Announcing a new film from Wales - Smoking Shores

Non-fiction title Smoking Shores is a film about surfers in the startling industrial setting of Port Talbot, a coastal town in south Wales dominated by one of the last great steelworks in the UK. 

Writer-director David Roland Warwick is himself an avid surfer who first took to the waves at the town’s Aberafan beach eight years ago. He said “It has been a huge privilege for me visiting Port Talbot over the last eight years, and being accepted by the notoriously close knit and territorial surfing community here. I am excited about the film we have been gathering together over this time, and the chance to share something of what it means to live and surf in this extraordinary place.” 

The film is executive-produced by actor-activist Michael Sheen, who said “I’ve grown up knowing of the surfing community in Port Talbot and catching glimpses of them occasionally, like some herd of elusive, mythical beasts. They have a sort of cult status here. I feel very excited about the possibilities for what this film can achieve and continue to support the filmmakers' aspirations for it.”

Executive Producer Sonja Henrici (Merkel, Tracing Light, Time Trial, The Oil Machine) said “Smoking Shores is a vital film that deals with global issues which play out locally: deindustrialisation, decarbonisation and mental health - while considering our inalienable connection to nature.”

Dok Incubator Director Andrea Prenghyová said “This film captivated us at first sight - the intimate portrait of a group of surfers against the backdrop of the Port Talbot steelworks captures a striking contrast—between the pursuit of surfing dreams and the decline of a once-thriving steel industry and working-class life. It presents a layered perspective on the profound transformations that have shaped the UK in recent decades, making it a uniquely compelling narrative.”

Editor Rich Gorman said “Smoking Shores is genuinely unlike anything else I have worked on and is a constant creative challenge which excites me. The story is also vitally important, set in a compelling location and telling a local story that highlights the impact of wider global issues.”

Producer Dewi Gregory said “All Truth Department’s previous films have been set far beyond Wales’ borders; in Borneo, Scotland, San Francisco, Italy and Alabama, but all the while, we’ve been looking for a chance to tell a story of Wales that will travel far and wide. I’m thrilled that Dok Incubator has seen the global appeal of a story set in my old stomping ground.”

Lee Walters, Chief Executive of Ffilm Cymru Wales, says: “We are proud to support this insightful and timely film, and pleased to see Welsh stories represented on the international stage.”

Joedi Langley, Interim Head of Creative Wales, said: “We’re proud to work in close partnership with Ffilm Cymru Wales to support a slate of features via their film production fund. To see new titles coming out of Wales and being recognised at a global level for their huge potential is really promising, and we can’t wait to see what’s to come.”

Smoking Shores is produced by Truth Department (Donna, Orion: The Man Who Would Be King, The Borneo Case) with support from Ffilm Cymru Wales awarding National Lottery funding and by the Welsh Government via Creative Wales. The film was selected to take part in the BFI London Film Festival Works in Progress Screening, picking up interest from A-list festivals and international sales agents.

Dok Incubator selects eight films a year from global applicants for its International workshops in Eastern Europe. During the past 12 years Dok Incubator has worked with more than 170 films, many of them premiering at A-list festivals. 13 films were selected for Sundance competitions, 2 were nominated for Emmy awards, 6 for the European Film Award and more than 30 of them were screened at IDFA. Films from dok.incubator workshops are also regularly selected for CPH:DOX, HotDocs, Visions du Réel, or Krakow Film Festival.  Writer-Director David Roland Warwick, Producer Dewi Gregory and Editor Rich Gorman will be attending three workshops in Slovakia and Czechia, ahead of a presentation at IDFA in November.

Producer Truth Department is seeking international co-producers, distribution, sales, festivals.