Writing Point Break: W. Peter Iliff on Crafting a Surf Legend - Interview with The Temple of Surf - The Podcast
Release Date: 11/12/2025
The Temple of Surf Podcast
In this powerful new episode of The Temple of Surf Podcast, we sit down with Japanese surfer Masatoshi Ohno to explore his journey through competitive surfing, the evolution of Japanese surf culture, and the waves that shaped his life. Japan has quietly become one of the most exciting forces in modern surfing. From Olympic recognition to world-class wave pools and a new generation of elite competitors, Japanese surf culture is no longer emerging, it is established. In this deep and inspiring conversation, Masatoshi Ohno shares firsthand insight into what it meant to grow up competing in Japan,...
info_outlineThe Temple of Surf Podcast
In this very special episode of The Temple of Surf Podcast, we sit down with one of the most influential surfboard shapers of all time Rusty Preisendorfer. This is a rare interview with a true icon. Rusty almost never does interviews, which makes this conversation not just important, but historic for surf culture. Founder of Rusty Surfboards, Rusty Preisendorfer helped define the modern era of high-performance surfing. From the explosive progression of the 1980s to the power surfing revolution of the 1990s and beyond, his boards have been ridden by world champions, innovators, and free-surf...
info_outlineThe Temple of Surf Podcast
In this episode of The Temple of Surf Podcast, we sit down with Dave Tourjé, the visionary artist and co-founder of California Locos, a collective that helped define the visual language of modern surf, skate, and California counterculture. Dave Tourjé’s work sits at the crossroads of surf culture, skateboarding, fine art, street art, and West Coast rebellion. From board graphics and murals to gallery walls and underground scenes, his influence reaches far beyond aesthetics, it’s about identity, attitude, and freedom of expression. In this conversation, we explore how California...
info_outlineThe Temple of Surf Podcast
This week on The Temple of Surf Podcast, we welcome Brodi Sale, a North Shore of Oʻahu surfer known for his deep respect of Hawaiian surf culture and his powerful approach to heavy waves like Pipeline and Backdoor. Brodi Sale represents a generation of Hawaiian surfers who prioritize knowledge, patience, and presence in the lineup over visibility and social media hype. Raised on the North Shore, Brodi learned early that surfing Pipeline is not about forcing waves, chasing clips, or proving yourself, it’s about earning respect through consistency, discipline, and understanding the ocean. In...
info_outlineThe Temple of Surf Podcast
This week on The Temple of Surf Podcast, we welcome Laurent Pujol, an underwater cameraman and surf photographer whose work has helped define how modern surfing is seen, remembered, and felt. Laurent’s career sits at the crossroads of risk, patience, and absolute precision. Shooting from inside the impact zone, often beneath moving mountains of water, he has developed a rare sensitivity to timing and positioning, the kind that only comes from years spent reading the ocean at its most unpredictable. In this conversation, we go beyond the surface of surf photography to explore what it...
info_outlineThe Temple of Surf Podcast
This week on The Temple of Surf Podcast, we sit down with Jerome Sahyoun, a Moroccan big-wave surfer whose life has been shaped by powerful oceans, remote coastlines, and a deep respect for waves that demand total commitment. Born and raised in Morocco, Jerome Sahyoun represents a generation of surfers who grew up far from the spotlight, but close to serious water. Morocco’s long Atlantic coastline, exposed to relentless swells, became his training ground, a place where patience, observation, and humility are essential. In this episode, Jerome shares how surfing in Morocco forged both his...
info_outlineThe Temple of Surf Podcast
In this deep and compelling episode of The Temple of Surf Podcast, we welcome professor, writer, and one of the most insightful voices in surf literature, Andy Martin. Known for his ability to explore surfing beyond performance and competition, Andy brings a rare blend of academic depth, lived experience, and poetic clarity to the conversation. Andy Martin has spent decades writing about surfing as culture, obsession, language, and way of life. As a professor, lecturer and a lifelong surfer, he bridges the worlds of academia and the lineup, showing how waves can be read like texts and how...
