On the Wave: First Russian surf documentary film

Russian surf documentary film On the Wave spotlights Bali.

Only last week I posted on the Rapture Camps Portugal blog about a unique new documentary film about the surf scene in Europe. Called The Old, the Young and the Sea, the film focuses on the local people and travelers who enjoy the “European Classic Surf Route” from Hossegor, France to Ericeira, Portugal.

On the Wave

Wave in Padang Padang, pic: Sunova Surfboards (Flickr CC)

It seems that 2012/2013 is a time of firsts when it comes to surfing documentaries. On the Wave is the first Russian surfing documentary film – the first full-length feature, that is. The film highlights the skills of Russian surfers as they ride the waves in Bali. It also shows surfing in top Russian spots as well. Didn’t know there were any? Well, they aren’t tropical like Bali, that’s for sure, but the Kamchatka peninsula in Russia’s Far East is a remote and wild place to surf. The fact that it’s snow-covered for 8 months of the year might provide some clue as to why you’d be more likely to find Russian surfers in Bali than Kamchatka. No wetsuits required in Bali, of course, which is not that much farther from home than Kamchatka for most Russians. Ditto, Portugal.

From Surfer Today:

Russia’s first feature length surf documentary shows the fast growing Russian surf scene, in Bali. In fact, Russian surfers are literally invading the world, from Supertubos (Peniche, Portugal) to the far-distant Asian islands.

After selling out Russian theaters, On the Wave premiered in Bali on December 6th with proceeds benefiting the Padang Padang Beach Clean-up program.

Oh, and besides Russian surfers, On the Wave features some guy called Kelly Slater.

You can see two trailers for On the Wave on the Surfing Life site, though the film gets a really bad review. As you can probably guess, there is a dramatic argument in the comments section, complete with weird xenophobic and nationalist comments.

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