Smart: Mike Oblowitz on surf film!

Also, is the above Brian Bielmann photo the greatest surf photo ever?

The bio-epic Heavy Water will be premiering in a few short days at the San Sebastian Surf Film Festibal. San Sebastian, for those who don’t know, is the creme de la creme of the action sport festival scene. It is extremely well run and perfectly executed and fancy. It is the one festival you should, someday, attend but do not forget your tuxedo.

South African director Michael Oblowitz (read Rory Parker’s interview here!) is a force of nature and his newest film, Heavy Water, following days in the life of Nathan Fletcher, is a brilliant piece of filmmaking. I met Michael on Oahu’s North Shore. He was amazing. A character and I lounged on his bed next to Surfing magazine’s then editor-in-chief Taylor Paul and watched Oblowitz’s other work of art Sea of Darkness.

In any case, the most important Hollywood trade, Variety, published an interview with Mr. Oblowitz today and he said the smartest thing I have ever read related to surf film. He said:

Making a film is never easy. Each project unfurls its own set of difficulties. My first surfing documentary, “Sea of Darkness,” dealt with characters derived from the 1960’s and 70’s. There was a certain romantic openness to their narrative. Whatever nefarious activities they engaged in had a native utopian goal. This kind of transcendental optimism characterized the hippie era and beyond, even when it had all turned to shit. It was kind of a self-indulgent narcissism that defined the “turn on, tune in and drop out” era.

The contemporary characters of this documentary deal in a different kind of narcissism. Nathan Fletcher is a character who is almost a throwback to the hippie era — a charismatic yet enigmatic character with a care free attitude. However, this belies a rigid disciplinary approach to riding huge waves.
For all his nonchalance and Marlborough (misspelling Variety editor’s fault not BeachGrit’s. I used to smoke!) smoking, anti-athleticism, he never appears to wipe out on a wave. The precision and control of his surfing is amazing to behold, as is his ability to survive a variety of extreme experiences. As one of the characters comments: “His senses are always sensing.”

Needless to say, the exponents of contemporary extreme sports indulge in the full panoply of extreme experiences. As Danny Fuller remarks: “…they dance with death.” This penchant for extreme behavior is often at odds with the professional attitude that the big lifestyle companies expect from their athletes. Especially when the athletes meet their demise, which is inevitable in all extreme sports. The characters in the brilliant documentary “Meru” come to mind.

It hasn’t been easy for me dealing with the consequences of this film’s narrative tropes.

Whoa! You better read that again.