Club Of The Waves
John Severson
The world of surf art and media owes a lot to this man. A jack of all trades, he was a very skilled filmmaker, publicist, photographer, and a pioneer of the modern surf art scene.
He is perhaps most famous for founding the first ever surf magazine; 'The Surfer', which is still around today, but is now called 'Surfer'. John's publication was a small photo book of surf imagery, which coincided with his recent surf film 'Surf Fever'. At first, only a one-off publication, its success saw it evolve into a bi-monthly magazine.
'The Surfer' made surfing visible to the world, creating a whole new segment to the media, and subsequently opening up new roles and opportunities in the surfing world, like surf photography, widespread advertising and professional surfing.
It was surf movies that John first made his name. And many of his surf movie posters are now collectables.
Without John's vision and creative flair, surf media, surf art and in-deed surf culture, would not be what it is today.
John Severson
John Severson........................................................................................
Bud Browne
The creator of the surf movie. Before the Internet, advertising, television, magazines and movies, surfing was more or less invisible to the masses. That all changed in 1953 when Bud Browne released his first surf film entitled 'Hawaiian Surfing Movie'.
It was Bud's initial surf films that inspired a boom of interest in surfing in Hawaii and California, and eventually the world.
Bud was a skilled surfer and terrific waterman. And it was these skills in the water that enabled him to paddle out into the surf and shoot much of his revolutionary footage. In time, he developed a drysuit of his own and a waterproof casing for his camera to aid him in his work.
Bud first took to surfing in 1938, and later started filming surfers, including the great Duke Kahanamoku. Bud earned his keep teaching and lifeguarding. He saved up to buy a camera, and later enrolled in a cinema school and learnt to edit his surf film footage. And in 1953, he was invited to screen his first surf footage at a high school in California. Advertising the films himself, through handmade signs he'd distribute locally. And then charged an admission fee to view his films. And so the surf movie was born.
Bud soon left teaching and traveled the world filming as he went. His early films were only narrated, but later Bud started editing sound into his films, which helped to promote the surf music sound of the time.
Bud's films, now seen around the world were inspiring people all over the world to surf. And through his travels, Bud was the first to film footage in Australia, thus producing the first ever international surf film.
Bud's films inspired others to film surf movies of their own, and soon the surf film genre was booming. Inspiring people to pick up a surfboard and head for the beach. A true inspiration for surf culture.
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Bruce Brown
A revolutionary surf filmmaker, a name I'm sure you've all heard, if not, does Endless Summer ring any bells?! Bruce Brown's surf films romanticised the sport and the lifestyle. Ignoring the usual stereotypes associated with other surf movies of the 50's and early 60's, painting surfers in a more positive light.
Bruce studied hard while in the Navy to become top of his class, why? So he could be stationed at a location of his choice, which was Pearl Harbour in Hawaii, so he could surf. While in Hawaii, he started to experiment with film. And on his return to California, after his discharge from the Navy, he met up with the infamous Dale Velzy, who bought Bruce a camera, and paid him to film a promotion for Velzy's surf team.
Bruce's first film was 'Slippery When Wet'. He followed with more similar films, until he grew tired of the ever-increasing predictable genre of surf film, and aimed to create something different. 'The Endless Summer' was the result, in 1964. A film that followed two surfers' journey/quest to follow the summer around the world, surfing as they went, narrated by Bruce himself. The film's success and popularity was phenomenal, with mainland non-surfers as well as surfers.
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