Surf Film Tour (2024)

[bunniefuu]

[funky surf music playing]

[mellow music playing]

[Frank] Surfing, to some...

Some humans on this planet,

is absolutely necessary,

vital, important,

an analogy for everything else.

Now, there's some people

who don't need it,

who are never gonna see it.

It's never going

to exist for them.

And I feel kind of

sorry for them.

But for those of us

who found it, uh, we need it.

[surf music playing]

Who is Frank Paine?

- Frank's not dead, is he?

- [woman] No, no, no.

- Frank's just a vibe.

- Amazing.

One of my idols.

The mayor of South Bay.

The social butterfly.

Father to some,

a mentor to many.

The myth, the legend,

and just the kindest,

sweetest man I think I know.

Frank and I surf

together every day.

He's one of my best friends.

Like, I just feel like

I want to get out

on the water with him.

He was the first guy

to welcome me and say,

"Hey, I'm glad to surf with you,

and I'm glad you're here."

One of my favorite humans.

- Tan, mustachioed.

- Just a heater of love.

The glue that holds

everyone together.

The person that everybody

wants to grow up to be.

I am Frank Paine,

and I have the soul of a clown

and the feet of a woman

twice my size.

Frank Paine cracks me up.

[Frank] I'm Frank Paine.

I'm a surfer.

A lot of people know me

as the Professor.

I surf Hermosa Beach

almost every day.

And my friends

are better than yours.

I've been surfing for 58 years.

When I first started,

we didn't have wet suits.

And I don't think my n*pples

have ever fully recovered.

I remember my first wave.

I had this nice left,

Topaz Street.

I ran home to tell my dad

that I had just caught a wave,

and to come down and watch me.

Of course, he came down,

and I didn't catch a wave

for the rest of the time.

To say it's a habit

would be much too simple.

I am certain in my own life

that, you know, touching

that ocean every day,

touching the water,

touching the sand, the earth,

is really important to life.

Stuff in your body changes.

Your aura, not that I...

I'm not sure I have an aura.

I think I burned my aura out

in 1973, but...

It almost insists

that you be in the moment,

that you be present,

that you're aware

of what's going on.

Ah! Voil.

That's Nemo.

Would you like a PBR?

Tiki Bar started out

being a gardening shed,

and it was all full

of the dullest tools

in the South Bay.

And I got rid of all those tools

and I told my wife,

"I'm gonna make this

into an artist studio

so I can draw and paint

and do what I wanna do."

And that lasted about two years.

Oh, the first time I saw

The Endless Summer

was in like '63 or '64,

whenever it came out.

The soundtrack

was a reel-to-reel...

uh, recorder, tape recorder.

Bruce Brown would turn it on,

it would play over

the speaker system,

and then he narrated it live.

It was magic, you know?

It was really magical

the way he strung that

all together.

Let's see.

This is my brief stint

as a cowboy.

It was me and Sam Elliott.

And Sam Elliott

outdrew me and k*lled me.

Early hippie year, 1969.

"'People always ask me

how long I'm gonna keep

doing this, ' Paine says.

'I say, I don't know.

I'm going out Saturday.

I'm not thinking much

beyond that.'"

Boy, that was

a few Saturdays ago.

If you look at all

of the photographs

in the old surfer magazines,

everybody had a smile.

That's what it's about.

I don't think it's about

shredding, lacerating,

you know, air...

Well, you know, airs can be fun.

All that stuff can be fun.

But I think it's about

having a good time,

finding your inner child

and saying,

"Okay, buddy, run loose.

Come on, Frankie,

just run loose.

Have a good time.

Enjoy yourself."

And when I see

all that other stuff,

it really makes me sad

because I don't think

people are getting

the whole thing of it.

You know, I don't think

they're understanding

what it can be.

I think the best thing

about surfing is the people,

and it always has been.

I had really bad agoraphobia

for about ten years.

I had trouble leaving the house.

It was hard for me to go surfing

'cause I'd be afraid

to be out there.

And people said,

"Hey, let me hang with you.

Let's do this. Let's do that."

And it was like,

"Whoa, I'm not alone.

I... I've got people

who care about me."

That was really poignant

for me, you know,

that, yeah, I'm not alone.

The Surf Familia is a family

who care about each other,

who can't wait

to see each other.

We laugh so much.

The Surf Familia are

the luckiest people

on the planet.

We not only have surfing,

but we have each other.

Okay, so I'm gonna do

the "Surf Report" this morning.

Surf and culture...

report.

Started with about 15 people,

and then now it's 93. So...

Today's calendar gets

a red hibiscus flower

because we went surfing.

And I keep track

of the surfing days that I do.

We usually average

about 200 days a year.

It's really a...

It's really kind of a blessing.

It's really a beautiful thing,

I think.

I have as much fun...

almost as much fun,

watching other people surf

as I do surfing myself.

We've taken a lot of people out.

You know, there are

a lot of people

who just kind of suffer

from not being the best

at something or not being

capable at something,

but we need

to encourage them too.

We need to, you know,

to make them feel like,

"Okay, let me get out here

and do this."

It's fun to share it with them.

It's fun to see the stoke

on their face.

Oh, that's hot.

- [Frank] Sole Surfer.

- [woman] Sole Surfer?

- With pinto and...

- Burrito?

- Yeah, burrito.

- With pinto beans...

And, uh... It's got avocado.

Yeah, just the pinto.

[Frank] You keep the threads

of your community together

by being as authentic

as you can be.

We have a little kid

who's surfing with us now.

Joking around, I said to her,

"Millie, why are you

hanging around

with all these old people?"

And she says,

"You guys are inspirational,

and I can learn stuff

from you guys."

