Dear & Yonder – daring stories of ladies united by the sea…
As you might expect, this is not just your standard surf film (as is true with most Woodshed Films productions). What sets Dear and Yonder apart is that it is a surf film by surf women about surf women. But even more than obvious lady-centric-ness, they take the time to tell the stories of these women. So where a dude-centric surf film tends to be surfing, surfing, surfing, goofy fictional sequence, surfing… Dear and Yonder was surfing, anecdote, surfing, bio story, goofy fictional sequence, surfing, side story… In fact at the table we were sitting at, a gentleman commented at the end of the film that “there wasn’t enough surfing.” To which my wife countered, “True, but I really liked that I got to learn about these women and hear their stories.” It definitely added more humanity to a film in a film genre that tends to be mostly visual (with the occasional goofy fictional sequence). I quite enjoyed the film and am glad it was made. It gives women some well deserved central spotlight recognition for surfing.
Star sighting at the event – Stephanie Gilmore, world champion surfer, who also appears in the film, was in attendance. I wonder how weird it is to watch other people watch you surf in slow motion.
The venue for this affair was Hapa J’s in San Clemente. The food was Hawaiian themed and incredibly delicious. The speakers at the restaurant weren’t ready to handle the sound from the movie though. (But I don’t think the restaurant was designed with movie premieres in mind.) The speakers did provide pleasant ambiance during dinner and after the film though – Brother Iz! I look forward to going back to Hapa J’s and trying more tasty food from the menu.
Roxy co-sponsored the event, provided some raffle give-aways and made custom flip-flops to order right there on the spot! I tell you what, these surf movie events are always a treat.
The movie tour is just getting started, so check out the tour dates to find out if they are coming to a town near you.
As always, here is the trailer to get you stoked.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpvwZgHrvT0[/youtube]