I am by no means a Venice local, but I’ve lived in LA since 1996. And to say this place has dramatically changed would be putting it mildly. Back then was the end of “Debris by the Sea” period, and the Breakwater was dominated by some of the fiercest locals in the world. Today it’s known derisively as “Google Point” and the natives are under siege from an army of moneyed invaders. The story of Venice Beach is emblematic of the out of control gentrification taking place along the coast, from Santa Cruz to San Diego. It is here where anyone earning a fraction less than the IRS top tier tax bracket struggles to live near the ocean.
When Noel Reynolds at Epic TV approached me about producing this web series on Venice, I wanted to be careful not to make it a history piece—Dogtown and the Z-Boys already did an amazing job of that. I was more interested telling a slice of life stories on a few Venetian surfers, skaters, and artists from the recent past and present. Episode 1 of the series focuses on Rick Massie and Noah Hill, while the following episodes dive into the lives of Eric “Tuma” Britton, Jared Cleland and Bill Attaway. A special thanks goes out to all the talented filmmakers, editors, artists, and friends who helped out on this series.
To see more of Jamie’s work, head on over to his website.