info_outlineThe Temple of Surf Podcast
This week on The Temple of Surf Podcast, we sit down with Vincent Kardasik, a director, cinematographer, and visual storyteller whose work bridges the worlds of surf culture, film, and ocean-driven narratives. Vincent is known not only for capturing powerful surf imagery, but for directing and crafting moving stories that go far beyond a single frame. Through film, cinematography, and photography, he explores the emotional depth of surfing, the patience, the tension, the silence, and the moments of release that define life in and around the ocean. In this episode, Vincent shares his creative...
info_outlineThe Temple of Surf Podcast
This week on The Temple of Surf Podcast, we sit down with legendary surfboard shaper Joe Blair, a true craftsman whose influence on modern surfboard design runs deep through decades of wave riding, innovation, and hands-on shaping. Known for his commitment to functionality, flow, and timeless outlines, Joe Blair represents a generation of shapers who learned their craft in dusty bays, under fluorescent lights, driven purely by feel, intuition, and an obsession with waves. In this episode, Joe Blair takes us back to the roots of his shaping journey, how he first fell in love with surfing, the...
info_outlineThe Temple of Surf Podcast
In this week’s episode of The Temple of Surf Podcast, we sit down with one of the most quietly influential craftsmen in modern surfing: Ian Byrne, master surfboard shaper, designer, and the visionary behind some of the equipment trusted by surfers around the world. Known for his deep respect for tradition and his relentless drive to refine the feel of a surfboard under the feet of everyday surfers, Ian has built a career grounded in precision, humility, and an authentic love for the craft. Across our conversation, Ian takes us on a journey from his early days learning the fundamentals of...
info_outline13TH SEASON FINALE!!!
In this exclusive episode of The Temple of Surf Podcast, we dive deep into the mind of W. Peter Iliff, the legendary screenwriter who brought one of the most iconic surf films of all time to life : Point Break.
Written in the early 1990s and directed by Kathryn Bigelow, Point Break became a cultural phenomenon, blending the adrenaline of big-wave surfing with the raw energy of undercover crime and spiritual brotherhood.
Peter shares the incredible story of how Point Break came to be from his early writing days in Los Angeles to the moment the film caught the attention of Hollywood. We talk about the creative process behind the screenplay, his collaboration with Bigelow, and how characters like Johnny Utah (Keanu Reeves) and Bodhi (Patrick Swayze) became timeless symbols of freedom, rebellion, and the search for meaning through surfing.
Iliff opens up about the challenges of writing a movie that went beyond surf clichés and instead captured the soul of the ocean, the philosophy of living on the edge, and the spiritual bond among surfers and outlaws alike. We also discuss how Point Break continues to inspire generations of surfers, filmmakers, and dreamers more than 30 years later.
From behind-the-scenes stories to the deeper message of “If you want the ultimate, you’ve got to be willing to pay the ultimate price,” this episode explores why Point Break remains one of the greatest surf movies ever made, not just for its action, but for its heart.
Peter also shares updates about his current projects, his reflections on Hollywood storytelling today, and his personal connection to the surf community that embraced Point Break as a spiritual anthem.
Whether you’re a surfer, a movie lover, or someone chasing your own wave in life, this conversation will remind you why the ocean and cinema are both places where truth and freedom collide.
Tune in to The Temple of Surf Podcast and join me for a powerful, nostalgic, and inspiring journey through surf culture, art, and storytelling with one of the most influential screenwriters of our time.
🎧 Available on Spotify, YouTube, and all major podcast platforms.
#TheTempleOfSurfPodcast, #PointBreak, #WPeterIliff, #PointBreakMovie, #SurfingCulture, #SurfLegends, #PatrickSwayze, #KeanuReeves, #JohnnyUtah, #Bodhi, #KathrynBigelow, #SurfMovies, #SurfFilm, #SurfPodcast, #SurfLife, #SurfVibes, #SurfersSpirit, #OceanSoul, #SurfCommunity, #SurfingLegends, #SurfingHistory, #HollywoodStories, #Screenwriting, #FilmWriting, #AdrenalineJunkie, #ExtremeSports, #BeachLife, #SurfPhilosophy, #PointBreakFans, #TheTempleOfSurf