Part of the Familia

is raising our children,

raising each other,

to learn the ways

of good surfers, of good people,

to be conscious of something

bigger than themselves.

I think we have to realize

that once we start to behave

like there's something important

about what we do,

we create our own traditions.

We're surfing for Halloween.

It can be very powerful.

You know, there's a little bit

of magic in it.

These people have come together

for a reason I can't understand.

I don't know why

this is like it is,

but I am so thankful

every day that it is.

Am I lucky man, or what?

[inspiring music playing]

My surf community

means to me... identity.

When somebody asks me

who I am, that's who I am.

I get up because, like,

I'm afraid that it's gonna

go on without me, and I...

You know, I wanna be part of it.

[surf music playing]

[surf music playing]

[waves crashing]

[man in Portuguese]

[Cho] Mozambique as

a surfing culture is growing,

but there's a lot

that Mozambique had to do

to build up to where it is now.

There's so much more potential

in Mozambique,

and so now that the Mozambicans

are leading the charge,

I think a lot of the world

will start to see

what we have to offer.

[upbeat music playing]

[narrator] In 1992, one of

Africa's longest conflicts

came to an abrupt end

in Mozambique.

Soon after, small bands

of surfers started to explore

the tropical frontier

that had been off-limits

for decades.

But finding paradise

never comes easy.

When I came here in '88,

you couldn't travel

out of Maputo.

There was only one road

in and out,

and there were, like,

f*cking trucks burning

on those roads in those days.

And you had no idea

who's a soldier, and everybody

was under the same oppression.

Soldiers, bandits...

You got no idea who's who.

It was a destabilization

of the country.

People had no money,

but they looked after us,

where they shared

the best food that they had

with total strangers.

That's the thing that blew me

away about Mozambique

more than anything.

End of '92, I was on Inhaca,

they declared peace.

So, bang, like that, in one day,

suddenly there's peace.

Now you can drive anywhere

you wanted to. You can

do anything you want now.

So, okay, let's go and explore.

[upbeat music playing]

I don't think any of the waves

that I surfed had ever

been surfed before.

Frankie would have come

while I was there on Inhaca,

but I never surfed that wave,

because I had no access to it.

We just heard there's waves

in Mozambique,

so went for a look.

That's what we used to do

on the search.

You just go over, and we

were just looking for surf,

and we hit our luck.

We ended up getting a yacht

from Richards Bay.

But the night we wanted

to leave, there was

a big cyclone, giant surf.

So we left at 1 in the morning.

And then, uh, I woke up.

There was waves coming

through my cabin like this:

[whistles]

Out... [whistles]

I look that side.

I just check waves going

through their cabin.

Everyone is puking.

I was holding on to railings.

I thought we were gonna die.

I thought, "That's it, boys.

We're going down."

[mimics crash]

Everyone's hanging

on to the railings.

We're just dying. Agh!

We got through the night,

some miracle.

Next day, same thing.

It's just, ach, up and down.

No one said one word.

We were still in the same spot.

'Cause there's a cyclone eastly,

so we couldn't get past.

And then eventually,

a westie came, shoo,

turned, and then

we started going forward.

Then we were sailing down,

big swells. And then that's

how we found Inhaca.

We were just cruising

to the first bay that went in.

It looked like a long reef,

so we thought, "Hey,

that looks like a good wave."

So we just went into the bay

there, slept for the night,

and then the wind turned around

offshore the next day.

And then we came

around the corner

the next day, like, cooking.

Best waves ever seen.

Like, solid six-to eight-foot

double-up, blowout...

It's brilliant. Cooking.

Yeah, so, yeah,

we didn't... I didn't...

We didn't expect anything.

We just went for a look.

[narrator] A few years later,

a specialty surf contest

was held at Ponta do Ouro,

just beyond

the South African border,

and proved beyond a doubt

that Mozambique was

holding world-class waves.

[high-energy music playing]

[narrator] Yet despite these

early glimpses of perfection,

the flow of surfers

to post-w*r Mozambique

remained a slow trickle.

The whole of Mozambique was

just land mines everywhere, bro.

So they had to clear

that whole area first.

Ponta was land mines

full up, bro.

Like, if you went

off the path a little bit...

you'd be blown up, bro.

But now it's like

another world now.

But the thing is,

it's very fickle, eh?

A lot of east wind howling,

like, days and days,

and it's flat,

and it's windy and hot.

But when you hear

this Madagascan cyclone,

then you know

you're gonna get it.

Bink's the man for that. He's

pretty sharp. He's always on

it when it's up there.

[mellow music playing]

[Ribbink] The first I started

hearing about waves

in Mozambique was,

you know, with that first

Gotcha Experiencia.

A little bit before that,

I did a trip up to a place

called Xai-Xai.

And then from there,

it was like,

"All right, what's next?"

The roads were ridiculous.

Just mud tracks

through the biggest pothole

you can ever imagine.

And you'd never drive

straight on a road.

You were always...

You were doing this.

You were zigzagging

the whole way to Mozam

on one fricking road.

That was an absolute nightmare.

But, yeah, skunked

a couple of times,

hey, but, hey,

I had it as well. Proper.

From there on,

it'd become an addiction,

where it can be awesome,

and it can be the most

fickle place ever.

I think that's what captured me,

eh, just the potential of

that really, really good day.

[mellow music continues]

It's trial and error.

That's where

the hard work comes in.

Hold your breath, boys.

It's not about the surf.

That's just hot.

Mozambique has grown.

Surfing has grown.

There was, like,

a small surfing culture,

but in the last seven

or eight years,

it's really taken off.

My name is Sung Min Cho,

but I'm locally known

as Mini Cho,

and I'm from Tofo, Mozambique.

[jazzy music playing]

I am the first and currently

the only Mozambican

professional surfer

that's representing Mozambique.

