Watch: Taro Watanabe Get Tubed In ‘Tsunami-Like’ Peru

“There’s a moral conflict that comes with trying to make something beautiful out of devastation,” says filmmaker Quinn Graham. “We went to Peru for the Eddie Swell that wrecked an entire town, then Taro’s house burned down in the LA fires,” 

“One of the only constants in life is that shit will go wrong. People you love pass. Houses burn. Injustice is everywhere, and it weighs a lot. Sometimes all you can do — as cliche as this will sound— is ride out that wave.” 

“For us, Nevertheless is a timecapsule about a year of silver linings. It’s something I hope we feel good about in 30 years from now. If a few homies like it too, that’s a bonus.”

On December 27th, the storm that gave Landon McNamara forever bragging rights landed on the coastal region of Northern Peru. According to the local news, the “tsunami-like” surge capsized fishing boats, collapsed piers, and caused a landslide that killed at least 12 people. 

“We weren’t storm chasing. Taro wanted to go somewhere less predictable and Peru was definitely that. From half-a-mile away, this one spot looked like the most perfect 4-6 foot waves we’d ever seen. It was a long period swell, so those 10-foot sets were a surprise for Taro, Lucas Mesinas, Gabriel Vargas, and just a few others who paddled out.” Quinn recalled.

“After catching the heaviest waves of my life, the whole trip was a come down of emotion,” Taro says in the clip. The result of it all? A synchronicity across platitudes that’s only achievable when two friends are experiencing life together.

Nonfiction is a youth-centric media label with undertones from a slower time. A scroll through the site, which also features Malibu’s Frankie Harrer and Noah Hill, is as enjoyable as a lazy morning spent sipping on a long black in a European cafe.

“I’m inspired by Spike Jonze, Jack McCoy, Kai Neville, Jack Johnson, Joe G, along with local filmmakers like Hunter Martinez, who showed me you don’t need permission to create, you just show up and do it.”

Kids laugh, fishermen panic, Taro does our favorite cutback in reverse, the ocean catches on fire, and there’s that song about a horse with no name. Directed and edited by Quinn Graham, Taro’s new edit, “Nevertheless” is a soulful stringout about the modern world, from Gen Z-ers who derive inspo from a post-scroll era. Enjoy the range.