official selection

HAWAII INT’L FILM FEST • RHODE ISLAND INT’L FILM FEST • SANTA BARBARA INT’L

Baffa's first independent feature, the 2003 film, Singlefin: yellow, struck a chord in the global surfing community for its intimate portrayal of the surfing experience as told through the journey of one yellow board.  Noting inspiration from Bruce Brown's "Endless Summer", MacGillivary-Freeman's "5 Summer Stories" and contemporary surf-filmmakers focused on emotion & story like Chris Malloy, Baffa abandoned the established action driven surf-film format of traveling pros chasing waves for an omnibus story structure focusing on the board as the central character.  

The nine-foot single fin, shaped by renowned board builder Tyler Hatzikian,  travels the world introducing the audience to six athletes from six different worldly perspectives, all tied together by their love for the sport and their experiences riding "yellow."  Complete with a climatic surf-session at the Bonzai Pipeline, Singlefin: yellow remains a cult classic nearly fifteen years after it's release.  The film was self-produced by Baffa, who raised money from family, friends and maxed out a Visa credit card to shoot the project on 16mm film with longtime friend Scott Kassenoff.    

72min   4:3  Stereo