I only started surfing

when I was 14.

I used to hang on the beach

with my brothers, play football.

I always used

to watch the surfers

and always wanted to surf,

but my parents couldn't afford

for us to learn how to surf,

to get the equipment.

And then one day

somebody gave me a surfboard,

and that's how it started.

I had no coaching, no guidance.

I kind of learned for myself.

I was surfing the bay.

It's a very soft, mushy wave,

and then one day there was

a really good shore break,

and I took off, and it was

a closeout shore break,

probably like half a second,

but I got that first vision

of a barrel,

and that's what

pushed me to surf.

I was so consumed by it.

I just did it every day,

every hour, whenever I could.

[jazzy music continues]

At the time when

I was learning how to surf,

they were the first core group

of Mozambican surfers,

but they were a very small

group, and the level of surfing

was still pretty low.

You know, they weren't pushing

to be professional or anything,

so it was hard to look within

the surf community for

inspiration and to be pushed,

and so I always

had to look outside.

Jordy comes here a lot,

and I drew inspiration

from Jordy's surfing

'cause he's so powerful.

He makes surfing

just look beautiful.

The first time I went

to Mozambique was

around 2006 or 2007.

I did a trip with Surfer mag,

um, and myself,

Travis Logie, Royden Bryson

and Ricky Basnett.

Drove across the border,

we went to Ponta, and, yeah,

we scored some really fun waves.

And then around 2011 or '12,

I started venturing

a little further.

And basically how

it came about was my wife.

My wife, Lyndall,

her and her family, growing up,

were really, really big campers

and really into going

to the bush and kind of

discovering new places.

And she would always

say to me, "Oh, babe, you

know, I think there's

these waves down there.

You know, we should

take a trip there sometime

and go check it out,

and you can surf."

And I was always like,

"Yeah. You know,

I'm sure there's waves.

It's probably like some p*ssy

little longboard thing."

And I'd heard of guys

kind of going there

and trying to get waves

but never really

scoring great stuff.

But one year we decided,

"Okay, let's go for a trip.

Let's go down there."

Ryan Ribbink had actually driven

up from Durban to help us.

And sure enough, showed up

to some of these waves,

and it was just, like,

this out-of-body experience.

[energetic music playing]

I remember coming over the dune.

We drove over the dune,

and I just started

absolutely freaking out.

[whooping] Okay, we gotta go,

we gotta go.

- Which way do we go?

- [man] That way.

Come on, get these boards off.

That was the first time

I'd ever seen African Kirra.

When I first started

going to Mozam,

there weren't too many

Mozambican surfers,

and, um, they haven't had

the best facilities,

and it wasn't exactly

on a silver platter for them

to be able to perform

and really get better.

And so in the short space

of time that they've had,

they've really excelled.

[upbeat music playing]

Oh, local boy just got

such a nice nug.

As far as the local scene goes,

it's really grown,

especially throughout

the last ten years,

and, um, especially in Tofinho.

There's a lot of talent

starting to kind of come

out of that area.

[in Portuguese]

Mini is now the guy that a lot

of the young kids look up to.

He's got a really positive

outlook on life,

a definite

hardworking mentality.

And there's no better

breeding ground, I don't think.

For me, I didn't want

to be the first and only.

I wanted to be

the first of many.

And so that's why I started

the Tofo Surf Club,

to grow surfing.

I want to see Mozambique

on the world stage, you know,

representing in

the ISA World Games,

the Olympics.

And I want to see many more

Mozambican kids surfing.

I don't want to be the only one.

[mellow music playing]

This is the Tofo Surf Club.

The club basically

is a diversion program,

and what we're really,

really trying to do

is it's a way to keep kids

engaged in the ocean life

but also keep kids in school.

You don't have to pay anything.

Basically, all they have to do

is just go to school.

And if kids can't do that,

we try and help them.

The club will try and pay

for the kids' school fees,

bags, uniforms.

So we want to keep kids

in school, educate them,

teach them about more

of their own self-worth,

self-value,

and for them to realize

their full potential.

So the club, surfing,

and keeping them in school

all works together here.

On a day-to-day basis,

what we do is, the kids

come in around 2:00,

and then at around 2:30,

we start our

nutritional program.

So we have a nutritional

program where we feed

the kids a nice fresh

fruit smoothie every day,

just to kind of give them

that energy. It's very hot

here in Mozambique.

And then we get the kids all

ready to go down to the beach.

So you can see

they get all their boards,

and then we line up

in the front, and we go

down to the beach.

[mellow music continues]

[man]

Yeah!

[Cho] It's amazing to see kids

from all different types

of backgrounds,

different religions

and different ethnicities,

and also lots of female surfing.

We have surfers like Julia.

Julia is the first

female surfer,

and she's a big inspiration

to a lot of kids.

[smooth music playing]

[Cho] Sometimes Julia

will catch a wave,

and she'll ask

if we saw the wave.

And we'll be like,

"No, but we heard it,"

because she always goes down

the wave hooting and screaming,

going way down the point.

So that's our joke.

We're always like, "No, we

didn't see a wave, but

we heard it." [laughs]

[in Portuguese]

[Cho] Here in Tofo, you can see

the communities rising up,

realizing their self-worth

and their place in Mozambique.

But there's a lot that

Mozambique had to do

to build up to where it is now.

Whenever you surf the point,

you can actually

see the monument.

It was put there to represent

the fight for independence,

and it's such an iconic sign

of power and strength.

There's so much more potential

in Mozambique,

and so now that the Mozambicans

are leading the charge,

I think a lot of the world

will start to see

what we have to offer.

[Gysen] Hm.

Got some swell.

And we've got a neap tide.

Which is actually good

because if it was springs,

we wouldn't be able to cross.

