Bruce Brown Interview: A Surf Filmmaking Legend

We recently sat down with the king of surf filmmaking, a man who has won numerous awards for his contributions to the sport of surfing.  Read on to hear about the new The Endless Summer Directors Special Edition DVD, what Bruce thinks about the action sports world today, his words of wisdom to aspiring filmmakers, what his favorite movie is all time, and why he just bought a new gun.  Yup, this is good stuff my friends.

Dailystoke.com:  First, we want to thank you for taking the time.  Your contributions to the sport of surfing are unmatched, so it’s a real honor.

Bruce Brown: Well, I just feel real fortunate, glad you said that…

Dailystoke.com:  We recently interviewed your son, Dana Brown (see it here), and he said you bought him a super 8 movie camera when he was 10 years old and how you influenced him, so it begs the question: who influenced Bruce Brown?  How did you get your start and what drove you to make films?

Bruce Brown: Surfing influenced me!!  I got some cheap still camera to take pics of me and my buddy surfing.  Back then, we were the only surfers.  Then I got an 8mm movie camera to show other people, and to recruit someone to go surfing with.  I took it with me everywhere.  I was on a submarine in Pearl Harbor back in ’56 or ’57 and I took bunch of 8mm movies on The North Shore and other places.

The Guys of Endless Summer, this has to be one the greatest surf photos ever?

I am not much for the competition aspect of it because so much has to be held in crappy surf.  But, people are now making a living from surfing.  That is something we never dreamed of.  When I first met Wingnut, he said he wanted to make living surfing, and I said wow that’s cool.  Now it’s mainstream, but in the ’50s and ’60s you were an outcast, you didn’t want to mention it some circles.  Then when drugs entered the scene, too many good guys got caught up.  I’m a super anti-drug guy, but thank god it wasn’t my era as I would have been hooked!

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