Arts & Entertainment
Mavericks Surf Going Hollywood
The entertainment magazine Variety says that a film about the famous Half Moon Bay surf break will start shooting in October.
A film about Jay Moriarity -- the surfer who took on the big waves at Mavericks while a teenager living in Santa Cruz and who later died tragically while diving in the Maldives Islands in 2001 -- is supposedly in the works, according to Los Angeles-based Variety Magazine.
On Friday, the entertainment industry news source published an article reporting that the film is a production of Walden Media, and that actor Gerard Butler will play Moriarity with Curtis Hanson ("LA Confidential," "8 Mile") on board to direct. The film will begin production in October, the article discloses.
The Mavericks surf break is located less than a mile past just outside of Half Moon Bay in Princeton, and is recognized by surfers as one of the most challenging big waves in the world.
Find out what's happening in Half Moon Baywith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Many Mavericks surfers have of Moriarity for his positive spirit and lifestyle, which they said led to the Half Moon Bay Surf Group to rename the 2010-2011 Mavericks surfing contest The Jay At Mavericks Big Wave Invitational after they took control of the event last fall.
"To be standing with all you here is an honor, and Jay is what surfing is all about ... he had a smile on his face and he was super stoked," said reigning contest champion Chris Bertish from South Africa last November while standing on the beach adjacent to Mavericks at the for this year's contest.
Find out what's happening in Half Moon Baywith free, real-time updates from Patch.
This year, the contest can be held anytime between Dec. 1, 2010 to Feb. 28, 2011 -- at a time when the invited competitors and official surf forecaster feel the waves are at a high enough level befitting of the prestigious nature of the competition. As in past years, competitors will have just 48 hours notice to arrive in Half Moon Bay. At the time of publication on Feb. 14, the contest has not been called. A contest has not been held every year since its inaugural year in 1999; most recently, the Mavericks waves were not deemed high enough to surf in 2008-2009.
Last October, longtime organizer Mavericks Surf Ventures was ousted from running the contest based on a by the commissioners, a body with governing power over the Oyster Point Marina in South San Francisco and Pillar Point Harbor.
Mavericks surfers and the Half Moon Bay Surf Group could not be reached for comment on this story at the time of publication.