But, uh, yeah, but

definitely the swell pushing

the water in, eh, more

than actually the tide.

Which is a great sign.

Definitely.

A few years after surfing

Namibia at Skeleton Bay,

we started to hear

about a right-hand version

on the east coast of Africa.

But it would only work on very,

very specific cyclones,

specific directions.

And guys would go there

often in the early years

and not get anything.

And, um, it became

this kind of unicorn.

Everyone thought it was just,

you know, an empty flat sandbar.

Eventually, Jordy and the crew

got it on a couple

of really good swells,

and they named it

the African Kirra.

And it kind of set the benchmark

for what's still out there

in Mozambique.

But even if a cyclone

comes into the channel,

you never know what

you're gonna get there until

you actually get to the beach.

Wow.

[in English]

[mellow music playing]

Wow, that was a crazy one.

I pulled into that one,

and it just kept going

and going and going. Damn!

Your gut wants you

to stall for the barrel,

but you kind of just gotta pump.

It's actually what I was

telling Mikey and Saxton.

When you take off

on a wave, just pump it,

and then it'll start giving.

Local knowledge. [laughs]

[high-energy music playing]

[man] Go, go, go.

Punch through. Punch through.

Punch through!

No!

It's really fast

and really thick and all out.

It's like, you know,

next-level heavy.

As soon as you're pretty much

in the barrel, you're just,

like, doing these pumps.

'Cause you just... It just goes,

[whistles] As soon

as it hits that bank,

the bottom bank

especially just goes.

[music continues]

Paddling into it, you just can't

get in 'cause it's so steep,

and then trying to pull out

and getting sucked over.

Once you're in, then you're...

Heh. Then you're good to go.

It's a different concept

when you're out there to when

you're watching it on the beach.

It's so fast that it's actually

over quite quickly.

Plus, the distance you've

traveled is super amazing.

It changes a lot

through the day.

But there's always gonna be

someone that gets that gem.

It just depends on who gets it.

[intense music playing]

[music]

[man] On your last wave,

everyone was clapping, bro.

You are stoked, eh?

I was waiting for one

of those last ones.

What's the wave like?

It's amazing. It's insane.

It's super fast, but,

I don't know,

every now and again,

like, a bigger one comes

and really, like,

I don't know, runs along

the bank really nicely.

But it's an incredible wave.

It's nice to surf a right

like this. Yeah.

[Cho] This place, this little

tiny bit of peninsula,

is magical.

But I think there's so much more

potential in Mozambique.

And so I think now that

the Mozambicans are leading

the charge for surf tourism,

surf exploration, the future

of Mozambican surfing

is looking great.

[Nick] I think I wanted

to share the waves.

Big mistake.

We all think

we're doing the right thing.

And the end of the day,

you're gonna regret it.

I don't think we've seen it

at its full potential yet.

And hopefully, one day,

we'll get it as good

as it can be.

This country's got

a lot to offer.

The people are amazing.

And there are more waves there.

The rest of Mozambique

is just huge question marks

on what else is out there.

[mellow music playing]

[man] Oh, my barrel-boys rolls.

Oh, my barrel-boys rolls.

That was the one, bro.

As he bottom-turned,

the thing already spat, oof.

Pulled in for about

five seconds, six seconds.

Thing spat.

Then he came out slowly.

Then he vied in again,

another five, six seconds.

[mimics expl*si*n] Again.

Came out just his nose, like a...

It was like a... Like a TV game.

It was four or five barrels

he got in a row,

but they were all ten-pointers.

He got like

a 50-point wave, bro.

[laughs]

[upbeat music playing]

[mellow music playing]

[Izzy] The thing that binds

Surfers Healing is the surfing.

That's kind of the connection.

That's what we're doing,

is this water therapy.

To do something

that is so unique with autism,

you know, the water.

The water is where it's at.

And these children,

once they get in the water,

something magic,

something profound, happens.

You know, as divers call it,

that mammalian reflex.

You know, you feel calm,

and your heart rate goes down.

[sighs]

You know,

you breathe through it,

breathe through that anxiety.

You know, once being

a professional surfer,

I could write on paper

who I wish would be

a part of Surfers Healing.

And I got those guys,

and I didn't have to beg them.

When I asked them,

the response is

"Thank you for picking me."

And all these surfers who, uh,

create this Ministry of Surf,

that's us, that's who we are.

But it's the water

that is really something

that is physiologic change,

that is therapeutic,

but that water,

it's that same effect.

It's healing, it helps,

you know, calms the nerves.

I mean, it's so hard

to take 100,000 children out,

but it's a must.

You know, it's sensory.

It's these little sensory beings

that feel...

I don't know,

maybe whole in the water.

[mellow music continues]

[Rob] As their tagline says,

it's just one perfect day.

It was such a safe space for us

early in Harry's diagnosis,

at a time where we were really

getting used to being a family

in the autistic community.

And we came out here,

and for once,

our kids were the star

of the show.

Um, nobody looked at them funny.

It was... They rolled out

a lunch for us.

They welcomed

his grandparents, the family,

and we had an incredibly,

uh, you know, perfect day.

Here comes Harry now.

Harry, come on in.

[Harry] Dad, time to go surfing.

Is it time to go surfing, bud?

Sit on your lap.

- Are you ready to do it?

- Yeah.

Then surfing will be over.

We'll go surfing and maybe

catch a ride on our own.

You think you'll stand up

on your own today?

Yeah.

- Do you like doing the surfing?

- Yeah.

What's it like

when you're out there?

Ooh.

[Izzy] I don't want to rest

on our laurels.

You know, it's all

what we're going to do.

If I can just slip in

another 25 years and maybe

another 100,000 children...

