Based on the 2009 Miles Franklin Award-winning novel by Tim Winton, Breath is a coming-of-age surfing movie set in a Western Australian coastal town in 1970s. Directed by Simon Baker (who also plays the pivotal role of Sando) this movie is much more than a summer bromance between two teenagers, Pikelet and Loonie, and their hero worship of an older surfer.

Beautifully brought to the screen by cinematographers Marden Dean (land) and Rick Rifici (ocean), the landscape is as much a character as the humans. The story builds through the boys’ escalating dares to greater and riskier feats of endurance against the might of the ocean waves. As the summer progresses and the physical dangers mount, the psychological themes of identity, courage and honour are also explored.

The cast includes Elizabeth Debicki as Eva, Sando’s partner with whom Pikelet confronts the boundaries of mateship, along with veterans Richard Roxburgh and Rachael Blake playing Pikelet’s parents, giving depth to the fabric of the young boy’s life.