"100 Foot Wave, Season 3" with Joe Lewis

Top Docs: Award-Winning Documentary Filmmakers

In order to catch a really great wave, 100 foot or otherwise, you need to be extremely patient, waiting for that next great “set” (group of waves) that’s going to put you in position for the ride of the day — or ride of your life. It’s also true for those making films about surfing, including director Chris Smith (“American Movie”) and the massively talented — and patient — team behind the hugely successful series, “100 Foot Wave,” which, this year, dropped its third, and, in some ways, most ambitious season yet.

Executive Producer Joe Lewis (“Fleabag”, “Transparent”) returns to “Top Docs” to discuss the third season of this epic series, which follows big wave surfing icon Garrett McNamara, his wife Nicole, and a thoroughly engaging cast of characters as they span the globe, chasing those elusive giant waves. Joe describes the devastating experience for the community when surfing legend Marcio Freire loses his life at Nazare and the once-in-a-decade opportunity that arrives out of the blue for Garrett and his tightknit group to surf at mythical Cortes Bank in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Ultimately, through a seemingly endless pursuit of surfing dreams, it turns out that the greatest rewards for these restless souls may be waiting for them back home.

“100 Foot Wave, Season 3” is available for streaming on HBO Max. The film is nominated for the Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series, Outstanding Cinematography for a Nonfiction Program, Outstanding Picture Editing for a Nonfiction Program, Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Nonfiction Program, and Outstanding Sound Editing for a Nonfiction or Reality Program.

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