And it's just so amazing

to be out here today,

seeing the kids in the water

and how much it, you know,

really affects these parents

and changes their lives.

And seeing the looks

on the parents' faces

is almost just as rewarding

as seeing how stoked

the kids are to be out there.

[upbeat music playing]

[Ashton]

My name's Ashton Pignat.

I'm from Sunshine Coast,

Australia.

I share the same path with Izzy

'cause I have

an autistic brother, as well.

I can relate to that in a way

and see how special

those moments are

with other people, as well.

To see the kids have

that "I did it," as well,

and then watching, like,

the stoke come out of them

'cause they did it.

As soon as we get them out there

and get them in a wave,

I, like, really am really stoked

to see how happy they are

after getting the wave and

enjoying that time on the wave.

The ocean, I think,

has a lot to do with that.

Like, I feel like

it heals a lot of people.

[Izzy] This surf therapy,

this unique,

incredibly difficult charity,

this mission,

this mission from God,

having my son,

and having him for that reason.

And it took me a long time

to figure it out, you know,

but I figured it out.

I figured it out.

That's... That's who he is,

and I love him for who he is.

I wish I could talk to him,

but talking's overrated.

But then it's more

than just that, you know.

It's more than just that.

Once somebody rides

and the first wave is ridden,

you know, it's just,

it's a zone of just excitement,

you know, and everyone

just starts to kind of ramp up,

and the surfers

catch waves and...

I don't know, I always said

it was kind of like

extreme special ed

'cause it's something pretty,

pretty radical.

This is me, and this me

and this is my life,

and this is my destiny.

And, uh, all I gotta do

is take out as many

autistic children as I can,

you know, until I can't anymore.

[inspiring music playing]

[all singing]

I had a great day.

And I went ten miles per hour.

[speaking in Hawaiian]

[waves crashing]

[surf music playing]

[Eddie in Indonesian]

[children laughing]

[water rumbling]

[in English]

[in Indonesian]

[in English]

[in Indonesian]

[Ruzi in Indonesian]

[Eddie in Indonesian]

[Ruzi]

[upbeat music playing]

[Varun in English]

[Rizal in Indonesian]

[Eddie]

My name is Varun Tandjung.

I'm 19 years old.

I'm from Bali, Indonesia.

And we're here in Sumatra

on the Bono River,

looking for the longest wave

you could possibly find here.

The first time I came here,

I was 11 years old.

Now this time, with my dad.

- Eight years ago, huh?

- Yeah, eight years ago.

- It's changed, for sure.

- Changed a lot.

[Varun] When I came here

eight years ago,

none of the locals

really knew what surfing was.

And now seeing all these kids

surfing, it's incredible,

'cause you never know,

you might see the next

world champ of surfing

here in Indonesia.

[in English]

[man in Indonesian]

Eddie!

Having Eddie, the local guide,

here, local knowledge.

He knows this river very well,

and feel much safer

with him for sure.

[Rizal in English]

[Varun] The first time

I saw the waves coming

from super far out, I

just couldn't believe it.

Everyone doesn't

believe it at first.

That's why

they call it the Bono.

"Bono" means "it's true."

And, yeah, it's true. [laughs]

[mellow music playing]

[Eddie in Indonesian]

[Ruzi]

[Varun] Yeah, it was epic times

here with my dad.

And all of a sudden, I see,

like, all these little kids

waiting with their boards,

waiting for the wave to come.

And we all ended up

party-waving the same wave.

[Rizal in English]

Bono! Bono! Bono!

Yeah, a lot of the locals say

they used to run away

from the Bono,

but now they're chasing it.

The more people care

about a place, the more

they're gonna try to protect it,

so I hope this wave

will be here forever

and people will take care of it.

[Rizal]

[Ruzi in Indonesian]

[Eddie]

[inspiring music playing]

[surf music playing]

[helicopter whirring]

- Oh, my God, look at all that.

- My God.

It's horrible.

Oh, my God.

[melancholy music playing]

- [child] Problem.

- [Bully] Problem.

- Ocean.

- Ocean.

- Coral.

- Coral.

- Plastic.

- Plastic.

- Rubbish.

- Yup.

All right.

- "Horizon"?

- Yeah.

- You know what a horizon is?

- Oh, "horizon."

Anybody know what horizon is?

- Nope.

- Okay.

Do you see where

the ocean meets the sky?

- Yeah.

- That is the horizon.

Ahh.

[Bully]

And all of your balance...

When you look at the horizon,

you have good balance.

And if you look down or you

look up, you lose balance.

- Okay.

- Okay.

Try this one.

- Place.

- Place.

- Sunset.

- Sunset.

- Beach.

- Beach.

[Bully] I don't wanna hear them

tell me that they don't have

their pencil or paper,

'cause, you know,

that's part of the program.

You know, the surf

is the reward part of it.

[Bully]

There you go. That's good.

[Bully] Being around other kids

and getting to surf,

and a lot of it

is just getting out

of their whole little situation.

People don't come to Maui

and expect to see homeless.

[Bully] Let's go here.

[Bully] But these kids, they're

hidden right in plain sight.

Try to sound it out.

[Bully] And somebody needs

to step up, especially now.

Okay. All right.

Before we go, let's do

a little bit of exercise.

[Bully] You know,

you get to see this freedom.

When they go down to the beach,

they just get to be kids.

Ten more. Eleven, 12...

[Bully] Everyone is equal

when they go down to the beach.

16, 17, 18, 19, 20.

Bring it in. Bring it in.

This is the best part

of my day, you know?

I mean, to see their faces

and when they come running up

and, "Uncle Bully!"

Oh, man.

Just fills my heart

with so much joy.

All right. Yeah, good morning.

What's up, boys?

Yes, yes, yes.

