he 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 Southern California on any given afternoon.
he 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 online access to swell forecasts or surf reports— and just going more than 50 feet from shore is a jail-able offense.
urfing With The Enemy is a documentary about a small group of surfers from Havana struggling to establish a niche for their sport in Cuba’s restrictive society. Guided by Eduardo Valdes, one of the country’s only shapers and the founder of the Havana Surf Association, two filmmakers from Venice Beach travel across the island to the notorious Guantanamo province, home to the country’s best waves. Searching for surf along this controversial coast, they discover a forbidden paradise just miles from the American border, and learn what it means to be a surfer and a citizen of modern-day Cuba. The film is narrated by actor Lance Henriksen (Aliens, The X Files), produced by Venice the Menace and presented by Polaris Global Media.
