Surf Cat

One story is about everyday women who find joy and passion in the waves, not for competition but for the thrill of the rides.

Another tale showcases big-wave chargers who tackle monstrous waves in Northern California and beyond, along the way breaking barriers for female surfing.

The Women’s Surf Film Festival in San Clemente, Jan. 11, now in its second year, puts a spotlight on female filmmakers who focus their lens on women making their mark in and out of the water.

The festival is the brainchild of San Clemente surfer Mo Langley, who puts on the two-film event as a fundraiser for her nonprofit Sandy Feet, which helps provide solace to siblings of people with special needs by giving them fun outings on the beach.

When Langley learned Orange County had no film festival geared toward women surf filmmakers, she decided to create one herself. In its debut last year, the festival drew about 75 people, many of them men, she said.

Langley said she’s hoping the latest films – “The Women and the Waves 2” and “It Ain’t Pretty” – will bring even more people to the San Clemente Community Center for this year’s event.

“There’s so many women doing so many amazing things through the vehicle of surfing and in the surf community, and I think that’s important to bring to light,” Langley said. “Women’s films don’t get advertised anywhere. They are actually hard to find.”

In the documentary “It Ain’t Pretty,” film creator Dayla Soul tells the story of big-wave women surfers fighting sexism in the water, in competition, in the media and in the surf industry. The story highlight’s Ocean Beach surfer Bianca Valenti, a big-wave charger who has led the way for changes in surf equality, including pushing for inclusion in contests and for equal pay.

For three years, Soul followed a group of Bay Area surfers as they charged massive Ocean Beach and Mavericks, before the film was released in 2017.

Soul, originally from Hawaii before transplanting to San Francisco, lived near Ocean Beach.

“I just wanted to make a film that portrayed that side of women’s surfing that hasn’t been done before,” she said. “They just kind of focused on the beach bunnies and models and sex appeal, rather than the outright carnage of big-wave surfing.”

And while the glass ceiling has been cracked in recent years, there’s still a long way to go for women’s surfing, including how the women athletes are portrayed in the media, which impacts sponsorship, she said.

Soul said she was proud, and surprised, how well her film has resonated around the world.

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“We’ve traveled all over, Brazil to Portugal, all through the United States, to all the countries,” she said.

The biggest thrill, she said, is when parents thank her for showing their daughters that anything is possible.

“It says something for women’s empowerment and bursting that bubble throughout history. For me, it’s more than just a surf film,” Soul said. “When you see things around you in a particular way and you feel like you don’t have the power to change it … it was my moment to change it, to do something about it.”

She said she learned two big lessons from the film: The first is to take a risk and say what you want to say in the world. The second is to involve people in your community.

“You can’t do this kind of stuff alone,” she said.

For filmmaker Heather Hudson, a Malibu native who now lives in Santa Barbara, “Women and Waves 2” continues what she introduced in 2009 in her first film, which followed 10 women surfers representing different generations.

The idea came about because she didn’t have a lot of women role models in the water after she started surfing in 1978, she said. “There were handfuls we knew about,” she said.

But as the years passed, more and more women were in the water — everyday surfers, extraordinary in their own ways, who found a passion for riding waves.

“We may not be in competitions, but we love it. It’s our lifestyle,” she said. “I love to shine a light on people like that.”

One of the women in the first film, who became a close friend, died after a 20-year fight with cancer. In the same month, Hudson found out another friend was expecting a child.

“It’s the circle of life,” Hudson said. “That’s why I made the second one. I pretty much let the films take me on a journey.”

The stories through the surfers’ perspectives are about living in the moment, friendships and life, said Hudson, who was 15 when she started surfing and has been riding waves for 42 years, with no plans on slowing down.

“I want to inspire people, whatever your passion is about, surfing, cooking or triathlons,” she said. “Whatever it’s going to be, get out there and live your life because you only have one.”

For Langley, creating a venue for female filmmakers is one of her dreams — and while she said it’s a small start with two films, she hopes one day she will be able to fill a massive room, draw food trucks and create a place for the growing number of women surf filmmakers to showcase their work.

“But you know, you have to start somewhere,” she said.

If you go

What: Women’s Surf Film Festival

When: 4 to 8 pm. Saturday, Jan. 11

Where: San Clemente Community Center, 100 N. Calle Seville, San Clemente

Cost: $20 online at sandyfeetoc.org; $25 at the door

More information: There will be a Q&A with the filmmakers after the screenings; light snacks and beverages will be provided. A raffle will be held on site.