Wavelength Drive-In Cinema Presents: Dogtown & Z-Boys

We’re excited to announce the next film to be added to our summer drive-in cinema line up is the award-winning surf/skate doc Dogtown and Z-Boys, showing on the 23rd August and the 4th September.

Ticket numbers are limited. Enter your email here and we’ll let you know as soon as you can get yours. 

Set in the rundown SoCal suburb of Santa Monica, Dogtown & Z-Boys tells the story of a group of kids who revolutionized skateboarding and birthed one of the 20th century’s most influential sub-cultures. 

It begins in the early 70s, with a group of surfers who spend their days catching waves between the rusting pylons of an abandoned oceanside amusement park and fiercely defending their patch with coarse words and pelted rocks. 

In the afternoons, when the wind comes up, the kids practice their carves on the concrete, using homemade wooden boards with clay wheels, or old toy skateboards; popular in the early 60s but by then largely forgotten and out of stock. 

When mainstream interest in skateboarding kicks back up in the mid-’70s the group form the Zephyr team and light a match under the prim comp circuit with their uniquely aggressive surf-inspired approach. Soon, fame and lucrative sponsorship deals follow, seeing the group rapidly transform from young tearaways to national superstars, forced to navigate all the trappings and pitfalls of their rapid ascent. 

The documentary captures a significant cultural moment where bored kids, slanted asphalt, a record-breaking drought and the distinctive vision of artist Craig Stecyk converged to create something both novel and endlessly enduring.

Beyond its historical interest for boardsports enthusiasts, the artfully cut offering of nostalgic archive footage and the deep-dive into the intriguing characters that made up the scene makes the film a must-see. 

After premiering at the Sundance Film Festival in 2001, and picking up a string of awards, the film opened the following year in cinemas worldwide to substantial critical acclaim.

Almost two decades on, it continues to be heralded as one of the greatest documentaries on surf and skate culture ever made. 

Join us for a drive-in screening on a Cornish clifftop on the 8th, 14th and 21st August. 

Check out our full line-up of summer drive-in screenings and sign up here to be first to know when tickets go live.