Mammoth Film Festival

The Arena: North Shore
(Justin LePera, U S A, 51min)

With the O’Neill cup of surfing competition blowing up on 20 foot Sunset, a half mile down the beach, Pipeline was firing on all cylinders and creating one of the greatest shows in surfing. As the world’s best surfers rode some of the best waves of their lives, a young generation of surfers pushed their physical abilities to the limit for a glint of the spotlight. Going deep into the 2008 North Shore season, The Arena shows what happens behind the scenes to some of the many aspiring surfers who are trying to learn what it takes to be accepted on the North Shore. This story follows Andrew Mooney, one of Australia’s best free surfers and big wave rider, as he tests himself on surfing’s ‘ultimate proving grounds’. While Pipeline will determine whether a professional surfer has the skill and mindset to be among the best in the world, the journey to gaining enough respect to be given the opportunity to charge one of the most dangerous waves in the world is part of the test.

Footage from the 7 mile stretch from Haleiwa to Turtle bay shows what young surfers go through to become recognized as part of the pecking order at Pipeline. Watch the world’s best surfers in and out of the water during one of the most epic Hawaiian surf seasons ever. Some get the ride of a lifetime and some get denied in The Arena: North Shore.