Almost any surfer with a tube fetish wants to sample the throaty, near-shore tee-pees of Puerto Escondido.  Whether it’s three feet and dreamy or 30-feet and death-defying, Puerto has been chewing up and spitting out surfers since the 70s.

Now the team that brought you the superior quality digital releases, Mirage (Skeleton Bay) and Chasing the Unicorn (Mozambique) take a deep dive into the social and geographic forces at work in Puerto Escondido, and the major threat the wave currently faces. 

Check the trailer below: Full release June 3:  More info on the film below

The Life and Imminent Death of one of the world’s greatest waves

Place of Thorns, The Story of Puerto Escondido, premieres globally online on 3 June 2024.

The film tells the story of one of the world’s most incredible waves, Puerto Escondido, from its discovery by early pioneers when it was just a small fishing village, to the bustling tourist mecca it has become today.

The town’s main beach, Playa Zicatela, has long sculpted some of the biggest beach break waves on the planet. Place of Thorns explores the dynamics of this incredible wave while celebrating some of the best swells and rides ever documented on its shores. Along the way we discover why this is amongst the most challenging surf spots in the world, and what it takes to ride it. But it’s not only the town that has changed. The iconic wave is under dire threat, galvanizing the local community as they take a united stand to save the wave and their home.

Told through first-hand accounts from local surfers and lifelong Puerto devotees, the film started production in early 2023 and lucked into a run of incredible waves which local cinematographer and producer, Edwin Morales, says is becoming increasingly rare. “It used to be an incredible beach break that used to break far out, but now it has become a shorebreak pretty much,” says Morales. 

Morales and other locals attribute this change to the rampant development Puerto Escondido has experienced in recent years, which has  altered the sand flow along the beach and offshore canyon.

“The wave is dying”, says Roxel Perez, a representative of Costa Unida and the Save The Waves Coalition, who are fighting to save the iconic surf spot.

The coalition recently scored a significant victory, halting a massive development along one of the town’s beaches, but the fight has just begun.

“The plan now is to (try regulate development) using the law,” says Perez. “But we need everyone’s help to save Puerto Escondido.”

The changing nature of the beach and bay has also made the wave much more dangerous. During production, big wave surfer Matt Bromley had a near-fatal accident when he was scalped by his board while pulling into a huge closeout. The film follows the harrowing incident and brings home the extreme risks of riding the wave.

But most of all, Place of Thorns is a celebration of a true surfing miracle, and a clarion call for all surfers around the world to try help save it.

Featuring: Coco Nogales, Shane Dorian, Bianca Valenti, Greg Long, Matt Bromley, Nathan Florence, Jeff Divine, Craig Peterson and others.

A film by Now Now Media presented by Monster Energy

In Association with Saves The Waves

Produced by Alan van Gysen and Edwin Morales

Executive Producers Ryan Franklin and Kazmira Krawchuk

Directed and edited by Will Bendix

Running time: 38 minutes