All right, you guys sleep good?

Nice, nice. Let's go.

We've got a big day.

The surf's awesome.

Okay, you got your board,

got your pack.

Hi, good morning, you guys. Aw.

Check it out.

What's your name, dog? Jack?

They call me Bull.

How you doing, bro?

It's gonna be rad waves

out here, man.

Hey, what's up, little man?

What's your name?

- Grayson.

- Grayson. My name's Uncle Bully.

Give me some. Yeah, love it.

Shoots. There it is, bro.

[mellow music playing]

Aloha. Good morning.

Get a lot of good wax

on that board.

Make it all sticky.

[Bully] A surf instructor,

when I first started,

it was a job.

It was a way of making money,

and I actually did

pretty darn good.

But, yeah, COVID,

it hit everybody.

Thank you, guys.

We're gonna have

another row back here too.

Thank you, guys.

[Bully] Well, it was ironic

because all the tourism died,

but for me, I looked at this

as an opportunity to grow,

to cultivate, to build something

out of nothing.

Come on over, guys.

Let's all kind of round up

to our boards.

All right, this is

the perfect wave setup.

And when you guys catch waves,

you should be catching

the wave here at the peak,

and you wanna be looking

all the way across

this area here

and this area here.

That is your targeted surf area

for going across the wave.

So I'm trying to implement

an old school, an old way,

of bringing back community.

And the Number 1 is this guy,

'cause he's closest to the peak.

Number 2, 3, and 4, 5,

stay over here and wait.

It's very focused on Earth

and conscientious, sustainable

practices in the water.

You know, humility and respect

and consideration.

If Number 1

doesn't want the wave,

Number 2, 3, 4 and 5

can take it.

People in the lineup

will respect that.

And then they'll start

respecting you in the lineup.

You know,

supporting other people.

If you need to help

another person who's struggling.

You know, you'll see kids

picking up trash.

And you'll see kids supporting

one another, you know,

and showing love and aloha,

which is something that we

could really use in these times,

especially, yeah?

We're gonna do a quick

little warm-up, you guys.

Right here on the line.

We're gonna wanna

warm up our body

just like every morning.

I can see some of us are tired.

And that's okay,

'cause I get it.

We've been working hard

out here and surfing a lot.

Water's gonna rejuvenate us.

Shoulder rolls.

Wake up the shoulders.

Yup. 'Cause we're gonna do

a lot of paddling.

Okay, now one arm forward,

one arm backwards.

It's trippy, right?

Excellent.

This is how surfboards

are steered, by swinging

the body side to side.

It didn't matter your status.

It didn't matter how much money

you have or didn't have.

You know, COVID was

an opportunity for kids

to get put on the wrong path.

They could be influenced

by the wrong people,

stuck indoors.

You know, kids need to move.

They need to be outdoors.

They need to be

around other kids.

Eight. Two more. Nine.

Excellent job.

Shake that out a little bit.

Chest all the way off the sand.

We're gonna fly, superheroes.

One, two, three, four, five,

six, seven, eight, nine, ten.

Pop up. Count of three.

One, two, three.

Let's all go to our surfboards,

get our leashes on,

and we're gonna

paddle down together.

Please, let's all go down

together, okay?

Yeah. Excellent job.

[clapping]

All right.

All right, let's do it.

You can hold your own, right?

- Yeah.

- Cool.

I'm ready.

All right, we're almost at

our little surf spot, Dorothy.

See it? Let's try it.

Breathing

and relaxing your mind.

Looking back

at the wave to catch it.

Once the wave gets close,

arch up your chest.

Away we go.

All the way up. Yes.

All right, bump it for speed

and stand upright.

Oh, there it is.

Scooch back

on the tail for control.

Finishing down on the board.

Excellent job right there.

Very nice.

Come on back for another.

Okay.

And let's take a ride, son.

Lift up.

Come on, you wave.

You got that.

Lean back on your fin.

That's right, son.

Well done.

Down on the board to finish.

Now, as we paddle out here,

you guys can see

some shallower coral.

That's where the wave

is gonna lift up and give us

energy to catch it.

Corals are so important

for us too.

They give us 70 percent

of the air we breathe.

I always thought

the trees did it.

All right, come on

to the side a bit.

And let's go ahead and sit up

and get ready for waves.

When I first met Violet,

she was very introverted

and quiet.

She wouldn't look me in the eye.

When I first met her,

she said maybe

a handful of words.

You know, it was like...

I know she was scared.

You know, and I...

And that's understandable,

because surfing can be

a scary place, in the ocean.

See, the wave is starting

to approach.

Let's get ready.

If you wanna paddle through it,

you can paddle through it.

You don't have to go.

I wanna go.

Okay, you almost

had that one, Violet.

If you feel like the nose

is coming into the water,

grab behind your ribcage here,

and then lift really high up

so that you guys don't spear

that board in the water.

Here comes the wave. See it?

Wait for it before you go.

Breathe and relax your mind.

Yeah.

All right.

Let's go ahead and time it.

Go.

Lift up.

Stand up. All the way up.

Yes.

Lean back on your fin

when it gets steeper.

Here comes the steeper.

Well done. Excellent job.

And two hands

on the board to finish.

Well done. Excellent job.

Outstanding.

Becoming one with the ocean,

letting yourself feel

what you need to feel

and then working through it.

She came out of her shell.

It was a whole different person.

And it was fun to see

the light come on within her,

to see this transformation.

Because it starts off

as just a surf lesson,

but it ends up a life lesson.

[Bully] I came here when I was

8 years old in 1973,

and as soon as I was introduced

to the ocean, I was hooked.

And, man, surf every day.

And the water was so blue,

and the sand felt

like this powdered sugar.

And the barreling waves,

every day,

these barreling waves, man.

