Big Wave Surfing, Environmental Conservation Films to be Screened at Dana Point Film Festival

BY BREEANA GREENBERG

After nearing the brink of extinction, sea turtle populations have started to recover, with 72 million sea turtles hatching along the beaches in Oaxaca, Mexico, over the past five years.

The short film The Sea Turtle Arribada, produced by Wildcoast in partnership with GoPro, tells the story of the ocean conservation group’s efforts to protect sea turtles in Oaxaca.

Wildcoast was founded to conserve millions of acres of coastal and ocean habitats, coral reefs, sea turtle nesting beaches, mangrove forests, wetlands and breeding lagoons in Mexico and California.

“We had really been talking to GoPro about doing something inspiring and something that’s positive, something that shows that you actually can have a difference in protecting the environment,” Wildcoast Executive Director Serge Dedina said.

“In the case of Oaxaca and our Wildcoast work to protect sea turtles, this is an example of how you actually can make a difference in helping save wildlife species and protecting the coast and ocean,” Dedina continued. “So, it’s a real positive example to show that we actually can save our planet and save our oceans.”

Wildcoast Development Director Ann Wycoff added that the film shows the impact that a small group of people can have in protecting 22 miles of sea turtle beaches.

“Some of the people that are in the collective that now help us watch over the nests and protect them were actually poachers at one point, and they were once stealing eggs and now have decided how important it is to protect this resource,” Wycoff said. “So, that’s kind of an exciting thing to where you can see that shift in a local community.”

The conservation group works with local communities and schools to show the importance of protecting endangered species.

“They were being eaten, they were being killed; it was a tragic situation,” Wycoff said. “Then, Serge stepped in and made this incredible difference, and now I think we had, what, 72 million hatchlings born on our beach in the last five years, so it’s a happy story.”

In Oaxaca, Wildcoast helps the Mexican National Park Service to manage two of the main nesting beaches for turtles. The group helps to monitor the arribada, or mass nesting areas, from poachers and promotes turtle tourism.

“It’s a comprehensive effort based around protecting these beaches, but also the turtles that lay their eggs there, and working with the local community so that they can benefit from ecotourism and other activities to make a living from tourism rather than killing turtles,” Dedina said.

Wycoff added that the conservation group’s team is international, with half of the team comprising Mexicans running Wildcoast programs in Mexico.

“It’s not just us going down into a community and saying, ‘Hey, this is what we think you should do,’ ” Wycoff said. “We’re working with people who are living in the area and are working with the locals to support these programs.”

The Sea Turtle Arribada is one of the many films to be featured during the inaugural Dana Point Film Festival that will run from May 4 through May 7. Arribada is schedule to be screened on May 6 at 11 a.m.

Looking forward to the film screening, Wycoff added, “It’s so important to tell these stories. We’re all looking for platforms to share important work and inspiration, so I think this is a great film festival to celebrate that.”

From watching the film, the Wildcoast team aims for audience members to take away that they can work together to help protect nature.

“It’s a message of hope, a message of inspiration and a message of actually taking action,” Dedina said.

Emmy-winning filmmaker Paul Taublieb aims to inspire audience members to face their fears with his film Ground Swell: The Other Side of Fear, which will be screened at the film festival on May 6 at 7 p.m.

Ground Swell tells the story of big-wave surfers taking on massive waves during the 2021-22 big wave season from Nazare in Portugal; Jaws and Pipeline in Hawaii; and Mavericks in Northern California.

“As I started talking to surfers, this theme emerged, and it emerged through one surfer in particular, Matt Bromley, who articulated in the movie, it’s about the appeal of big-wave surfing … it’s about facing the fear,” Taublieb said.

“What Matt talked about was that if you face your fear and then when you get through that, you live a better life on the other side of the barriers that fear puts up,” Taublieb continued. “I found that to be a fascinating concept, and that’s really the theme of the movie.”

Taublieb added that the movie touches on how fear motivates these bigwave surfers.

“Anybody who tells you you’re going to go out and ride mammoth waves and not be afraid is lying,” Taublieb said.

The film also follows Nazare local Nic Von Rupp, who’s hurt his shoulder but is determined to ride massive waves despite the injury; pioneer female surfer Bianca Valenti; and Hawaiian surfer Torrey Meister.

Another surfer featured in the film, Kai Lenny, talks about how the big-wave surfing experience changed once he became a father.

“So, he talks about going out and riding big waves differently once you have children, but how he still goes out and charges regardless of the dangers; that’s what it’s about for him,” Taublieb said.

Taublieb added that when watching Ground Swell, “There’s really big waves in it that are mind-blowing when you see what these guys do.”

“If a guy can go out and ride 80- to 100-foot waves, face his fears, you know what, fear is an abstraction,” Taublieb said. “Fear is a biological reaction to a set of circumstances, but it’s not a real thing. It’s just your perception.”

“We’re not saying fear should go away—Kai Lenny talks about it—use fear as a tool,” Taublieb said. “Don’t be afraid of the things that you’re afraid of. Face your fears.”

Excited to be a part of the film festival’s first year, Taublieb noted that “Dana Point has a rich ocean history going back in the surf world for many, many decades.”

A complete list of the feature-length and short documentary films to be screened is available on the festival website.

Films will be screened at the Dana Hills High School Porthole Theater, the Dana Point Women’s Club Community House and the Double Tree Hotel. More information about the festival, including how to RSVP or buy tickets for screenings, can be found at danapointfilmfestival.org.