Andrew Crockett has kindly been in touch with filmmaker Nathan Oldfield, who recently released a beautiful film, The Heart & The Sea, to compile this interview. For those who don't know Andrew Crockett he's the the author of the award winning 'switch-foot' surfing books and he also releases a surfing newsletter four times a year. You can subscribe for free here.

Andrew Crockett: This is film number three for you and making surfing films has consumed the last ten years of your life. How much has it changed in those ten years for an independent filmmaker? 
Nathan Oldfield: In some ways I feel totally unqualified to answer this question because I kind of ended up in the filmmaking game almost accidentally. And it's not something I've ever done for a living. When I made my first film Lines From A Poem the plan was very low-key. I was just going to copy it onto a few VHS tapes, hand them out to friends and sell it to a few old loggers in the local surf shop.

While I was making it, the project kind of snowballed into something that ended up being much more widely received than I ever imagined. I ended up making DVDs that went around the world, not in any kind of groundbreaking way, just slowly but surely.

In some ways my experience of being an independent filmmaker hasn't changed in that time. It's still something I do on the side; I'm a fulltime schoolteacher who's always just made films as a passion and as a way of supporting my little family.

You had a launch at Avoca that was sold out, then you have another launch at Byron Bay on 19th December which is almost sold out. Have you any plans for any other tours and public showings in Australia or elsewhere?
Yes mate, there's future screenings in various places in the new year including Sydney, the Gold Coast, Biarritz, Torquay and New York among others. There's plans for other shows too, Japan and elsewhere in the States and Europe, but I haven't got any specific dates yet. As soon as I do I'll share the details online.

It's been said that you are Australia's answer to Thomas Campbell (Seedling, Sprout, The Present), which surfing films are inspiring Nathan Oldfield's productions?
That's a huge compliment, because I adore Thomas' work. To be mentioned in the same breath as him is humbling and flattering. I don't think it's necessarily true, though, because in some ways our films come from different ends of the spectrum. His stuff tends to be a little more stylized perhaps, whereas mine leans a little more towards a documentary style. Obviously, too, he managed to work with a bigger budget than me, and I think it shows in lots of ways; his production values are much higher, while my films are much more shoestring-budget-low-fi.

But sure, we're both interested in a kind of left-of-centre surfing experience that people have become increasingly involved in and interested in. So Thomas' work inspires me, along with a host of other surf filmmakers who have paved the way before me like Bruce Brown, Paul Witzig, Alby Falzon, Jack McCoy, Sonny Miller, Andrew Kidman, Chris Malloy, Scott Soens, Taylor Steele and Joe G.

The digital age is making it almost impossible for independent surf filmmakers to make a living. What are your thoughts on this and what can surfers do to keep people like you alive and making amazing films? (Ed's note: Buy the DVD.)
There's clearly less and less money involved in surf films now. I've been making films for eleven or twelve years, but the profit I've made has never been something I could live off, let alone support a family with. Making money was never my motivation for making movies, I could have made a lot more money spending all those thousands of hours doing something much more lucrative.

But at the same time, it sure would be nice if people attached more value to surf films. The landscape of filmmaking has entirely changed and lots of things have impacted how surf films are accessed and priced. We saw the same thing happen in the music industry. Digital files are so easy to duplicate, so piracy has definitely had an impact and iTunes effectively killed the CD. The DVD is in the same boat, too.

Soon the only way to access surf films will be through places like iTunes or other online download or streaming sources. Also, of course, surfers are so used to being able to access free video content online nowadays, there is a reluctance to actually pay for a surf movie. Perhaps people attach less value to feature length surf films now. At least, that's my feeling. Although I'm not an expert, this is my feeling about how the industry and market is at the moment.

At the end of the day, it all adds up to less return for the filmmaker. So, yes please, buy the DVD! (And for people who took the hint, you can email email Nathan at [email protected] and he'll oblige)

All the cool kids are in your latest film, the best surfers in the 'alternate' logging scene are captured. It's a nice little scene isnt it, a good bunch of people, but can we ask, is there any footage of your own beautiful longboarding in The Heart and The Sea?
I'm really grateful to have had the opportunity to work with such a great group of surfers. Many of them are world class. Because there's an element of autobiography in The Heart & The Sea, as there was in my previous two films, there are a couple of moments of my own surfing in there. But, thankfully for viewers who are much more interested in next level elite waveriding, those moments are very brief! Haha!

Tell us about the soundtrack, and are there any bonus things on the DVD?
The soundtrack is full of variety and mostly features less well known artists. The soundtrack is something I'm really proud of and already I'm getting great feedback about the quality and diversity of the music. Yes, the DVD is full of extras that I hope people enjoy.

I assume there is plenty of finless footage in your new film. Did you manage to capture any footage of Jacob Stuth in the early days in the finless renaisance.
Jacob's involvement in the early days of the alaia revival feature in my last film, Seaworthy, but yes there's lots of finless stuff in The Heart & The Seaincluding Dave Rastovich, Tom Wegener, Harrison Roach, Sage Joske, Brett Caller, Ryan Burch and Erik Snortum. It's a fascinating way to experience surfing, and even though it might not be for everyone it can often make for pretty compelling viewing.

Watch the trailer to The Heart & The Sea Nathan Oldfields website