McCoy & Lynch: The Storm Riders Are Back Out West!

When we talk about legend status, a few names come to mind in the brackish world of surf filmmaking. And not the least of them is director, cinematographer and grand-papa of aloha Jack McCoy… Another is his subject – Wayne Lynch – who with seamless carves and supernatural tube rides, helped to make Storm Riders (a Hoole/McCoy motion picture) the 70’s masterpiece we know and love today. And two weeks from now this legendary pair – McCoy and Lynch – will return to the West, with new stories, new anecdotes and never before seen vision at Perth’s UWA Octagon Theatre, on April 7. Now get this… they’re also giving away a bonus DVD with every ticket. That’s hours of live entertainment, vision and Q&A’s, a free DVD and rare insights with the original Storm Riders – how sick is that! Think about it… Wayne, the elusive stylist. Jack, the larger than life filmmaker, chasing a fabled desert lefthander. This is a story you want to hear, and we couldn’t help but hit Jack up for a sneak peek…

SW: Tell us Jack, how long have you been shooting surfing?
JM: I loved shooting still pics since I was a little kid. When I came to Oz in 1970 for the world surfing contest I bought a still camera and started to shoot stills. Soon became a cub photo/writer for Surfing World and Tracks. July 1974 Dick Hoole put a 16mm movie camera in my hands and said ‘lets go make a movie’ and so we did. I was released in Dec 1976 called Tubular Swells.

What has motivated your filmmaking all these years – the surfing, the ocean or both?
Having a gig that kept me on the beach. But more importantly getting to share what I experience with others in and around the ocean focusing on the art of surfing.

What can the crowd expect at your Perth talk?
I’ll share what got me into surf movies, the legends who and what inspired me, the behind the scenes of making the films, the planning, the execution, the life and death adventures with working with guys from Gerry Lopez to Andy Irons. The tools of the trade, the music and working relationship with legendary musicians. Joining me onstage will be Wayne Lyncg, one of my favorite surfers and friends. We have some hilarious stories of our shared journey creating Storm Riders with Dick Hoole and Maurice Cole. I share so many great memories with West Oz surfers during the 70’s and it’s about time we got back there to relive them! It is an Audio Visual treat of stills and video clips; some being screened publically for the first time and of course plenty of time for Q & A.

Do you have a favorite film you have made and why?
Tubular Swells is pretty special as it is where I began my career and everything was all new and exciting.

Some of your shooting techniques have been referred to as revolutionary, like the water sequences from Bunyip Dreaming and your underwater cinematography. Have you seen a lasting affect on the art?
I tried to take my water photography to another level from Bud Brown who was my big inspiration. I used different focal length lenses than him and tried to put myself in more shall we say more interesting places to get different angles. One feather in my cap is being the first to use an underwater jet ski to capture behind the wave images I’d been dreaming about for 30 years. I’ll share that story for sure, and yes these techniques have been adopted in wider circles of cinematography. You could say it’s a nice a pat on the back for forty years of hold downs.

Is they’re a sequence of footage in your long career that stands out more than the rest?
When a Beatle reached out to me to collaborate after seeing my work and asked me to create a music video for him, well, as an old hippy to have personally connected with a Beatle would have to be a stand out.

You have been in some pretty hairy situations filming in the water. Any pivotal moments?
There was a three wave hold down at Pipe. And getting thrown head first into the reef at Teahupoo come to mind. We’ll talk about them too on the night.

Wayne Lynch will be a special guest at the event. How long have you guys known each other?
Storm Riders was our first collaboration but I spent many years around Bells and Lorne before that. Wayne was always an incredible surfer to work with. His sense of the ocean, his style, and the way he reads the waves are second to none. We’ve had lots of fun movie making together and I know he’s got some stories from behind the scenes that you will finally get to hear.

The word timeless comes to mind when we talk about films like Storm Riders, Bunyip Dreaming or Green Iguana. Do you ever think about your legacy?
You know I’ve loved what I’ve been able to capture and bring back to share with others. When someone tells me that Bunyip Dreaming made them quit school and go travelling and how it changed their life, well that’s very special and really the greatest reward. I don’t consider myself a writer, but thru an evening like this to share my oral history with a larger audience knowing that they can tell their kids they heard Oc and McCoy on stage together sharing the stoke I guess makes me proud.

What would you say to young filmmakers wanting to shoot ocean and surfing films?
Think it, Feel it, DO IT!   It’s a lot of hard work to get good enough to make a living. If it’s your dream, put it in your heart and if your heart is in the right place, it will all come to you.

Limited seats now available for the UWA Octagon Theatre, Perth, April 7, 8pm. Buy tickets here