'Blue Medicine'

I grew up near the ocean and I have always enjoyed outdoor surroundings like beaches and the watersports that come with them. However, I hadn’t tried surfing at all growing up until I joined Napier Surf Club when I moved to Edinburgh for university in 2017. I went to Dunbar on the East coast during my first semester to surf for the first time and I had such a rough experience. I remember coming out of the sea and being so freaked out because I had got wiped out, resulting in my foamie leash getting wrapped around my neck while I was underwater (my mum is going to freak out if she reads this). I was totally fine though and I decided to keep trying to learn how to surf.

A couple years down the line I had to brainstorm an idea for my fourth year major project of my journalism degree. I decided to film a documentary on the Scottish surf scene but with a particular focus on the women who pull on thick, heavy neoprene wetsuits in winter and face some intense waves up North and on the East coast. I travelled up to Thurso and then along to the East coast with my friend Oscar James from BRAW.

The filming process for Blue Medicine was magical, I learnt a lot about producing a documentary and working alongside someone else. Oscar was amazing to do a project with because he has so much more experience than me and I soaked up a lot of it while I was with him. On top of this I met amazing women whose stories got me so inspired and excited to keep surfing. I came home to Edinburgh to edit the piece and was so high from gaining a renewed love for Scotland and surfing.

I contacted the band Lemongrass at some point during the editing process and we worked out that a few of their songs could appear as the soundtrack. Olivia-Grace Smith who features in the documentary had some of her photos appear as visuals during her part in the film as well as Andrew Binnings drone footage being utilised. It felt so nice for the piece to ha

ve been a collective effort from creatives from in and around Scotland. I really wanted to flex what Scotland has to offer!

I feel so blessed that in my last year of university I was able to fulfill something that was in line with a passion of mine. Surfing has brought me so many amazing memories since I started to surf back in 2017 and without the surf community surrounding me I don’t think I’d have had many of the chances I have had, it’s an amazing feeling to know great people and feel inspired by them because it makes you wan’t to delve even deeper in to experiences. I’m still somewhat of a complete beginner in many senses as I don’t think my surf technique is quite there, however, I have so much more surfing adventures to have and experience and I can’t wait for them. I’d love to keep making surf documentaries and exploring surf spots across Scotland as well as connecting with people who have a connection to the ocean.

Written by Sorsha Caldwell

Film by Sorsha Caldwell and Oscar James with BRAW surf