Watch: Eithan Osborne in ‘Skinny Meat Head’

“He’s just a crazy little guy,” Chapter 11 filmmaker Hunter Martinez remarks about Eithan Osborne, capturing the essence of the wiry, high-energy surfer from Ventura whose spectacular antics define Skinny Meat Head.

The film explores Osborne’s dual identity: an incredible freesurfer capable of miraculous sessions where he lands absolutely everything, and an inconsistent competitor, oscillating between perfect 10s and 2s.

“That’s kind of where we took the story: his comical tug-of-war between freesurfing and contests,” Martinez explains. “We’d see him enter these contests and lose, and we’d be like, ‘Dude, why are you doing this? Either go full-time at contests or full-time at freesurfing—don’t wear yourself out trying to do both.’”

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Directed by Martinez and produced by Chapter 11, SMH began filming in January 2022, during Osborne’s campaign for CT qualification in Hawaii. Since then ‘Aton’ or ‘Air-Con’ as his friends have monikered him, has starred in surf films like Zipper, Motel Hell, Interlusion and Double Vision, shot a Ferrari Boyz with Toby Cregan, competed in two Vans Pipe Masters, the Swatch Nines event, eight QS and seven Challenger Series events, and clinched victory at Stab High Japan—milestone events, many of which feature in the film.

Coined by Dane Reynolds and Matt McCabe, the title Skinny Meat Head summates Osborne’s chaotic energy. “It’s borderline insulting,” Martinez laughs, “but it fits Eithan perfectly—this crazy little dude who always seems to find himself in spectacular messed-up situations.” 

At its core, Skinny Meat Head captures Eithan’s journey to figure out his place in the surfing world as he teeters between racking up competitive accolades and releasing groundbreaking surf parts. His impulsive nature—“wanting to be everywhere, doing everything, all at once,” as Dane Reynolds describes—is both his strength and Achilles’ heel.

From having all-nighters into the Vans Pipe Masters at 10-foot Backdoor, to cutting physical rehab for his busted shoulder short to chase waves in Indonesia, Osborne’s unhinged, endlessly entertaining nature shapes the film’s narrative. When I ask Martinez if he believes Eithan will find inner peace as a pure freesurfer, he explains that Eithan’s love for competition complicates his trajectory. “I don’t know. He likes the spotlight, the agro vibes, people watching him. It’s hard to see him giving that up entirely,” he laughs.

The candid, cabin feverish interviews shot at Chapter 11’s Ventura headquarters, bring a rawness to the film. “We wanted it to feel like you were sitting in the room with us,” says Martinez. “A bunch of friends roasting each other, a couple beers in—it’s about as relatable and honest as it gets.”

For Martinez, a Pasadena native who only surfed on weekends due to his inland upbringing, filmmaking was a serendipitous pivot after an injury ended his pro surfing ambitions. “I’m probably four years older than Eithan and Micky, but when I used to do the NSSA’s, they would smoke me every time,” he laughs. Picking up a camera to stay connected with his surf crew, Martinez’s work eventually caught the attention of Dane Reynolds, and lead to his inclusion in Chapter 11. 

“I grew up religiously watching his Marine Layer videos,” reflects Martinez. “So to now be creating films with him is pretty insane.”

The film’s climax comes in a Japanese swimming pool, where Osborne defeated 35 of the world’s best aerialists to clinch his maiden Stab High victory. “I was there to get some handycam footage of the event. Then suddenly, Eithan’s moments away from a final, and I’m thinking, Oh my God, this is insane. And then he won. It was perfect—the ideal ending to the film.”

Skinny Meat Head delivers a compelling portrait of a surfer caught between two worlds, figuring out his place in modern surfing, with A++ surf porn from all over the world to boot. It’s even more impressive when you think how strong this clip could be had he hoarded his footage from all the other films he’s made cameos in over the past two years.

As Mark Mathews once astutely noted, “freesurfers aren’t not competitive people. They just hate losing.” Though I’m sure Eithan could easily put all his chips into making surf parts, his approach to competitive surfing is precisely the one the tour needs more of.

If he’s got the energy for it – why not teach the build-a-house, four-to-the-shore cyborgs a free lesson in raw, explosive surfing, and create incredible films as a side quest? Perhaps the freesurfer vs comp guy is a false dichotomy.