Registered or Premium Member? LOG IN | Not a Premium Member? TRY PREMIUM FREE NOW
|
CRUSHIN' IT
Grant "Twiggy" Baker makes his Hollywood debut in Blue Crush 2
By:
Melissa Buckley
|
July 21, 2010
|
|
South Africa has spent some serious time in the spotlight in recent weeks,
and big-wave tamer Grant "Twiggy" Baker's been basking in its golden glow.
He sat down for a chat with us then and has since caught a couple World Cup games, became an honorary Springbok and helped cheer fellow Saffa Jordy Smith to victory in J-Bay. |
|
Previous
|
How exactly does Grant "Twiggy" Baker end up in Blue Crush 2? They're shooting in Kwa-Zulu Natal, which is my home, my stomping grounds, so they called me in for a casting and that was it -- I got a small part. I did tell them that if there were any swells, I wouldn't be able to be involved. So they gave me a 10-day period where I could come and do some work if there was some available. It's worked out quite well because there's been no swell and it's been really fun. So you're a stunt double? We did a bit of stunt double work for what they called a "Family Surf Day" where we had to go out on all kinds of riding apparatus. It was really fun; it was actually on International Surfing Day so it was a perfect day to do it. We rode toilet seats and exercise bikes and Andrew Lange had to go out with a full braai kit with a smoke bomb and everything -- that was pretty impressive. We rode four up on a longboard with the girls -- just had a really fun day out there, so that was my stunt double work if you can call it that. And you've got a role? I've got a small part as a South Coast local surfer, which suits me well, 'cause that's pretty much what I am. It's really cool. Do you play yourself? No, my name is Hemp -- so basically I'm the stoner -- which probably would have been better 10 years ago. But I still remember how to play a stoner, that's for sure. Is this your first movie gig? Obviously we do the surf movies and interviews and what not, which is fairly similar, but this is my first time on a real set. It's been pretty crazy to see what goes on; it's quite a production. "Basically I'm the stoner -- which probably would have been
better 10 years ago. But I still remember how to play a stoner, that's for sure." --Twiggy Baker
How does your relatively short stint on set compare to the rest of the cast's? I'm on location for 10 days, just because it's the middle of winter in South Africa and I didn't want to miss any surf. The rest of the crew, actors and cast are here for two to three months, but I managed to wrangle in for just a few days. Aside from booking movie roles, what else is on your agenda? I'm just keeping an eye on the winter here. It seems to be kicking in now; it's been a bit of a slow start for South Africa. That's been the general pattern for the last couple of years though -- it only really kicks in around the middle of July and runs 'till the end of September. But we've had some really good waves on the coast here -- the North and South coast of Kwa-Zulu Natal. It's just been great to be at home working on something like this and getting to surf some really good waves in between. In the movie, the lead character Dana, travels to South Africa to embark on an "Odyssey" mirroring a trip her late mother (played by Rosy Hodge) took down the South Coast. What can you tell us about the stretch of coastline they're featuring in the film? I've lived on this coast all my life and surfed up and down it. They're going to Transkei next, which is probably the most undiscovered, wave-rich territory in the world right now. If it wasn't for the sharks, I'd probably be living down there, but it's a really sharky area. I used to surf there a lot when I was younger, but it seems to be a bit too risky these days -- especially Port St. Johns. There's been three or four attacks there in the last year, so that's not a place I want to surf at the moment. From there they go down to J-Bay, which I think is awesome for South Africa and South African surfing. To have the guys here and to be showcasing this piece of coastline that not many people know or come to visit -- it's world class. A lot of people go to Mexico for the righthand pointbreaks, but we've got equally as good here with no crowds. It should stay that way, but a few more visitors would also be nice. There are quite a few legit South African pros involved aren't there? There is a very good surf team involved -- local guys, good local knowledge. Mickey Duffus is a legend in South African surfing and he's kind of running that whole show, so the actual surf footage should be really good. The cast is Andrew "Rooster" Lange, who is probably the best-known South Coast local around, and some really good girls. Our top junior girl surfers, Heidi (Palmboom), Danielle (Le Roux) and Morag (Steele) -- obviously Rosy [Hodge], everyone knows Rosy -- so the surfing should be pretty authentic. I don't know about the acting though. From what you've seen so far, do you think the surf footage will be good? They're always asking our opinion and want to know what we think, like if it looks a bit kooky or whatever. They're really trying to keep the surfing legit and looking realistic with the doubles and that. But I think that has been the challenge with every Hollywood surf movie, to merge the two sides of a big production and good surfing. I guess time will tell if they can get it right on this one. Did you watch the original back in the day and what did you think of it? Blue Crush was obviously a cult movie. It seemed to come out at the same time the female surf industry was emerging from its infancy. In my opinion, Blue Crush was a major help and boost to the industry. I was a Billabong rep when it came out back in the day and it definitely helped the female surf industry, so hopefully this continues in that mold, and brings more young girls and more surfers into the sport. Are you leaving big wave surfing for the big screen -- should I call your agent next time? It's a little bit regimented for me. I don't really like being told what to do -- I like to be my own boss -- but we'll see. I'm a bit old eh, 37, so this might just be my debut and finale both at once. MORE WOMENS SURFLINE HOME PAGE |