The Huntington Beach Library Theatre marked the location for Chasing The Dream’s HB premiere.  A picturesque venue surrounded by man-made waterfalls, natural lakes, rabbits, ducks and even more appropriate for the film’s message: books!



It was like homecoming for coach Andy Verdone and the cast of Chasing the Dream.  To experience the film among their lifelong friends, family and local community members after 2 long years of anticipation made the night a historic event.  Quiksilver’s generosity on this night could not be overlooked.  A stunning red carpet that led to delicious food, drink, cast interaction, product giveaways and an award winning film made this the pinnacle screening for the HB Team and coach Andy Verdone.  



The theatre seats 300 people and both the 7pm and 9pm showings were packed.  Among the attendees were cast members Ian Ekberg, A.J. Collins, Quinn McCrystal, Taylor Pai, Kyle Kennelly, Matt Mohagen and Logan Strook, most of the filmmakers, surf industry aficionados and plenty of Huntington Beach locals.  Mohagen drove down from Los Angeles to see the film on the big screen for the first time. “What I liked most about the film are the moments of humor in between the drama.  It’s not just a serious film”, says Mohagen.



Memorable moments after the screening included star struck looks in the eyes of younger kids when given the opportunity to not only meet but also interact with cast members.  A 10-year-old girl from LA was over heard saying, “I cannot believe they are really here.” One tiny grom won a brand new Al Merrick “Silver Surfer” edition surfboard in which he could barely put his small arms around.  He will probably grow into it, right in time for next winter’s swells.  Taylor Pai was seen waltzing along the red carpet long after the event, waving to an imaginary crowd(see photo below).  



Metalstorm Entertainment and Quiksilver’s relationship go back for many years and as Chasing The Dream has proved, it has just gotten better with age.  With a thirty-year plus surf history of Quiksilver and the filmmaking passion of Metalstorm, the two are a match made in heaven.

Saturday April 21st 2007 was the Orange County Premiere of Chasing The Dream, hosted by the Newport Beach Film Festival.  The venue itself, The Lido Theatre is enough to blow minds alone. A historical landmark originally opened in 1938 to show “Jezebel”, starring Bette Davis, once a local resident and patron to the Lido.  The theatre was packed for the morning screening of Chasing the Dream, leaving the festival staff amazed and the theatre employees completely unprepared for such a large crowd at 10:30am.  Many legends were in attendance including Quiksilver’s CEO Bob McKnight and World Champion Peter Townwnend.  The press swarmed the facility trying to get interviews with cast and crew while festival director Greg Schwank and head programmers Leslie Feibleman and John Jameson congratulated the filmmakers for a beautiful movie and record breaking morning turnout.





After Saturday’s sold out showing of Chasing The Dream, the festival requested a second screening at a different venue the following Monday night.  The turnout once again was huge!  The Fashion Island Edwards theatre was packed to the bone with a local audience, making it a very personal screening for the cast and crew of Chasing the Dream.



The question and answer session following the film included cast members Logan Strook, Taylor Pai, AJ Collins, Quinn McCrystal, Kyle Kennelly, director/producer Angelo Mei, executive producer Josh Williams, producer John Philbin in addition to cast member Allan Kincade, who had just seen the film and himself on the big screen for the first time.  Allan expressed his excitement and gratitude to the filmmakers, saying he really enjoyed the film. Missing cast members, Ian Ekberg and Matt Mohagen were competing at two different events, on a mission to gain points on the World Qualifying Series.



The 2007 Newport Beach Film Festival awards ceremony presented Chasing the Dream with an Outstanding Achievement in Filmmaking Award. The award is sponsored by Perrier and has the longest award name in the history of filmmaking: Outstanding Achievement in Filmmaking Perrier Bubbling Under Award. Williams and Mei were in attendance to happily accept the award and give each other a “high five” for a two-year job well done.