The Kill Five is one of my all-time favorite surf movies that I’ve made. It was a really cool time during surf filmmaking. It represented the transition years between action-based movies and more soul-focused surfing movies. You can see that transition to some extent in this movie, and I used a lot of different formats for this project. There is super eight, 16mm, and mini DV format as well. TK5 mixes all the different formats and showcases the transition between hard-core actions surf films and wanderlust soul-searching movies like Chris Malloy’s epic film Thicker Than Water.
One of my favorite parts of the film is the Santa Cruz Harbor section. I love how it starts with Adam Repogle and Ratboy looking at the perfect waves at Santa Cruz Harbor. They are throwing their arms up like, “Oh my god! Can you believe this?”
Then they go out there and get so pitted.
Check more surf nostalgia in my retro ’90s movie here. Hope you enjoy.
Editor’s Note: Josh Pomer’s The Kill Series represent an exceptional time capsule of surf culture, and The Kill 5 features standout sections from icons like Tom Curren, Kelly Slater, Rob Machado, the Santa Cruz boys, and beyond. If this is your entry point to Josh Pomer and The Kill films, dig deeper. It’s worth it.
Rob Machado at epic Mundaka (L) and Barney, character eternal (R).
