Tom Curren on the guitar, Matt Beard on the brush. Photo: Nick Allen
On the first day of the 2014 High Line Festival of Surfing, the event founder wasn’t rushing around attending to last minute details or stressing out. He was surfing with a group of filmmakers, artists and an event sponsor at his local break. Like me, and nearly everyone else in attendance, High Line Festival of Surfing Founder Ari Lurie is a surfer. He’s the kind of surfer who’s out there on his most hectic day of the year and opens his house up to traveling surfers, artists, filmmakers and writers. This authenticity inspires a sense of community, hence the festival.
Surfing has shaped his life, and this festival is Ari’s way of celebrating. The surfers in Mill Valley know each other well and were stoked to have this weekend to celebrate the art of surfing together. The faces at the Proof Lab Surf Shop and Equator Coffee kick-off party were the same ones seen in the lineup the next morning and at the High Line film screenings throughout the weekend.
“When 400 people gathered at Equator Coffee and Proof Lab Surf Shop for the opening night on Thursday, it was apparent that the Marin County community was ready for an all-time weekend of films, music and art celebrating surfing and the ocean,” said Ari.
Welcomed into the community of locals from Marin County were filmmakers, musicians and artists who traveled from all over the state and even as far as Hawaii to attend the event. I watched locals smile at outsiders joining them in the water and sharing their local break’s waves. I’m not so sure the locals would still be smiling if I revealed their spot, but regardless, it was refreshing to see the tight knit surf community be so welcoming during this special weekend.
There were feature films and shorts screened throughout the two-day event and, when the dust settled, the judges selected “Bella Vita,” directed by Jason Baffa for the Clif Bar Best Feature Film Award. “Cradle of Storms,” directed by Ben Weiland and Bryce-Lowe White, won the Best Short category. Highlights of the weekend included a performance by Tom Curren, a mixture of music and art by Matt Costa and painter Matt Beard, and a DJ set by Keala Kennelly.
Keala Kennelly and Ari Lurie. Photo: Nick Allen
