According to Mikey DeTemple, awareness is key when it comes to issues of water quality and coastal conservation. That’s why when the Surfrider Foundation approached him to make a film about these issues – specifically as they relate to the experience of his hometown of Montauk, New York – he was all in.
Into the Sea that takes a deeper look at some of the issues the east end of Long Island faces when it comes to water quality. The Surfrider Foundation premiered the film on August 13 at it’s annual Two Coasts: One Ocean event in Montauk, but Mikey is clear this is a movie that relates to anyone who lives anywhere there’s rain and water – in other words, anywhere in the world.
I caught up with Mikey to get his thoughts on the film and to talk inspiration and desired outcomes. Below are the most salient points from our conversation:
Could you tell me a bit about the film?
Yah. I’ve made a few films about water, and I’ve made a few films that have nothing to do with water. This one, I think, is maybe to me the most important film I’ve ever made. You know, the surf films are amazing. To do commercial work for different brands is great. I absolutely love it and enjoy the creativity levels that go into something like that. But, this is, you know, it’s my true passion. It’s about where I live. And it’s about problems that myself and really everyone around me face every day, whether they know it or not. And this is what this film is about, really, to get people to know what the problems are and what little changes you can do, and to promote Surfrider’s Ocean Friendly Gardens project.
Being a Long Island native, how do you see the role of the ocean, the sound, and other waterways play into the daily lives of people in the community? And how do people rely on the health of these waterways for their wellbeing and livelihood?
I mean, I was born and raised in Long Island. I lived here until I was 14, and then my family moved to Florida where I spent 10 years there. And I just moved back after that. I mean, I would still visit Montauk in the summertime, and all of that. But you know, I think that’s how this place really affects you. People are so drawn to it. This place is incredible for a lot of people 5 or 6 months out of the year where you can really enjoy the water. You know, you can immerse yourself in it, literally. Whether it’s for recreational activities or commercial, it’s the livelihood of a lot of people. And without it, I mean, it all starts to fall apart.
I grew up around both of those things. My dad was a commercial clammer and a surfer, and, you know, we grew up on the water – both how he fed us, and recreational activities. It’s important to look at both of those aspects and to know they’re both equally important.
Particularly relating to this project, what compelled you to tell this story?
You know, the really cool thing about this project is it translates to anywhere in the world – anywhere that has rain and water. And everywhere has that. You know, it’s gonna rain somewhere and it’s gonna runoff somewhere – and that somewhere almost always ends up being a body of water. It doesn’t matter what it is, it always ends up in a lake, a stream, a pond, a bay, an ocean. You know, you can scale it up from there, and it all leads to the ocean.
But, the reason why I was so excited about this film and the reason why I wanted to take it on is because I got into sailing a couple of years ago. I found a little 10-foot sailing dinghy at an estate sale here in Montauk, and I bought it and I’d sail Fort Pond when the surf was shitty. And it was a blast. And then these signs went up on the pond saying, “No recreational activities due to algae blooms.” And I was like, “Well, I’m in a 10-foot boat that I capsize all the time, it’s probably dangerous to go in here now,” and it really bummed me out because I stopped sailing for half of the summer because I didn’t feel safe in this water, and it was my favorite little place to sail.
So, I sat in on a couple CCOM meetings, which is the Concerned Citizens of Montauk. They partner with the Surfrider Foundation’s Blue Water Task Force to do all the water testing out here – testing all the bodies of water once a week and putting the results in their offices where they have all the water testing equipment. Anyway, I sat in on a couple of those meetings and learned, and found out what it was from, and what you could do to change it. So I already had a little bit of background knowledge of what was happening when [Surfrider] pitched the idea to me. So I kind of said what I knew about it and how it affected me, and both they and I thought it’d be a perfect fit if I made this film.
What do you see as some of the biggest challenges to promoting and maintaining the sanctity of the coast for Long Island (particularly the East End) and how does that line up with the goals of the Surfrider Foundation?
It really comes down to awareness. I think people don’t realize that when you hire TruGreen to come spray your lawn once a week, they’re literally putting poison on your property that your pets and your children and yourself are running around in all day. That and the fertilizers. Everything you put on your lawn that isn’t organic is poison, and it’s basically keeping your lawn on life support. And all that stuff every time it rains just washes into the water, and that’s what’s poisoning us. Literally, it’s poisoning us, it’s poisoning the water. And if you don’t know that, then that’s what we want to do is create awareness that these things are awful and you can change the way you treat your lawn. You don’t have to do that. It’s not much more expensive, it’s even cheaper in some circumstances to just use organic matter. You know, it’s OK to have dandelions on your lawn. It doesn’t need to look like a golf course. Those kinds of lawns are not healthy. And they’re not sound for the environment.
Yah, awareness is definitely key. Hopefully the film and all these initiatives will raise awareness among people that might not necessarily be aware of these issues.
Yah. We just want everyone to realize what’s going on. I mean, I was in the recording studio yesterday doing the voice over and I was talking to the woman that runs the studio, and she was like, “What’s this film about?” And I kind of filled her in on it and she was like, “Oh my god. What are these chemicals I’m spraying on my lawn? I’m going to call and cancel them tomorrow.” And I was like, well there you go. I mean, that’s it. Someone that’s not trying to hurt the environment, they don’t want to, they just don’t know. And if you don’t know then how do you fix the problem? Teach people. Which is what we’re trying to do.
