Holy Surf: Once Upon a Wave
Directed by Benjamin Morel and Christophe Bouquet
Practiced by Polynesians for thousands of years, surfing is more than a sport: it's the culture of the people of the water, swallowed up at the end of the 19th century by Western colonialism. And yet, in the space of a century, it has become an Olympic sport, resurrected thanks to a few legends from the margins and practised by millions of enthusiasts around the world. For the Paris Olympics, the competition returns to where surfing was born: Tahiti, on the world's most beautiful wave, Teahupo'o.
Surfing has its roots in Polynesia. In Hawaii and Tahiti, riding the waves is simply an extension of a unique mastery of the ocean, acquired during the settlement of the Pacific islands over more than 3,000 years. Much more than a sport, surfing is the expression of a culture, that of the people of the water, the Polynesians.
Now practised by millions of enthusiasts, surfing has earned its place in the Olympics through exploits, revolutions and the conquest of wild spaces. Across the centuries and around the world, the film meets surfers past and present: Duke Kahanamoku, a young Hawaiian who became the first surfing legend; Miki Dora, the king of Malibu who refused to accept the dictates of society; Lisa Andersen, the first woman to make her mark in the men's world of surfing; Laird Hamilton and Kelly Slater, who pushed back the limits of the sport; and Kauli Vaast, Vahine Fierro and Johanne Defay, who are on course for the 2024 Olympics. With the help of breathtaking archive footage and exclusive interviews, the pioneers of surfing and the contenders for the Olympic title tell the story of how this Polynesian culture conquered the whole world.
Directed by: Benjamin Morel and Christophe Bouquet
Written by: Benjamin Morel
Production: YAMI 2 - Antoine Boukobza
Broadcaster: France Télévisions, ZDF, BBC Alba
Year of release: 2024
Duration: 90 min and 52 min
Directors Benjamin Morel and Christophe Bouquet use this duality to tell the story of this different sport in an original way. (...) The difference in tone is quickly appreciated. In front of the camera, Vahine Fierro and Kauli Vaast, two professional surfers selected for the Olympic Games, talk not about performance but about respect, spirituality and mana, the sacred fire born of the union of opposites. - Le Monde
The film is accessible to neoprene neophytes, but will also appeal to wax addicts thanks to its rich archive footage, such as the rare sequence showing surfing pioneer Duke Kahanamoku standing on a board in 1906. From big-wave chaser Justine Dupont to accomplished waterman Laird Hamilton, the many testimonials recall the mystical passion that drives surfers the world over, past and present. - Télérama
High-level sport often reveals the soul of a people. (...) You think you're going to hear about muscles, but it's the soul that's at stake. - Le Figaro
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