Ultimate Wave Tahiti 3D Movie

Ultimate Wave Tahiti 3D

Cast: Kelly Slater
Director: Stephen Low
Genre: Surfing, Documentary
Release Date: 19 February, 2009

Nine-time world champion surfer, Kelly Slater, and his big wave companion, Raimana Van Bastolaer will star in the first ever extreme surfing IMAX 3D movie. Scheduled for release at IMAX Melbourne Museum on 19 February, 2010, Ultimate Wave Tahiti 3D was primarily shot in the Tahitian big wave environment known to watermen around the world as Teahupoo.

Directed by award-winning director Stephen Low and his team of in-water and airborne cameramen, Ultimate Wave Tahiti 3D captures the incredible power, majesty and danger of the most treacherous ocean waves in the world.

With a reputation as the greatest surfer of all time, Slater showcases his surfing talent and flair on the giant IMAX 3D screen as he teams up with local legend Van Bastolaer to take on Teahupoo.

Van Bastolaer, whose ancestors have surfed Tahitian waters for generations, brings a unique familiarity to the storytelling that is combined with Slater's mastery of wave formation. The two surfers bond together as they lead viewers to discover how the ocean's waves influence not only geography, but the people whose Polynesian lifestyles are built on an ancient platform part fact and part mythology.

Ultimate Wave Tahiti 3D was filmed using newly developed camera equipment which will take moviegoers right into the heart of these giant waves, capturing for the first time the immense energy and sounds otherwise known only to a handful of surfing's best.

"You'll be on the edge of your seat as cameras strapped to the front of surf boards take you on a seriously intense ride," said Richard Morrison, IMAX Melbourne Museum Manager.

But the true star of Ultimate Wave Tahiti 3D is "that" wave. Teuhupoo has challenged surfers for years - from the time men fought their way into it to today's more common use of personal watercraft to be towed into its towering strength.

The surfer committed to riding this type of wave is greeted with an upwelling of choppy water and the sting of sand vacuumed from the sea floor and fired from the wave. The noise is at times deafening, and the released energy sufficient to rocket the escaping surfer up and out of the wave trough, sometimes to heights of over twenty feet. Both Slater and Van Bastolaer bring this experience to the film.

Low's camera team also delves deeply into the crystal blue waters to investigate the science of waves and communicate the importance of the rich sea life that populates Tahiti's offshore reefs.

Review
The world's oceans make up more than two thirds of the earth surfaces; I don't think we really have enough detailed and entertaining movies which depict water and the underwater life especially as discussion increase about the effects of Global Warming on our oceans and waters ways. Ultimate Wave Tahiti 3D is an interesting and informative documentary about the ocean and its waves, featuring some of the greatest surfers of all time riding intense waves. It is a great idea that Australians see a lot more of our water and especially when shown in impressive 3D at IMAX.

"The 45 min show was a little disappointing for those expecting the likes of 'the Endless Summer', only briefly focusing on surfing and Kelly Slater, the majority of the show talked about the marine life and how the islands and waves are formed. -Chris 'Hodgy' Hodgson www.hodgys.com

Venue: IMAX Melbourne Museum, Carlton Gardens
Tickets: $17.50 Adult, $14 Concession, $12.50 Child, $50.00 family (2 adults & 2 children)
www.imaxmelbourne.com.au

Images taken by Will Allen.