The Blind Sea - Film Review

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I was given the opportunity to watch a surfing documentary about a blind Australian surfer and his ambition to ride the largest waves in the world at Nazare, Portugal.


Matt Formston, a former medal-winning blind Paralympian in cycling, turned his skills to big wave surfing and The Blind Sea focuses on his journey to ride the world's largest and most dangerous waves.


This sensitive and beautifully shot documentary is about how someone with a disability can do anything with enough determination, talent and ambition. Matt has been blind since he was 5 years old and even though he was told he wouldn't be able to do any sports, he started bodyboarding at this age with the help of his family. This is where his love of sport began and he felt comfortable because he didn't suffer any discrimination while playing sport.


Matt's determination is an inspiration to others and he helps others to become stronger and follow their own dreams. It is his resilience to come back after adversity that defines him. His father, Don Formston, talks about his son and his resilience: "There's no such things as barriers, there's only obstacles. With obstacles, you either go over them or around them." Matt's parents made an important decision when he was young allowing him to follow his dreams.


Matt has a sizable team to help him achieve and do the things he does. It is a mix of madness and heroics allowing him to surf, which can be a dangerous sport for someone who is vision impaired, he inspires both disabled and abled people to achieve their goals. He finds that if he focuses on one thing and stays in the moment, doing that well, then amazing things happen.

With only 10 days in Portugal, the weather was not favourable and there was a chance Matt's dream of riding the biggest waves in the world would not happen.

Diversity and inclusion are two buzzwords that get bandied about, they are sometimes overused. However, this documentary shows things are changing and disabled people find things are more inclusive, especially through programs run by companies like Optus, Matt was their first ambassador highlighting the needs of people with disabilities.

Even if surfing isn't your thing, I recommend you watch this documentary as it shows how someone like Matt, who faced adversity, overcame everything to achieve. Throughout the film, I felt inspired by Matt and his brave crew who helped keep him positive, safe and focused on what he needed to do. Having watched many documentaries, this one is at the top of the list, especially in surfing films.

Bonsai Films and Brick Studios produced The Blind Sea with amazing footage of Nazare, Portugal and other surfing destinations.

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