FILM: Tiffany Campbell and Andria Lessler Win Breakthrough Filmmaker Award

Tiffany Campbell and Andria Lessler Win Breakthrough Filmmaker Award For Roxy Sponsored Dear and Yonder at The 2009 Surfer Poll Awards
Roxy Team Rider Sofia Mulanovich Claims #2 Spot For Her Eighth Surfer Poll Award

History was made last night at the 2009 SURFER Poll Awards, as Tiffany Campbell and Andria Lessler won the award for Breakthrough Filmmaker for the Roxy sponsored all-female surf film Dear and Yonder.  This win was Tiffany and Andria’s first SURFER Poll Award, for their debut surf film.  Roxy professional surfer Sofia Mulanovich, who is featured in Dear and Yonder, continued to prove that she is a fan favorite, claiming the #2 spot in the Top Female Surfer Category, nailing her seventh SURFER Poll Award. 

The 37th annual SURFER Poll and Video Awards is recognized as the most powerful voice in the surf industry because the list is determined by the people, those that love the waves. As a new entrant to the genre of surf films, Tiffany Campbell and Andria Lessler presented a rich and textured look at women’s surfing today. Not content with the formulaic tendency of surf-film debuts, Campbell and Lessler used elements of documentary, performance, and thoughtful narrative as a promising stepping-stone to a bright future in surf cinema. “We are honored to have won this award and for women's surfing to receive this kind of recognition,” said Campbell and Lessler.  “Our goal from the beginning was for the quality of the movie to be on par with the skills of the women featured, so this award means a lot to us as filmmakers and for the women involved.”

Documenting the most progressive surfing of today, Dear and Yonder follows top professionals including Roxy team riders Sally Fitzgibbons, Sofia Mulanovich and Kassia Meador, as they surf their home breaks (Dear) and travel the world (Yonder).  In addition to chronicling today’s surfers, Dear and Yonder spreads its roots deeper and cultivates a sense of place and knowledge of history, reaching back in time to unearth footage of iconic surfers such as Linda Benson, Rell Sunn and Lisa Andersen.

Roxy’s Sofia Mulanovich took the #2 spot in the SURFER Poll award, after claiming the #1 spot for the past five years, for her seventh SURFER Poll award.  In addition, Mulanovich took home two awards in 2006 for Best Documentary and Best Female Performance in a Surf Film for “Sofia – A Documentary.”   A leader both in and out of the water, she embodies the spirit and heritage of the Roxy culture.  For more information on Roxy’s surf team and Dear and Yonder, visit www.roxy.com and www.dearandyonder.com.