Surfing with the Enemy
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The island of Cuba has more than 11 million residents, thousands of miles of spectacular coastline, and a thriving sports culture. But the country counts only about 200 hundred surfers, roughly the same number that paddle out at an average break in California on any given afternoon.
The reason is that despite its proximity and its poverty, Cuba is still officially an enemy of the United States, the last Western nation under Communist rule.
Thanks to the U.S. trade embargo and the restrictive Cuban government, you can’t buy a surfboard in Cuba - in fact, you can’t even give one away. There are no surf shops, no swell forecasts or online surf reports, and just going more than 50 feet from shore is a jail-able offense.
"Surfing With The Enemy" is the story of a core group of Cuban surfers struggling to establish a niche for their sport in Cuba's restrictive society.
Guided by Eduardo Valdes, founder of the Havana Surf Association and patriarch of Cuban surfing, two filmmakers from Venice Beach travel across the island to the notorious Guantanamo province, home to the U.S. Naval Station at Guantanamo Bay, as well as the country’s best waves.
Searching for surf along this controversial coast, they discover a forbidden paradise just miles from their own border, and learn what it means to be a surfer and a citizen of modern-day Cuba.
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTMdbywnrK4