With the Championship Tour still on pause, Malia Manuel has had plenty of time to dig through freesurf clips from the 2019 archive. And in doing so, she decided to put together all the best moments into a DIY highlight reel called "Matamorphosis."
From finding barrels in Bali to open walls at J-Bay to sporting a knee brace during her return from injury in Maui, she showcases her transformation through freestyle expression and top tier technique.
- WSL / Kelly Cestari
Manuel grew up making surf and lifestyle edits at home in Hawaii, and for this latest project, she decided to take on the role as the editor.
"It's been fun to dabble in the new technology of Premiere Pro. I went from iMovie, [then] graduated Final Cut when I was younger, and now it's Premiere Pro - so it's a whole new learning system but I'm having fun doing that during quarantine," Manuel told us.
The surfer from Hawaii came inches away from her first event win during the Final at Bells against Courtney Conlogue.
During this extra downtime out of the jersey, Manuel has also reflected significantly on her identity as a professional surfer and veteran to the Championship Tour.
"[My] job is to be me and be in the present. I think it's been a nice break, I've been traveling for over ten years and living out of a suitcase and not being around friends and family for very long. So i'm just figuring out who am I besides this title of a pro surfer," Malia added.
"I've started that process a couple years ago, but now I have all this time to identify myself as someone besides this competing pro surfer, which has been a fun process."
Filmed over the course of 2019, the edit highlights the Hawaiian CT vet's free surfing before each tour stop.
The Creative Process Behind Malia Manuel's New Film, "Metamorphosis"
Bryan Benattou
With the Championship Tour still on pause, Malia Manuel has had plenty of time to dig through freesurf clips from the 2019 archive. And in doing so, she decided to put together all the best moments into a DIY highlight reel called "Matamorphosis."
From finding barrels in Bali to open walls at J-Bay to sporting a knee brace during her return from injury in Maui, she showcases her transformation through freestyle expression and top tier technique.
Manuel grew up making surf and lifestyle edits at home in Hawaii, and for this latest project, she decided to take on the role as the editor.
"It's been fun to dabble in the new technology of Premiere Pro. I went from iMovie, [then] graduated Final Cut when I was younger, and now it's Premiere Pro - so it's a whole new learning system but I'm having fun doing that during quarantine," Manuel told us.
During this extra downtime out of the jersey, Manuel has also reflected significantly on her identity as a professional surfer and veteran to the Championship Tour.
"[My] job is to be me and be in the present. I think it's been a nice break, I've been traveling for over ten years and living out of a suitcase and not being around friends and family for very long. So i'm just figuring out who am I besides this title of a pro surfer," Malia added.
"I've started that process a couple years ago, but now I have all this time to identify myself as someone besides this competing pro surfer, which has been a fun process."
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