2009 Newport Beach Film Festival Announces Action Sports Film Series Line Up

2009 Newport Beach Film Festival Announces Action Sports Film Series Line Up
Cinema Celebration to Feature Festival World Premieres of Street Dreams, The Glacier Project, Echo Beach, Out of the Pond and Steezy Riders

The 2009 Newport Beach Film Festival (NBFF) is proud to announce its Action Sports Film Series, an international showcase of films celebrating athletes and filmmakers pushing limits in some of the world’s most challenging and spectacular outdoor playgrounds. Co-produced by ChopShop, Orange County’s leading action sports and lifestyle production company, the Festival’s Action Sports Film Series will spotlight twenty films from around the world, including documentary, narrative, animated and short films. Entertaining and inspirational, the Action Sports Film Series will give filmgoers an opportunity to experience breathtaking cinematography on the big screen and compelling stories exploring the realms of surfing, skiing, snowboarding, motocross and wakeboarding. Highlights include world premieres, X-Dance award winners, filmmaker panels, athlete guest appearances, autograph signings, participation of action sports retailers and an art show.

Sponsored by FUEL TV, SURFING Magazine and Etnies, the event will take place during the week of the Newport Beach Film Festival (April 23-30, 2009) in Orange County, California, a location celebrated as the epicenter of the surf wear and action gear industry and the ultimate destination to experience cutting-edge adventure on the big screen. Films will screen at the historic Regency Lido Theater at 3459 Via Lido Drive and at Edwards Island Cinema, located at 999 Newport Center Drive in Fashion Island in Newport Beach.

The Action Sport Film Series will kick off on Friday, April 24 at 6:00 pm with its Action Sports Spotlight presentation of the Irish surf film Waveriders at the Regency Lido Theater. On Saturday, April 25 at 8:00 pm at the Regency Lido Theater, the NBFF will present the Festival world premiere of Berkela Film’s new film Street Dreams starring Rob Dyrdek, Paul Rodriguez and Ryan Sheckler. The Festival will also present the world premieres of Echo Beach, a local OC-produced film portraying the emergence of surf culture in Newport Beach in the 1980’s, Billabong’s new wakeboard film Out of the Pond and Harley-Davidson’s  road adventure film Steezy Riders. On Thursday, April 30 at 6:00 pm at the Regency Lido Theater, the NBFF will host the world premiere of Brent Meeske and Ryan Casey’s latest film The Glacier Project, a stunning surf glacier documentary shot in Alaska, featuring big wave surf champions Garrett McNamara and Kealii Mamala, as the finale of the 2009 Action Sports Film Series.

Beyond the Dream: The Joey Buran Story, Clay Marzo: Just Add Water, Havana Surf, Hermanos 2, The Lost Wave, Looking Thru The B-Sides, The Massive, Red Bull X-Fighters: Unleashed, The Ripple Effect, Swift Silent Deep, That’s It That’s All, Tougher Than Iron and Waterman round out the lineup.

The Action Sports Film Series will spotlight independent filmmakers, athletes, visionaries, artists and designers who have shaped the Action Sports culture and captured its history with their innovation and creativity. With its roots deeply connected to the history of skateboarding, surfing and legendary surf icons, the Newport Beach Film Festival boasts an enthusiastic audience base dedicated to Action Sports cinema, culture and lifestyle.

On Saturday, April 25 at 4:30pm at the Edwards Island Cinema, following the screening of Steezy Riders ChopShop will present an interactive Action Sports filmmaking panel. In celebration of the Echo Beach screening, an art show featuring paintings, photographs, surfboards and other significant items of the era will take place on Tuesday, April 28 at 9:00 pm, at Sideways Wine and Sake, located at 501 31st Street, Unit B in Newport Beach.

Seeking to raise awareness of environmental and social issues through cinema, the Festival welcomes the Surfrider Foundation and Pipeline to a Cure as the designated community outreach partners of the Action Sports Series. The Surfrider Foundation is a non-profit environmental organization dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of the world's oceans, waves and beaches for all people, through conservation, activism, research and education. Pipeline to a Cure seeks to rally the surfing world to recognize and support the direct positive effect surfing has on those afflicted with cystic fibrosis.

For tickets, event schedule and additional information, visit www.NewportBeachFilmFest.com