Yallingup Surf Film Fest sets sights on summer of 2010

Organisers of the Yallingup Surfilm Festival, to be held in the summer of 2010, are calling for film submissions locally and from across the globe. Screening under the stars over three consecutive summer nights, the festival will feature independent short and feature-length films, live music and a surf art exhibition.

Filmmakers, artists, influential ocean riders and the public will take part in the event which promises to be a spectacle for all, as well as creating a forum to explore surf culture through film making. Established filmmakers are encouraged to submit their films, the best of which will be selected by a screening panel to be shown at the festival. Film submissions will be accepted from 1 June to 1 October 2009. All genres are welcomed.

The festival will feature Q&A sessions, panel discussions and talks by the filmmakers. Insights into the motivation, processes and philosophy behind each project will be explored. These sessions are open to the public.

Yallingup (Western Australia), sits in one the most the isolated parts of the world. The festival’s humble beginnings stem from a desire to bring more diverse influences from around the world to our surf culture. The event direction is the amalgamation of local founders and a supportive surf community eager to create an inspiring festival.

“Our aim is to inspire exploration into surf culture. We want to create an annual event with broad–reaching appeal,” said festival director Jesca Maas. More information and submission forms can be found at:  yallingupsurfilm.com

All profits from the event will go to SurfAid International, a non-profit organization dedicated to the alleviation of human suffering through community-based health programs.

Further festival information: Jesca Maas PH. 08 9755 4455 MO. 0417 758012 EM. info@yallingupsurfilm.com FA 08 9755 4455

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After three successful screenings to very enthusiastic audiences at the Film Festivals in Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, and Santa Cruz , California. The Women and the Waves travels across the Pacific Ocean to screen at the Celestial Cinema under the stars on opening night as an Official Selection in the Maui Film Festival on June 17, 2009. www.mauifilmfestival.com

Through the collaborative efforts of Heather Hudson (Graciegirl LLC) and Peck Euwer (Swell Pictures Inc.), the film documents the female surfing experience through the lives of ten women from age 17 to 64. From the swells of Mexico to Hawaii’s temperate waters and the enticing California coastline, audiences will gain insight into what it’s like to “Surf Like a Girl!” Shot in High Definition, The Women and the Waves pays tribute to pioneers who paved the way and recognition to the everyday surfers who keep the dream alive.

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A British kite-surfer was left fighting for life after he became trapped in a two mile slick of poisonous jellyfish off the coast of Costa Rica.

Father-of-three Crispin Freeman, 42, was stung repeatedly for more than 40 minutes after he crash landed into the middle of the swarming mass. His ripped kite meant he could not re-launch to escape the treacherous waters. Mr Freeman sustained so many stings that his body shut down from shock and his airways began to constrict.Strong currents eventually swept him clear of the jellyfish and he was finally plucked from the waters off Bahia Salinas, near the Nicaragaun border. Mr Freeman, who had swelled up “like a balloon”, was rushed to a local clinic by his horrified friends and given an emergency antihistamine injection to save his life.But he survived the horrific ordeal on May 23 and has since made a full recovery.

Mr Freeman a former businessman from Solihull, West Midlands who has re-trained as a carpenter, relived the terrifying moment he crash landed.

“I tried to keep my neck out of the water to prevent them stinging me there but I was so exhausted that I couldn’t,” he said.
“I panicked initially but after a while I couldn’t feel anything at all. I thought I was going to die.”

Mr Freeman moved to Costa Rica in 2004 with his wife Jo and their three children Estrella, five, Arturo, three, and Ruby, one, to set up a property business.The family now spend around half the year in Central America and half in Britain.Mrs Freeman said: “He had been stung a couple of times the previous day so knew there were jellyfish around.

“But I don’t know where this slick came from – it must have been a cycle of the moon. His kite ripped when he landed in the water so he could not launch it again. He said it was like sitting in a bath of jellyfish. They were stinging him anywhere he didn’t have hair – on his inner thighs, upper arms and neck.”

A friend tried to help but Crispin screamed at him to go away because there were millions of jellyfish. He said it was agonising and his skin looked like it was covered in third degree burns. His friends on the beach were helpless but luckily the tide current washed him in away from the jellyfish. He has just been left with a bit of a rash, but at the time he swelled up like a balloon.

“Thankfully he is okay, but it could have been so different. I was so upset when I found out – I was crying my eyes out.”

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