Come Hell or High Water

By Chris Nelson on 30th September 2011

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IN his new film, Come Hell or High Water, surfer adventurer filmmaker Keith Malloy takes surfing back to its source. Bringing us those most dedicated proponents of the glide, those watermen and women who inhabit a world close to the curl - a world of handplanes, bodysurfing and pure stoke.?

This is Keith's debut film, shot primarily on 16mm, and focuses on the simplicity and beauty of bodysurfing. In it he explores the history and progression of the sport through its many unique characters. "It's about taking a breath, and kicking your feet, in the big blue sea." ?Filmed at locations from the North Shore, Teahupoo, Mentawais and Cloudbreak to Nantucket and The Wedge, this film features stunning cinematography from the likes of Jeff Hornbaker, Don King, Thomas Campbell, Cyrus Sutton and Dave Homcy.

The film has its European Premiere at the London Surf / Film Festival on Saturday 15th October and Keith will be there to talk about his film and all things waveriding. Grab a ticket here.

Chris Nelson caught up with Keith to discuss his debut.

What drew you to waveriding as a child?

K.M. Being in the water and then riding waves at the same time was the most fun thing I could think of doing as a kid. For me waveriding has always been about having as much fun as possible!

Where you inspired by having brothers who surfed, did this push you to surf harder?

Yeah, my Dad and Brothers all surfed so it was a big part of our lives. As a kid it wasn't a competition, it was just having fun. As we got older we did compete against each other, but it wasn't a big deal. I think there are other sets of brothers in the surf world who are way more competitive then we are. I guess we always just felt lucky to be doing it together.

You spent time on the WQS and the WCT. What was it that inspired you to take to the tour? Were you a naturally competitive person?

I did the contests for a while and had fun with it, but in the end I realized competition was not the reason I wanted to surf or be a surfer.

When you left the tour did you have a clear idea of what you wanted to do next and a clear path?

Yeah, I knew I wanted to go back to surfing, travel and surf good waves. It was a nice relief from competition. Competition changes your surfing and consumes your life and I wanted to look for new surf destinations and absorb the cultures in the places I was travelling.

And your motivation for picking up a movie camera?

I have been involved with my brother's films over the past 15 years. I have always enjoyed the process of making films. In the case of this movie I felt like Bodysurfing was worthy of documentation and something I loved and enjoyed.

How did you find the process of making your first feature - how did it differ from what you expected?

It is a lot of hard work. We had 100 hours of footage to go through. One of my personal challenges was editing that down. Also, my wife just had a baby so that was a super challenge to balance it all. Finishing the film was very hard because you can always continue to make changes, at some point you just have to say it is done!!

What is your favourite part of the filmmaking process and what has been the hardest?

Shooting the 16mm water shots was my favourite part of making the film. Hardest thing was coordinating all the people and characters and relying on Mother Nature to have great waves for us to film.

Why did you choose body surfing as the subject? Was there a story you wanted to tell or did the story unfold as you started making the film?

I personally love bodysurfing and do it pretty avidly over the past 10 years. For me it's some of the time I enjoy most in the ocean because you don't have to worry about performing. Surfing on a board can sometimes feel like more of a job. Bodysurfing you can just enjoy the ocean. For me the story was to capture the essence of the sport along with the unique personalities. I think both happened, I told the story and it unfolded as we went along.

Bodysurfing Teahupoo - discuss?

Bodysurfing Teahupoo I knew could be done by the best bodysurfers in the world. Mark Cunningham is the master of bodysurfing Pipeline so I knew if he picked the right waves he could do it. It was nice because Mark had been dreaming about Teahupoo but hadn't been there, so it was the perfect opportunity.

A lot of filmmaking today is digital based. You chose to shoot using the more physical medium of 16mm as well. How do the two processes compare?

For me 16mm is still the most impressive. HD footage makes it possible to make a film with a smaller budget. We shot as much film as we could afford. We had to shoot interviews in HD because you never know which ones you will use and we shot film when the waves got good.

How did you find sourcing music tracks? How did the feel of footage change as you tried different tracks or did you have specific tracks in mind from the go?

We made a lot of our music on our own. Dan (Malloy), John Swift, Todd Hannigan and my Father in law, all did original scores for the film. This was very cost effective. Also, people around me handed me music and I listened to a lot of different stuff and tried to narrow it down. Music is an incredibly important part of making a film. Each track is can give a piece a completely different mood.

Did you feel any pressure putting the film out with Woodshed, who have such an amazing track record? Did Chris give you any advice or leave you to find your own way?

Yeah, I did have pressure to make a good film working with woodshed. I felt pretty confident about our subject, bodysurfing, and thought I could make a movie that was worthy. Chris did give me advice throughout the film which was great!

What's next now the films finally finished?

Next is hanging out with my wife and my newborn baby. Getting back in the water after months of travelling and editing!

Come Hell or High Water has its European Premiere at the London Surf / Film Festival on Saturday 15th October.