(Last year's best short winner)
Ola lot o' lovin'
The Surf Film Festibal in Donosti, San Sebastian, Basque country, Spain, has been going since 2003, which as far as we know makes it the oldest in the world. It's also the coolest.
Director Sancho Rodriguez is unequivocal about what rocks and what sucks in surf films these days.
“A real surf movie shows awesome waves with the least possible bullshit," he tells me via email, his prose aflame with matadorial passion. "There should be no corporate product placement, and we are not retro pseudo-soul surf bullshit. Many people have made really, really boring surf movies claiming they were 'soul'."
No soul, but no elitism, either.
“We are completely Non-VIP," Rodriguez says. "They (VIPs) sit with the rest of us and some go totally unnoticed. The real cause of this festival is for surfers to come. We are on the way of getting away from that puritan, asexual image surfing has now.”
Whilst the event will feature the usual sampling of big-budget international films, of particular is the festival’s dedication to short films. Last year it opened its inbox for the first time to the low-budget creative types who dwell within our sport. The response was so big that they've had to split them into five categories to award prizes. The categories are Jury’s Favorite, Public Favourite, Best Environmental Film, Best Short Animation, and Best Short Basque Film.
“It’s the possibility for you and me, for the anonymous surfer, to show what is their vision of surfing,” Rodriguez says. “We are really excited about this.”
The event is open to filmers from around the world, with each project to be restricted to five minutes in length. Rodriguez warns, however, not to submit any hokey seconds. The crowd is vocal, passionate and emboldened by the local juice. The theatre where it is held is amid a bunch of old Spanish wine and beer bars. Judges, surfers, filmmakers and groms, bleary-eyed on Tempranillo wine and bloated on pintxos, and are quick to heckle anything that doesn't meet their cool quota. And throughout the four-day celebration, many peripheral events will play out, such as photography exhibitions curated by western fogies Jamie Brisick and Andrew Kidman, as well as a torrent of local music acts, who will entertain every evening. (Keep an eye out for Wau y los Aaaargh, a totally rockin’ Spanish garage-punk outfit).
If it is any way possible, we suggest you make it to Surf Film Festibal. A celebration of surfing, in Basque, with food, women and wine… damn that sounds good. – Jed Smith
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Reply #4 on : Tue April 21, 2009, 01:56:50