Celebrating the 60th anniversary of the film “The Endless Summer” shot in Dana Point, the city’s film festival will screen the surf flick May 5 at Salt Creek Beach Park, where the film’s famous promo poster was photographed.
The surf documentary, directed by Bruce Brown was filmed in 1963 and followed surfers Mike Hynson and Robert August on a worldwide surf trip.
“I can’t believe we are already celebrating 60 years of The Endless Summer,” Bruce Brown Films’ Managing Director Alex Mecl said in a recent media release. “After all these years, the film is still just as important in American surf culture as it was back then.”
The Orange County coastal town continues to serve as a hub for surfers and beachgoers since the film’s premiere in 1966.
“From the staple poster photograph to the deep-rooted history, this surf documentary has paved the way for surfers for years and continues to be the motivation behind finding that perfect wave,” Mecl said in the release.
The film festival runs from May 4 to May 7 and will also feature documentaries focused on conservation, preservation, and other outdoor themes.
“The Endless Summer” screening will be free with no purchase necessary to the festival.
VIP tickets are also on sale for $60 and include priority seating for the 8 p.m. film start time, a hosted happy hour from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., a Mexican food plate, a festival towel, and a film T-shirt and poster.
“The film is iconic here in the Dana Point community and throughout surf culture,” Festival Founder Lloyd Molander said in a recent festival statement. “To host a screening of the legendary film is an honor, and we can’t wait to celebrate the anniversary together.”
Other festival film screenings will include “Birth of The Endless Summer: Discovery,” a feature film that documents the birth of the surf manufacturing industry. The film will be screened at the Dana Hills High School Porthole Theater May 7, with general admission tickets on sale now for $15.
