Girls Can't Surf

2020 Official Selection: Features

International Premiere

FEATURE | Australia, United States | 104 MINUTES | English |

GIRLS CAN'T SURF

Action, Women, Documentary, Sports

Surf culture went mainstream in the 80s, professionalising a counterculture sport and attracting major sponsorship deals. However, the free spirits riding this wave weren’t all full of peace, love, and empathy. Beneath the surface was a murky world of archaic male egos and bigotry. Women were paid a tenth of the prize money, pressured to compete in bikinis and relegated to holding professional contests during mens’ lunch breaks.

Girls Can’t Surf shares the untold story of a ragtag bunch of inspired, renegade Australian, American, and South African women surfers who battled against inequality, homophobia, and chauvinism of their fellow sportsmen, sponsors, and institutions. As the sea ebbed and flowed, so did their struggle, fortunes, and notoriety of these pioneering surfers, but nothing kept these radical women from catching their own waves.—Luke Moody


CAST & CREDITS

Directed by Christopher Nelius

Christopher Nelius started making documentary films with a biopic about legendary surfer Ross Clarke-Jones. Narrated by Dennis Hopper, it marked the first of many collaborations with director Justin McMillan. The creative partnership led to a series of documentaries, including Storm Surfers. Nelius co-directed the award-winning feature film Storm Surfers 3D.

Director
Christopher Nelius
Producer
Michaela Perske, Christopher Nelius
Screenwriter
Christopher Nelius, Julie Anne De Ruvo
Cinematographer
Anna Howard
Editor
Julie Anne DeRuvo
Executive Producer
Paul Wiegard, Rob Galluzzo, Michael Hilliard
Consulting Producers
Shawna Brakefield, Justine Chiara
Co-Producer
Ghislaine Couvillat

CONTACTS

Press Contact
Chloe Tai
Film Constellation
London, W1T 1RH
Phone: 790 099 2088
chloe@filmconstellation.com