The surf community will come together this Saturday 5 July at Palm Beach on Sydney’s Northern Beaches to honour and celebrate the life of legendary surf filmmaker Jack McCoy who passed away earlier this year at the age of 76.
Best known for his ability to tell stories through surfing, Jack was responsible for the creation of a number of modern classics which were central to so many surfers’ childhoods and still remain relevant now. His catalogue of work included films such as The Green Iguana, The Billabong Challenge as well as The Occumentary and Blue Horizon – both of which were remastered and taken on tour by Jack in the past couple of years despite significant health issues.
The event will feature the first ever live broadcast of a paddle out ceremony, complete with a half hour pre ceremony talk story featuring Nick Carroll, Mark Occhilupo and Laura Enever. The hosts will be joined by special guests to honour McCoy’s life.
The live broadcast will begin at 12.30pm with the paddle out starting at 1pm. This will be followed by live music and a Jack McCoy film night at the Mona Vale Hotel. Anyone joining the celebration is asked to don their favourite ‘aloha’ shirt.
“The response from the surfing community has been like nothing I’ve seen before. Jack was a force of nature and it’s a true testament to the amount of people he had a major connection with throughout his extraordinary life. One of his favourite sayings was ‘give and expect nothing in return’. Now it’s all coming back,” said Tom Carroll.
The celebration is in support of Surfrider, Surfers for Climate and the new Jack McCoy Aloha Foundation – formed to preserve and develop McCoy’s archive, support upcoming film makers and assist in supporting environmental causes.
“The response since Dad’s passing has been beyond anything we could have imagined. We’re deeply grateful to everyone who has wrapped their arms around us – sending love, light, and aloha,” said daughter Indiana Campbell.
“It was Dad’s wish that we carry forward his legacy by bringing together every generation of the surfing tribe to ‘talk story’, to inspire future generations to pick up a camera, to ride a wave, and to protect the planet.”
To watch the live stream and donate to the foundation, click here.
