For the first time, a surf cinema festival will reach a worldwide audience as FUEL TV joins forces with the Dana Point Film Festival to broadcast live from the event.
DANA POINT, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES, October 22, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — FUEL TV, recognized as the worldwide hub for action sports programming, has unveiled a new alliance with the Dana Point Film Festival (DPFF) that will beam the festival’s ocean-centric storytelling to viewers across the globe. The centerpiece of this collaboration is a dedicated 90-minute livestream scheduled for Sunday, November 1, at 6:00 p.m. Pacific Standard Time.
The broadcast will originate from the Porthole Theater at Dana Hills High School in Dana Point, California. Audiences can tune in via FUEL TV and SURFERTV, which are accessible on prominent streaming services such as The Roku Channel, Amazon Prime Video, Samsung TV+, Plex, MyFree DIRECTV, and Sony’s Live TV on PS5. The distribution network for this event is vast, reaching over 130 countries and roughly 700 million devices.
This livestream represents a pioneering moment for both entities, offering DPFF’s ocean-themed programming to a global viewership for the first time. The broadcast will include a special encore presentation of Pipeline, a film by Peter King, alongside a live Q&A session where SURFER Editor-in-Chief Jake Howard will converse with King and a mystery guest. This gives international audiences a prime vantage point into a festival held in one of Southern California’s most storied surf locales.
WHERE THE SEA MEETS CINEMA
Marking its fourth year, the Dana Point Film Festival is a four-day event that showcases over 30 films and numerous community activities, all celebrating the ocean. It serves as a gathering point for filmmakers, athletes, scientists, conservationists, and anyone with a deep connection to the sea.
“Both brands share deep roots in surf culture, a profound respect for the ocean, and a passion for authentic storytelling. It’s a natural partnership that brings the spirit of Dana Point and our ocean-inspired festival to a global audience,” remarked Shon Tomlin, DPFF’s Executive Producer & CCO, who was also part of FUEL TV’s original executive team when it launched under Fox in 2003.
For FUEL TV, this collaboration underscores its enduring dedication to surf cinema and links its worldwide audience with both veteran and new filmmakers. “Filmmaking has been a core component of surfing culture, with modern surf filmmaking dating back to the 1950s. FUEL TV has recognized and celebrated surf filmmaking since its launch, and its partnership with the Dana Point Film Festival furthers that commitment,” said Fernando Figueiredo, President and CEO of FUEL TV Global. “We look forward to working with both established and up-and-coming surf filmmakers to tell their stories about the excitement, passion, dangers, lifestyle, and social responsibilities that come with the sport and its people, as we’ve been doing for the past 23 years.”
The alliance also advances DPFF’s core objective of leveraging film to foster a deeper understanding and appreciation for the world’s oceans. “Here on the doorstep of the Pacific, we’re reminded daily of the ocean’s power, wonder, and fragility. These films celebrate the adventure and connection the ocean brings while illuminating the challenges facing its ecosystems. Through this partnership, we hope to inspire more people to appreciate, understand, and protect our oceans,” said Lloyd Bryan Mölander, Founder and Executive Director of the Dana Point Film Festival.
A GROWING GLOBAL PLATFORM FOR OCEAN STORYTELLING
This new partnership with FUEL TV adds to DPFF’s expanding roster of media collaborations, which already includes SURFER and SURFERTV. The fourth annual Dana Point Film Festival is set for October 29–November 1, 2026, with a lineup of over 30 films, filmmaker Q&As, special guests, and community events centered on surf, sea, culture, and conservation.
For details on the festival, venues, and tickets, visit DanaPointFilm.org.
ABOUT FUEL TV
Since its inception in 2003, FUEL TV has served as the global destination for action sports on television, offering live events, original series, documentaries, films, and a rich library of content spanning skateboarding, surfing, snowboarding, skiing, BMX, and motocross. Beyond its main channel, FUEL TV Global operates genre-specific verticals like SURFERTV, POWDERTV, SKATEBOARDINGTV, and BIKETV, which are distributed worldwide. Headquartered in Lisbon, Portugal, FUEL TV is available on FAST, AVOD, and Pay TV platforms in over 130 countries, connecting fans of action sports culture globally.
ABOUT THE DANA POINT FILM FESTIVAL
The Dana Point Film Festival is an internationally recognized four-day celebration of surf, ocean, and marine storytelling, featuring documentaries from both domestic and international creators. As a Gold-level festival on FilmFreeway, DPFF unites filmmakers and audiences through screenings, discussions, and special events. The festival operates under Blue Sea 2 Sky, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit committed to ocean awareness, education, and conservation through storytelling and community involvement.
Shon Tomlin, Executive Producer & CCO
Dana Point Film Festival
+1 949-775-6244
shon@danapointfilm.org
Why it matters: This partnership signals a significant step for niche film festivals seeking to expand their reach beyond local audiences. By leveraging FUEL TV’s massive global infrastructure, DPFF is not only amplifying its own voice but also setting a precedent for how ocean conservation and surf culture stories can be shared on a worldwide stage.
