Looking Sideways: 10 Things
Here are this week's ten things I thought were worth sharing
1. This week’s guest Dylan Graves has managed something that sounds simple but is actually really very difficult when it comes to surf, skate and snow film-making - coming up with a simple idea that manages to convey the stoke of the entire business while also telling a repeatedly compelling story.
Dylan is a professional surfer from Puerto Rico and the host of a YouTube show called Weird Waves, which for my money is the best professional surfing vlog out there. Why? Because each episode of Weird Waves focuses lovingly on the margins of surf culture, the scenes that are a million miles away from the Beach Grit beat but are, in 2021, just as legitimate as La Jolla, Hawaii or Byron Bay. Whether it’s Brits surfing the Severn Bore on junky old longboards, or frothing mid-westerners tackling howling Great Lake windswell, Dylan puts these communities in the spotlight with zero judgement.
There’s another reason that Weird Waves is to be applauded, too, which is the way that Dylan uses the format to challenge himself, whether creatively, or by tackling the bigger issues of the day. When somebody with Dylan’s profile uses their platform to try and make our community more inclusive and accepting, they should be applauded. That’s a big reason why I invited Dylan on the show, and why I enjoyed our thoughtful conversation so much. Hope you do too. Click here to listen.
2. Stop press: this coming Saturday 4th December 2021 I will be taking part in a live q&a at this year’s London Surf Film Festival!
Yep, at 3pm on Saturday 4th I’ll be joining my creative right hand man Owen Tozer, musician CJ Mirra and photographer Lewis Arnold on stage (well, technically at the bar I think) to chat about the art of storytelling as part of a conversation hosted by London Surf Film Festival organiser Chris Nelson.
This takes place at the Genesis Cinema in London’s East End, so if you’re at a loose end this Saturday, why not come along and join us? Click here to find out more about the festival.
3. There’s a new issue of Whitelines out! Yep, the latest Whitelines annual just landed, which is brilliant news for the UK snowboarding community and the scene in general. I’ve got a column in this one, about how we as a community discuss issues of race, politics and social inclusion. Click here to find out more and grab yourself a copy.
4. Is Joe Rogan merely ‘Gwyneth Paltrow for bros’, or something more actively sinister? This Vice article paints a fairly damning picture of Rogan’s recent ‘flirtations with the far right’. Read it here and make up your own mind.
5. I’m still immersing myself in all things NFT in an attempt to get my head around the whole topic (not least the environmental impact), and am actually speaking to Bobby Hundreds next week for a future episode of the show. In the meantime, the first signs of the phenomena crossing over into the action sports world are here - see the launch of Surf Kookz, which was 80% sold out in under twelve hours. Find out more here:
6. Two timeline-cleansing films for your edification: the latest instalment of Yearning for Turning by my friends at Korua Shapes….
7. …and Elles, a new project from Arthur Longo and friends.
8. If you’ve listened to my 2020 interview with Encyclopaedia of Surfing editor Matt Warshaw, you’ll know all about Matt’s heroic quest to digitise surfing’s entire history on his site. (That episode also led to my occasionally prolix ways getting memorably bagged by my friends at Wavelength on their It’s Not The Length podcast). Anyway, this coming Monday 6th December, Matt is launching the 2022 EoS fundraiser. Find out more and donate here:
9. Hat tip to my pal and previous podcast guest Gabe Davies for letting me know about Protect The West Coast, a group of South African surfers campaigning about destructive mining practices that threaten local communities and the environment, whilst also highlighting the epic South African surf coastline at risk from these practises. The group are launching a new film called Ours Not Mine - watch the trailer above, and find out more abut the entire project here.
10. For another year, I successfully remembered to add every song I like to one sprawling Spotify playlist. This year’s version is now 14 hours long and as usual is as eclectic as my podcast guest list, featuring everybody from Barbra Streisand to Can. Listen above (and make sure you whack it on random).
PLUS! I STILL have 25% off my own book Looking Sideways Vol. 1! Acclaimed by Carve, Huck, Wavelength, Metro, the Telegraph, Sidetracked Magazine and Whitelines among others, Looking Sideways Vol. 1 is now into its second print run and is available to order via my website with free shipping globally, in case you were wondering what to buy for that that surf, skate, snow or Looking Sideways podcast-loving person in your life. Click here.