It connected with me right away.

I mean, I found my...

My happy place.

Yeah, it's epic here.

But it can be tough too.

Yeah, this last year,

everything changed.

This has been a trial period

for many people.

Not everybody made it through.

There's still people

that are struggling to get up

and get on with it, you know?

Maybe the struggles

that I went through

had prepared me for this.

Maybe I've been training

my whole life for this.

There's a reason why

they call me what they call me.

It's a warrior nation.

You know,

Hawaii is built on that.

So yeah, growing up here,

as blond-haired, blue-eyed,

I was fighting a lot.

Every school I went to,

I got into fights.

I can remember every bully's

name that I ever had

to be confronted with.

Taking care of myself a lot,

I had a lot of freedom

to do what I want,

or not a lot

of parental supervision.

So I could go and hang out.

And trying to be "cool,"

you know, I partied a lot.

I got into drinking

and harder illicit drugs too.

And there wasn't a lot

of guidance, you know?

There was a lot of freedom.

And that freedom

put me on Front Street

and took me down

some darker paths, you know,

that I'm not very proud of,

but they were all

learning lessons.

It was an evolution

that I'm still working on,

still today, to,

you know, keep focused

and be on the right path.

But I've come a long way

from where I used to be.

There was... scars

from upbringing

that carried over

into grown-up life

but I didn't have

the coping skills to deal with.

And the pain was so powerful

that I just wanted

to get away from it,

but I didn't know how.

So I turned to drugs and alcohol

to alleviate the pain.

You know, I was married

with three children at the time,

so I wanted to be

a better person, better father.

I was just tired of being tired.

You know, waking up hungover,

in a strange place, you know?

It was...

I just had enough, you know?

But after I started

helping people,

and the feeling I get that...

when I'm changing

someone's life, it was...

It was a high

like I've never felt.

You know, the alcohol

didn't do that.

Neither did the other drugs.

This feeling was pure.

For me to bring people

into a better light

and to expose them

to a positive energy

that just reinforces confidence

and instills, like,

ambition and enthusiasm,

these energies

are very addicting.

And the gift of giving?

I've never felt so much love

when I give.

Look at that wave

right there, bro.

Spin. Spin on it.

I'm coming with you.

Come on, just paddle.

I got you.

Stand up and surf.

All right, let's go.

That's right, pump it.

Go right through.

That's it, drive it through.

Yeah!

Whoo! Bro, that was sick.

Excellent first try.

[inspiring music playing]

It was exciting,

and people were listening to me.

You know, they were listening

to my every word.

And people was opening up

their hearts to me.

You know, no other job

I've ever done

where people give themselves

completely to you.

So that feeling, I'm hooked.

I'm hooked. It's...

It's a lifelong project for me.

That's all I think about.

That's all I think about,

is the children and

"How can I help?"

You know, the need is here.

Maui is a very unique place,

you know?

For some folks

who have money and resources,

yeah, it is paradise.

But for others who don't,

it's a struggle.

You don't see a lot

of the darker side of it.

The kids who are in need,

where they don't have resources,

especially now

that COVID had hit.

You know, there's a new influx

of homelessness.

You know,

kids out on the street,

living in their cars.

You know, where are they

gonna get their next meal?

To some of these kids,

every day is a struggle.

So first I met Isaiah,

and Isaiah lived in the park

where I teach surf lessons.

When I surfed over there

and I saw this encampment,

he would be sitting there

all day by himself,

eight, ten, 12 hours.

No parental supervision.

He was probably 7 at the time.

I just asked him,

you know, if he surfed

and if he would wanna come

and join in with the camps

that we were doing.

That's how I met

some of the other boys,

Tyten, Josiah.

You know, he was best friends

with those kids.

All right, bro.

All of them,

really shining stars.

You know,

considering their backgrounds

and where they've grown up

and their influences,

it's amazing to see how kind

and wonderful and loving

these kids really are.

Yeah, boys.

All right, good morning,

good morning.

Whoa. Fumble. Come on in here.

What's up?

Good job. All right,

you guys ready for surf?

- Yeah.

- Let's get after it, man.

We got a busy day out there,

lots of kids coming down.

All right, all right.

Come on, we gotta rally up.

And you know, what really got me

is that Isaiah didn't...

At 9 years old,

he couldn't really read.

You know, when we'd go to lunch,

the door would say "push,"

and he would try to pull it.

And I'd say, "Can't you see

what it says there?"

Every day,

he kept trying to pull it.

And then he told me,

"Uncle, I couldn't read."

And that's where

it kind of evolved.

[Bully] Now, can you

write your name?

- Yup.

- All right.

Yeah, me too.

[Bully] It's important to be

able to spell your name.

[boy]

What's up, Isaiah?

- How's it going, dog?

- Good.

Bang.

[in English]

[Bully] Given their situation,

they're like these diamonds

in the rough, you know?

And I believe, with a little bit

of help, man, and direction,

they can go places.

They can go far.

And they can get themselves

out of the situation

that they're in.

And by coming to the water

and using Hawaiian culture

and bringing Hawaiiana back to

these young generational kids,

it's gonna be something that's

gonna be a lifelong effect

in putting them in

a positive direction, you know?

I grew up on the streets

out here too.

And it's really easy

to get caught up in the street.

Front Street is

real easy to get...

When there's not

other things going on.

So keeping these kids

entertained and stuff

is gonna keep them

off the street here too,

as well, you know?

- Now M, who knows M?

- I do.

- A big M.

- Okay.

- Can you do big M too?

- Yup.

Write it in the sand. Show me.

It looks like mountains.

There you go.

Very good.

You guys excited

about surfing today?

- Yeah.

- Yeah? Okay.

I didn't know

those come in and out.

