so excited about the upcoming Save The Waves Film Fest this November.
This year, for the first time, Save The Waves Film Fest has gone bi-coastal with stops in San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York. They play a multitude of films that have been handpicked. “We look for a great story first: a story about the ocean, about people in the ocean, or an alternative take about life on the edge of the ocean. Eco campaigns, big wave adventures, travels, and more,” says Josh Berry, director of the film festival. “Original, compelling, inspiring stories are what we look for.”
In my opinion, Save The Waves is one of the few environmental organizations nimble enough to create real change in the surf world without the bureaucracy that often comes along with larger organizations. The coolest part about this film festival is that the money you spend goes to helping their World Surfing Reserve Programs. You get to drink, laugh, and help our coastlines at the same time!
Save The Waves Film Fest has also been a great way for me to get my video series, Surfing For Change, out to a wider audience. In my series, we cover bold environmental solutions through the lens of surfing. My videos are primarily online, meaning when you watch them, you most likely do so alone on your computer. The only way to critique my videos is through YouTube comments. If you go to the Save The Waves Film Fest, you get to critique with your whole surf community, directly after watching!
Here’s a peek at my video that will be playing:
To buy tickets now, go to: Savethewaves.org
