Big vs. Small
In Minna Dufton's Finnish documentary, a very small surfer tackles some very big waves.
The subject of Minna Dufton’s documentary film is a Portuguese surfer who likes to challenge the big waves but what we see on screen resonates far more widely than you might expect. The title chosen reflects the fact that this surfer is small in height (little more than 5 ft.) but it is even more significant that she is a woman, Joana Andrade. When she made her way to the village of Nazaré, a village on the Portuguese coast famous for being the site of the largest waves in the world, she was the first woman to go there to participate in the sport.
That was in 2014 and, while the film does refer back to reveal how she was drawn to surfing in the first place and how she had to fight in order to pursue what she recognised as her calling, the main footage here was obtained in 2018 and 2019, part of it being shot also in Finland. For those who have a fondness for films about surfing, it should be said at once that what we see of it here contains images that will not disappoint them (there is a special credit for the surf photography of Tim Bonython). Nevertheless, it is as a personal portrait of Joana, one that delves into her life and character, that the piece finds its true function.
At the outset it is suggested that bravery is found not in those who are not afraid but in those who conquer their fear and Joana’s story illustrates that. Overcoming fears is key to her outlook and the need she has to do that is linked to an abusive incident in her childhood which left her the victim with a sense of her own guilt. Proving herself through surfing helps her to put these issues behind her. But, if that makes Big vs. Small a decidedly personal story, it is also the case that Joana's achievements as an independent woman refusing to give up on her dream offer hope to women in general providing the assurance that this is indeed a possibility that can be realised.
Joana is not the only figure seen in this light. When she visits Finland intent on learning more about handling the cold and about breathing in ways which will help her when engaged in her dangerous sport, she obtains guidance from a free diver. Her name is Johanna Nordblad and Joana recognises in her a kindred spirit. Here too she finds that what she is doing helps her to come to peace with herself. Consequently, the film is not only about what women are capable of doing but also about how a past trauma need not hold one back. Indeed, Joana’s bold lifestyle provides in time its own therapy.
Minna Dufton’s film is a well-made piece that gains from being well photographed (away from the surf the photographer is Sakke Kantosalo) and well edited by Maarit Nissilä. If there is a weakness, it is in the film’s last section when a surfing sequence looks set to offer an exhilarating conclusion and is then followed by other footage more piecemeal. However, ending on a more personal note and bringing Joana's mother back once more is by no means inappropriate. All told, this is a very sympathetic film and one which in the material shot in Finland incorporates images that are both unexpected and memorable, a glimpse of a highly unfamiliar world.
MANSEL STIMPSON
Featuring Joana Andrade, Johanna Nordblad, Sérgio Cosme, Isabel Linhares De Andrade, Miguel Pedreira, Rita Lello, Glyn Ovens, Maya Gabeira, João De Macedo, Aleksi Koskelin, Walter Chicharro, Rodrigo Koxa, Tim Bonython.
Dir Minna Dufton, Pro Heidi Richert and Minna Dufton, Screenplay Minna Dufton, Ph Sakke Kantosalo and Tim Bonython, Ed Maarit Nissilä, Music Janne Eerola, Markus Karppinen, Matias Karppinen and Riversound Music.
Raggari Films-Tull Stories.
76 mins. Finland. 2020. UK Rel: 21 October 2022. Cert. 12A.