[Bully] And what really is

cool about this whole thing

is the diversity.

And we want you guys

to understand that

so you can teach

the next generation too,

you know?

[speaks in Hawaiian]

[Bully] And there's no judgment,

you know?

The kids all accept one another.

They don't look at each other

as, "Oh, this kid's rich.

He's got the best board."

You know, "Oh, this kid's

got no board at all."

You know,

everybody here is equal.

And look at how we make

friends with our kaiaulu,

in our community, you know?

All new friends, new surfing,

sharing all of this together,

you know?

It's a very precious thing

that we have going here, yeah?

Cool?

So let's get ourselves

on our boards and let's start

getting ourselves ready.

And I feel like if a lot

of grown-ups could see

how these kids act

towards one another,

it would be a much better place,

you know?

Being kind and not judgmental

and respecting one another.

It just really lit me up.

[mellow surf music playing]

Please don't break.

Please don't break.

This is where

the action comes in.

Oh, a turtle right behind us.

A turtle.

That's our family, our friend.

And every time

you see a turtle, there's waves.

Whoa! He scores.

He makes it. Oh, my God,

right inside. Let's go.

Keep your eyes up now.

Look where you wanna ride, bro.

Yeah, dude, we went sideways.

Yeah, Isaiah.

Whoo!

Let's go manifest some waves.

Breathing and believing.

God, I just love it.

[music fades]

[Bully] I've been thinking

a lot about Isaiah.

So he hasn't showed up

in the water

for a couple weeks now.

And it's got me worried.

And we had a couple of times

we were supposed

to go surfing and skating,

and for him not to show up,

that's just not like him.

The people that are in his

family circle are struggling.

And how is that affecting him?

He's only 11.

And my heart is wondering.

He's a gift.

And he needs to know that.

It's all tucked away

in the trees.

There's literally

structures, homes.

This is people's homes.

So I haven't heard from him

in about ten days,

maybe two weeks now.

And I tried to call him today,

but his phone is shut off again.

My hope for Isaiah...

You know, I wanna

see him go to school.

I wanna see him

have an education.

I wanna see him read

and write and learn.

He loves math.

He has all this talent,

and he really does.

Do you know that

he's the most giving kid

I've ever seen?

He has nothing, and he gives.

We were walking down the street

with me and Grayson.

It was raining and cold.

Isaiah gave him the shirt

off his back to keep

little Grayson warm.

And when Grayson is around

Isaiah, he's a better kid.

He's more polite.

He has a positive influence

on other children.

This is another place

he'll hang out.

So it's a hit and miss

sometimes here.

We'll go up this way.

The park is usually packed in

on Fridays, and this is

where I'll find the boys.

Yeah.

Sometimes they're here,

sometimes they're not.

I didn't find them this time.

But I'll keep searching.

I'm always gonna keep

searching for the boys.

I've had such an

influence on them already,

and they've had an

influence on me, you know?

It's amazing that kids

can teach you a lot

if you're really listening.

Oh! [laughs]

[mellow music playing]

[Bully] We were so close

to burning in our car.

You know, we made it out

with maybe a minute

or two to spare.

[woman] This is where we live.

There's our street.

[Bully] I went back to the beach

at Breakwall,

where I got married,

where I met my wife.

That's where I taught those

first surf camps during COVID

with all those kids.

It was hard.

And we looked out to the waves,

and the waves were

just blue and perfect

and, I mean, incredible.

It was firing.

It's like you never see

Breakwall with nobody out.

Behind me was

all the rubble of our lives.

And in front of me, another set

of waves come firing through.

And in that moment, I realized:

Keep looking forward.

The horizon,

balance,

and this positive energy

is right in front of you.

[inspiring music playing]

[Bully] Kids are very resilient,

so it may not seem

like it's affecting them,

but deep down inside,

their body is storing

these emotions.

Yeah.

Look how good the waves are.

Come on, Felix.

Let's go. Come on.

Bringing them to the ocean

is a part of therapy.

It's a healing process.

When things get hard

and there are struggles,

the ocean is a moment

of being present.

And you're not thinking

about the fire.

You're not thinking

about what you've lost.

You're only in the moment,

and this is the place

we need to go back to.

[people cheering]

[horn blowing]

[Bully] When I looked around,

I realized the power

of this energy

that was coming

together collectively.

This is what love

and aloha looks like.

Amidst all of this tragedy,

there was this feeling of hope.

And I felt this powerful

connection to Maui

and the people in it

that I've never felt anywhere,

in any experience

I've ever had before.

You know, when I look around,

I wonder if people

see what I see.

You know,

if we can harness this energy,

aim this and focus this

towards our Hawaiian kids,

it's amazing that this is what

comes out of the ashes.

Tragedy has to happen

to bring people together.

It, like, wakes people up

out of this coma.

And then they realize

we need each other.

Yeah, I thought local kids

were living it tough before.

Now...

you know,

it's not hidden anymore.

The little they had

was those opportunities

to go to the beach,

to walk through the park,

to hang out together.

All that's gone.

You know, they need role models.

They need us to be present.

And that's where

the change happens.

Just by showing up

is how you make a difference.

And that's where I'm going.

Hold tight hold on

Stand up or fall

So many changes

We can't explain

Might be afraid

And that's okay

Hold tight hold on

Okay. Let's stand up.

So uncertain

But I'm learning

Every dark day was worth it

To be standing here

Right now

Here right now

Here right now

I'm here right now

Got everything we need

And more

Can take a broken soul

To make a heart of gold

So many ways we can't change

Face the pain, oh

Got everything you need

And more

So uncertain

But I'm learning

Every dark day was worth it

To be standing here

Right now

Here right now

Here right now

I'm here right now

I'm here right now