Nestled in a cozy café in Hermosa Beach, California, professional surfer Morgan Sliff is just a few days shy of completing 1,000 consecutive days of surfing.
Over coffee and a veggie sandwich, she’s eager to share stories of the struggles and triumphs women face on the quest for “stoke” (a term surfers use to express their passion for the sport) — from the over-sexualized images of female surfers in magazines in an already male-dominated sport, to the unexpected strength that can be found within the sisterhood of female surfers.
She recalls a particular surf session in which her determination was tested when she was the only woman among dozens of men in the water.
“I look around and there are thirty guys out there, and I don’t see one girl,” she recalls. “Some guy starts paddling in front of me for a wave and I have priority, [but] he’s not even thinking that I can catch it because I’m a girl.”
She explains that she has found herself in that frustrating situation so many times that it hardly even bothers her anymore. Her advice for female surfers in the same spot?
“Expect to have to stand your ground, stand up for yourself, and demand respect,” she says.
Despite the abundance of sexist advertisements in the surf industry and the handful of men who claim waves that are not their own, female surfers celebrate their place in the lineup. Rather than focusing on horror stories of gender inequality and mistreatment of women in the surf, Sliff reveals an uplifting theme in the surfing world: the sisterhood of female surfers.
She loves to see a lineup sprinkled with fellow strong, female surfers.
“You see girls out there [and] you feel the comradery, so it’s exciting to see them in the water, and to just look over and be like, ‘I got you, sister,’” says Sliff.
Even in the competitive division, rather than tearing down other female surfers, Sliff celebrates unique, feminine surf styles and hopes to soon see larger audiences at women’s competitions. “There are so many amazing, talented women surfers out there, and let’s face it, we all want to watch girls surf … Girls have this really beautiful fluidity,” she says.
In fact, Sliff fell in love with surfing after watching other women in the water. She named her grandmother, godmother, and the women from the movie “Blue Crush” as her biggest influences in surfing. As a child, she looked up to Keala Kennelly, Layne Beachley, Rochelle Ballard, and Kassia Meader, all of whom she describes as “really powerful women who inspired [her] from a young age.”
While at times it may seem as though a “no girls allowed” sign is planted on the shore, there is a wide-open opportunity to create a positive community of supportive, powerful women surfers in this male-dominated sport.
Sliff suggests female surfers look for other women out in the lineup and strike up a conversation. Perhaps hinting at our chat in the café, she adds with a smile: “A conversation never hurts.”
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Say hello to my little friend...literally.
TikTok shocked by 15-year-old unhinged viral clip of kids performing Scarface in school play
Think about the most outrageous film that could be adapted to the stage. Now, imagine the cast of that theatrical production is entirely children, ranging in age from 7 to 10. Now, film it and let the world react.
That’s what director Marc Klasfeld had in mind when he held auditions with professional child actors for a shocking video, meant to look like an elementary school production of the cult film-favorite Scarface. In a now 15-year-old interview with Entertainment Weekly, when asked why he thought this was a good idea, Klasfeld admits, "I thought this would be a nice fit into the kind of YouTube arena of viral videos. And I was right."
The result? Kids yelling “mother-fudger,” piles of popcorn meant to look like cocaine, and outrageous, lengthy scenes of children pointing Super Soakers at one another.
Marc, mostly known as an accomplished commercial and music video director, later adds, "I enjoy making provocative art. I like stirring debate and causing conversation. You're going to get two sides of the coin no matter what you do. People are going to love and hate everything. People loved and hated Avatar. People loved and hated the Jennifer Aniston movie. And people love and hate this. I guess that's a part of having something that's successful out there. There’s got to be certain people that hate it for people to love it."
Once they got their perfect cast, it didn’t take long to put together. He shares, "It was a one-take, so it was pretty much just choosing the right take. About a month altogether."
People sure did react, as it acquired millions of views and comments from all over the Internet. Some were horrified, some were outraged, and many thought it was the funniest thing they'd ever seen. But Marc emphasizes that the kids in the video were not scandalized. "They’ve heard the f-word. They’ve seen more violence in their everyday lives for as long as they can remember. So for this, they’ve seen worse things than this all the time. So this wasn’t that big of a deal for them."
Enter TikTok. The clip (which just popped up again recently on Facebook) was reposted a few years back, and, once again, the comments continue to run the gamut from indignation to full praise. One TikTok user exclaimed, "Bro, I can’t even remember my grocery list, how the fudge did these kids memorize this whole scene lol?"
Others expressed confusion: "I'm not sure whether to be angry or amazed." Some chose anger: "Just imagine, you know these kids watched the movie to get the characters right. And the parents cheering? Yeah, yeah."
Many commenters believed it was a real school play and commended the production for "keepin' it real": "That school keeps it real. Nowadays, kids know so much about guns and drugs, might as well teach them that bad choices don’t end well."
Yet another enjoyed it but was concerned that the parents of the children would not. "Love the tray full of popcorn. But my God, I would hate to see the hell these parents probably raised."
For the most part, the reviews were glowing. Many complimented the acting, and one claimed they definitely would have "preferred this play over their own school production of Macbeth."
And perhaps the biggest compliment? "Al Pacino will be proud."