Need Inspiration To Take The Leap? Watch This First
Beyond Borders is a film by @jedfasso/@jedfassofilms in collaboration with @samleviings that honestly doesn’t even need a hype up - you really just need to go see it.
Why? Because in a world of repetition, capitalism and curated feeds it appears some of us along the way have lost what it means to be curious, connected human beings and this film just might inspire you to take stock of that.
Featuring Jed’s partner @bodhigenis, surfers @lukeslijpen @guillermosatt @guga.dvorquez @fondoderokish @kevintorres_o, sailor @norea_del_corte_snowboarders @peinetiao and additional cinematographers @tatanclementeller, @roberto_Ilufin filmed over the course of two years, Beyond Borders follows the journey to surf an undiscovered wave through Chile’s wild frontiers. It is a wild, brave adventure with shit going wrong left right, but god damn isn’t it a good story. And If you need anymore reason to go and see this film, at each screening Jed will be raising funds for SurfAid and Surfers for Climate to support their ongoing campaigns throughout Australia and Indonesia.
Jed, how are you?
Day's good. I’ve had a fucking wild few days leading up to releasing this trailer for the film and stuff but we released a few nights ago, so it's good.
Yeah,how was the reception?
So good. I'm surprised, considering we posted a landscape trailer that goes for two minutes on Instagram, you know. I'm stoked. All the hard work's finally paying off.
How long were you working on this for?
Two years.
Oh, shit.
Yeah. It's been a while. It probably would have taken less time but I did everything myself you know. I produced it, edited it, pitched it, funded it so it's been a bit of a process. But yeah it’s been received so well without the film even being released yet and a good crew backing it.
Yeah that’s huge when you’ve poured yourself into something for two years. Are you a preparation guy or someone who just wings it?
Usually I like to have everything locked in, ready to go especially for an expedition like this. But funnily enough the opposite of that happened for this trip as I didn’t really know anyone through South America and I'd never been there before. I thought along the journey of pitching the film I’d be able to begin to logistically plan how we were going to find a new wave in Patagonia. I got a bit lost in trying to source brands that by the time the trip came around and we had rocked up in the northern tip of Chile not much of the actual planning of the expedition had happened. It was contrary to my usual program but it ended up opening up a lot of doors that otherwise probably would've opened just because of the flexible nature we had to take on. We met the right people and had a lot of patience that saw through some amazing opportunities that I don’t think would have been possible if we were rigid in our plans.
Had you done any kind of trips like this before?
I mean growing up in Byron I was always trying to find untouched waves, well not untouched because that’s pretty impossible here in Australia, but waves that were off the beaten track. But obviously nothing to this extent which is why it was a bit naive of me to do this kind of trip without anything planned. But I just had this crazy belief that it would work and it did. Looking back now I have no idea how we pulled it off but we did.
You did. Sometimes you just gotta throw yourself into the deep end.
Yeah for sure. We had the pot of gold waiting for us at the end when we did. In between all the communities, the amazing people we met and the waves, it just all came together. We were able to really rely on the community itself to help us plan the logistics and meet the right people. It all came to fruition through their help.
What is it about Chilean culture that surprised you the most?
Oh, so many things. Contrary to popular belief, people throughout the east coast of Australia are pretty unforgiving to South American people sometimes. But to go over there and actually experience how nice, how giving and how respectful everyone is, it’s insane. They're so willing to do anything to help, you know? From calling up their friends to help out, to inviting us into their home to letting us stay for weeks at a time even though we only just met them on the street. That just doesn’t happen here in Australia. It was really refreshing to see how giving their culture is and to see how excited they are to show people about it. It made me rethink how we are here in Australia and how closed off we are to strangers. Now if there was an opportunity where someone needed a bed or whatever I’m so going to do that. It was a great lesson.
I couldn’t agree more with that sentiment. We get the wrap that we are so welcoming and friendly in Australia but welcoming a traveller into our homes is just nowhere near the level as it is when you go to these kinds of countries. It definitely opens up your eyes to how insular we can be at times.
Yeah I guess over there there is such a reliance on community, they all lean on each other for support whether that is for food and sharing their gardens or whatever. I think we’ve lost that in Australia. The comforts of home have limited that.
For sure. That is such a good insight to take away from a trip like that. Were there any particularly hairy moments?
Oh there were so many things that went wrong throughout the process. An insane amount of things. I think that was primarily due to the fact that we didn't have things locked in place before we got there but in saying that, because of those misfortunes that we encountered along the way, all these beautiful things came out of it too. I’m just trying to think of the things that stand out the most. I guess the entire sail expedition where we were trying to find new ways along that Patagonia coastline. It’s a really unforgiving part of the coastline, not very accessible and no one lives there. But we ended up meeting this filmmaker Tatan Clementeller who happened to be one of the only people with experience navigating that region. He is one of the only people that does filmmaking productions for big brands in Patagonia, has a wealth of knowledge, helicopter and sailing experience. And we only met him because we got super sick and had nowhere to go so he ended up inviting us into his home and just giving us the full run down. Because of him we were able to find a sailboat owner to be able to finish the trip off. Then when we jumped on the sailboat we got hit by this crazy storm and missed the entire swell we were chasing. It was chaos. We went out in the open sea with this crazy weather and ended up having to tuck in this channel between two islands and wait it out. We pulled up in this random fjord in the middle of Patagonia along the coast and we looked up and there was this tin shack on this random island in the middle of nowhere. And we're like, what the hell? Let's just go have a look. And it ended up being this native Chilean Pehuenche guy living with his brother alone. No power, no water, just living in this tin shack off the land. We ended up buying a ram off them, staying there for two days and sharing stories. It was a bittersweet moment because we'd missed that first swell that we wanted to get but then ended up having this amazing experience with those guys. It was so wild but so cool.
Is there something that you learnt about yourself along this whole journey that stands out to you now that it’s done?
I think this whole film and my whole surfing trajectory throughout my life, I've always wanted to do something real and something independent like a feature film. Something to be proud of that I can always look back on. It's just been my dream to do something like this. And I think now it's kind of finally come to fruition. It is a really satisfying feeling. To see something that you really value and see out until the end, no matter what. Even the misfortunes that came along the way it has been amazing to see it through.
I absolutely love to hear that. It either works out or you learn from it hey.
Exactly. It just made me realise how beautiful the world is out there and how unwilling people are to go and see it. But meeting all those people and the communities, being immersed in their culture - it was an incredible experience.
If someone sees this film and immediately wants to follow in your footsteps, what are some practical tips you could offer them?
I would probably tell them to plan logistics beforehand (laughs). What else? Actually I guess in saying that ... .Remain open and willing to all the experiences coming your way. Expeditions like this tend to take their own trajectory and if you’re unwilling to be open to seeing where it takes you it could shut you out of some amazing opportunities.
What about if someone wants to take on a new frontier in life, not just a surf expedition like this? Say starting a new job or moving cities or whatever. What is some advice you can pass on having learnt what you have from taking the leap on this trip?
I say stick it out until the very end. Even if it turns out to be a complete disaster.
That's a good one.
This entire film is based on disaster and in the end we reap the rewards from seeing the whole trip through. Even when everything is going wrong, don’t give up.
It’s always worth it even if the whole thing sucked because at least it’s a good story.
Yeah it’s so true. In the end we got to find the wave. It was so special and it was absolutely worth it.
To find your local screening head to beyondborderspatagonia.com
