The Wavescape Fish Fry kicks off the festival in Muizenberg, the spiritual and historical home of surfing in South Africa. It opens a window into underground surf culture to enable the public to interact with shapers, artists, environmentalists and surfers to share ideas, raise awareness and barter or buy surfboards.
The evening focuses on raising awareness for sustainable seas and raising funds for the Waves for Change development programme. Wavescape hosts a fish braai challenge between six Ultimate Braai Master teams from Seasons two and three of the popular TV cooking series (Smoke, Sweat and Tears, Coal Play, Santa Annas, Weskus Braaiers, Tikka Boys and Team Tenancity). A celebrity panel of food bloggers and chefs will judge. Top South African cookbooks will be raffled, while they will auction a skateboard signed by Tony Hawk. DJ Cath from 5fm will MC the evening and will spin the decks on the dance floor later.
Fish Fry takes off at 3pm with a surfboard market, so bring your spare boards to swap or sell. R100 per board at the door, or normal entry fee of R30. Unique surfboard specials will be offered by Cape Town shapers. During the early afternoon, the Save Our Seas Foundation's Shark Education Centre will be there with some fun edutainment activities for the kids. There will also be craft beer and food stalls, and surf artists and craftsmen will demonstrate their work.
Pick n Pay and the Save Our Seas Foundation present an intimate and fun evening of 10-minute talks by 10 ocean thought leaders. Guests share inspiring ideas and adventures in an informal gathering at the Centre for the Book on Wednesday, 3 December at 7pm. Tickets cost R120. Food and craft beer on sale during the intermission. Slide Night has limited space, so secure your tickets at www.wavescapefestival.com
Speakers are Eleanor Yeld-Hutchings, presenter for Shoreline TV series and Education Centre Manager at Save Our Seas Shark Centre; Craig Foster, film director and kelp forest expert; Sasha Specker, former drop-knee body boarding world champion and photographer; Roger Horrocks, wildlife cameraman and underwater photographer; Epiphany Stransom Ford, 11 years old, rock-pool enthusiast; Mkhululi Silandela, part of WWF's conservation team to make small-scale fishing sustainable; Carina Bruwer, musician and record-breaking open-water swimmer; Ray Chaplin, Adventurer of the Year and ocean ambassador; Tony Ribbink, head of the Sustainable Seas Trust who is building Hope Spots with veteran conservationist Dr Sylvia Earle; Dr Maya Pfaff, marine scientist focusing on the most abundant biological entity in the ocean: the virus.
This year, an exciting new project called Sea-Change (www.seachangeproject.com) is introduced, initially comprising a large-format photo exhibition along the sea wall in Sea Point, which runs from December to April 2015. Sea-Change is a not-for-profit foundation that is developing a multimedia project that tells the tale of the birth of humanity, and the ancient relationship we have with the sea.
The latest scientific evidence shows that the first modern humans lived at the coast on the southern tip of Africa, in what is now the Western Cape. The archaeological records at the 'point of origin' show the first evidence of cognitive human development, early nuclear family life, art and human values that we associate with modern humans today.
The leap in our evolution to become Homo sapiens is arguably the greatest 'sea change' in the 250,000 year history of our species. The phrase 'sea change' was first coined by Shakespeare in The Tempest, and it means a profound transformation wrought by nature. It appears that this transformation was wrought in part by our relationship with the sea, as it is believed that the high nutrient content in seafood harvested from the abundant rocky shoreline and kelp forests fuelled the brain and upgraded the architecture of our minds. Because we all share the same ancestors, the southern tip of Africa is quite possibly the original home of everyone alive today.
The project comprises a travelling photographic exhibition with augmented reality content.
The screening at Clifton 4th Beach takes place on Saturday, 6 December at 9pm. Films continue at the Brass Bell, Kalk Bay, from 7 to 10 December, and Labia Cinema, Orange Street, from 11 to 14 December. Films free at Clifton 4th Beach, R35 at Labia and Brass Bell.
Documentaries play a key part. Uncharted Waters follows Aussie surfer Wayne Lynch's turbulent life running from conscription to the Vietnam War. Flux: Redefining Women's Surfing explores sexual exploitation of women in surfing. Pipeline and Kelly Slater spotlights every notable wave of last year's North Shore winter. The Cradle of Storms tracks a journey though the remote Aleutian Arc of Alaska. Stephanie in the Water recounts the tale of Stephanie Gilmore, who dominated women's surfing until a violent turn of events. Out in the Line-up follows champion surfer David Wakefield on his quest to deconstruct the gay taboo in surfing. Two soulful shorts cover wooden surfboard craftsmen from Cape Town (Ode to Simplicity and Patrick Burnett), while another gives an insight into top South African surfer Bianca Buitendag (Disguised in Nature).
Creative films also play a strong role. Narcose follows free diver Guillaume Néry on a dive that turns into a fantastical rendition of 'Raptures of the Deep', while the visual and verbal poetry of British and Irish filmmakers bring a visceral beauty to Sea Fever, Edges of Sanity and Coming up for Air.
The three best adventure sport short films from the Wavescape Shortcuts Competition will be screened at the Labia at 8pm on Friday, 12 December. The brief was to make a short film featuring adventure or extreme sport, and this will be the result. The winners will be announced at a special function before the screening. The winner will receive a commission from Red Bull Media House to make a film in collaboration with it. Runners-up will get GoPro Hero4 Black and Silver edition cameras, and Quiksilver Synchro backpacks.
Download the Wavescape app from your mobile app store (iPhone and Android).
Go to www.wavescapefestival.com or call Shani Judes, Festival Manager on +27 (0)83 509 5106.
