The Films

• Year 2016
• Country Canada
• Runtime 8 min
• Director Jake Kovnat

Surfing on a lake? Impossible, right? Wrong. Loveable wild-man Larry Cavero lives for surfing the ice-cold waters of The Great Lakes in this short documentary about the burgeoning surf scene around Toronto, Canada.

• Year 2017
• Country Australia, French Polynesia, New Zealand
• Runtime 5 min
• Director Krystle Wright

Surfers and free divers know well those dark, lung-searing seconds waiting to surface after a wave has pinned you to the ocean floor. It can feel like an eternity. In those underwater minutes, Australian adventure photographer Krystle Wright envisions herself in a desert with roiling grey skies and bootpacking a snowy ridgeline, her trusty Canon capturing the stunning dreamscapes. Vivid and ethereal, In Perpetual Motion is about the remarkable beauty revealed when time stands still for just a moment.

• Year 2018
• Country USA
• Runtime 8 min

Subject in Attendance

Dan Schetter is a native of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and is a local legend with a love for the outdoors and Lake Superior’s wicked, winter waters. He’s not your typical profile, and the documentary showcases his charm, interesting character and dedication to surfing in below freezing, dangerous waters.

• Year 2015
• Country Canada
• Runtime 9 min
• Director Desiree Bilon

You can surf anywhere – even 1500m above sea level and 1000km away from the nearest ocean. This is the story of a group of river surfing pioneers who are building not only a world-class wave on the Kananaskis River (forty-five minutes outside of landlocked Calgary, Alberta, Canada) but also a river surfing community.

• Year 2018
• Country USA
• Runtime 17 min
• Director Zach Weisberg

In Summer of 2018, The Inertia traveled to El Salvador with Kassia Meador, Leah Dawson, and Lola Mignot, three outstanding women who are inspiring the next generation of ocean lovers through their alternative approach to both surfing and life. Each has developed a strong voice as a leader in surfing, and managed to do so on her own terms. They ride the boards they want, spearhead projects that speak to their passions, and keep their eyes peeled for interesting ways to engage that fascinating nexus where surfing and the rest of the world collide.

• Year 2018
• Country USA
• Runtime 7 min
• Director Grant Piering

Filmmaker in Attendance

Even in Michigan, the search for unspoiled waves lures in brave surfers who know how and when to find them. Up here, it’s never about riding the biggest waves in the world, but rather the thrill of the chase and the satisfaction of catching a freshwater wave - even if only for a couple of seconds. Follow local Great Lakes surfer and shaper Loukas Bethea as he shares the local sense of adventure.

• Year 2017
• Country Canada
• Runtime 5 min
• Director Kelsey Thompson

SUP surfers Emre Bost and Glen Pearson discuss the experience of living and surfing in Tofino, British Columbia.

• Year 2018
• Country USA
• Runtime 10 min
• Director Liam Kaiser

Filmmaker in Attendance

The Story of Sleeping Bear Surf and Kayak highlights one of the first surf shops in Northern Michigan and their story of the growing surf community on the Great Lakes.

• Year 2018
• Country USA
• Runtime 9 min
• Director Andrew Wyton

In the film, the world’s freshwater supply has become too toxic to support mass human life. A lone survivor is mystically transported back in time to the present day, where he and his surf pals were still able to enjoy the greatness of the lakes before the toxifying effects of agricultural and industrial pollution reached a tipping point.