The Newport Beach Film Festival (NBFF) Action Sports Film Series (ASFS) started yesterday, Thursday, April 28th and will run until May 5, 2011. Events are based in Orange County, CA, a location long reputed as the epicenter of the surf wear and action gear industry. Co-produced by ChopShop, an OC-based film and video production company that specializes in creating content for the youth market, the NBFF ASFS will spotlight films, filmmakers, athletes, visionaries, industry gurus, artists and designers who have shaped the action sports culture.

23 films from around the globe, including those by Body Glove, Quiksilver, Monster Energy, as well as films from independent filmmakers, will be showcased. Featuring death-defying, thrilling and amazing stories of surfing, skiing, snowboarding, motocross, and wakeboarding with top athletes pushing their limits, the films will also capture cinematically-stunning footage and history of amazing talent, creativity and innovation.

With its roots at the heart of surfing and skateboarding, the NBFF truly embraces action sports cinema, culture and lifestyle.

A few of the cinematic pictures to highlight include the West Coast Premieres of Splinters, which chronicles the evolution of indigenous surfing in Papau New Guinea, its emerging surf talent and the sports impact on one village’s social dynamics; Like A Lion, an in-depth behind the scenes portrayal of ski champion Tanner Hall; and Dark Fall following the adventures of brave cold-water surfers catching killer waves on the East Coast.

Surfing With The Enemy, a film about the difficult challenges of surfers in Havana, and Castles In The Sky which follows surfers Dane Reynolds, Rob Machado, Dave Rastovich, Jordy Smith, Dan Malloy, Craig Anderson, Tim Curran, Kalani Robb, and Mike Losness to Iceland, Peru, and India have also generated buzz.

ASFS films will screen at Triangle Square in Costa Mesa and at Regency Lido Theatre in Newport Beach. For more information, go to www.nbffACTION.com.