Condition Black

NATURE’s Condition Black reveals how giant-wave surfers from around the world couldn’t walk away from the largest waves ever recorded.

On January 28, 1998, a monster weather system slammed into Oahu’s north shore. The Coast Guard called a Condition Black — all access to the water denied. It was every surfer’s dream and nightmare combined, playing and replaying on a seemingly endless loop, as colossal waves up to 40 feet high surged over the beaches of Oahu in a monstrous, unstoppable procession. The stunning footage, some recorded on IMAX film, the stories of the surfers, and the storm itself form the breathtaking core of Condition Black.

The surfers had a few days’ notice because a fierce storm forming off the coast of Japan was forecast to move eastward and toss huge waves ahead of it toward the Hawaiian Islands. Quickly, a buzz electrified the worldwide surfing network. It seemed like a perfect opportunity for the Eddie Aikau Memorial big-wave surfing competition, an event held on an ad hoc basis, when conditions warrant it, in honor of a local lifeguard who lost his life trying to rescue an endangered canoeing team in rough waters. But instead of the ideal, the surfers were confronted with the extreme. A combination of natural forces had intensified the effects of the storm, producing conditions that even the most experienced surfers had never seen before.

Production Credits

Web Credits

Producer
RONNIE GODEANU

Art Director
SABINA DALEY

Designer
LENNY DROZNER

Pagebuilding
BRIAN SANTALONE

Writer
JASON KLEINMAN

Production Artist
RUIYAN XU

Production Assistance
MENDY JOHNSON
PETER TIERNEY

Technical Director
BRIAN LEE

Scientific Consultant
GIANNA SAVOIE

About the Writer
Jason Kleinman is an Internet consultant and freelance writer living in New York City. He has written extensively about the natural sciences, politics, and popular culture.

Thirteen Online is a production of Thirteen/WNET New York’s Kravis Multimedia Education Center in New York City. Dan Goldman, Executive Director, thirteen.org. Bob Adleman, Business Manager.

Television Credits

Narrated by
MICHAEL McKEAN

Directed, written and edited by
JON LONG

Produced by
JON LONG
KAREN FERNANDEZ

Executive Producer for New Street Productions
KAREN FERNANDEZ

Executive Producer for Tremendous! Entertainment
TOM STEWARD

Cinematographers
BILL REEVE
TOM GRISSOM
SONNY MILLER
DON KING
BEAT STEINER
JON LONG

Location Sound
SPENCE PALERMO

Segment Producer
BOB COAKLEY

Production Manager
ELIZABETH ERVIN

On-line Editor
DENNIS KAMBEITZ AT POST EXPRESS LTD.

Graphics
PICTURES ON THE WALL

Music score by
SOULFOOD MUSIC

Creation
WRITTEN BY PHUZZ, FREE AND ANDROID
PERFORMED BY SOULFOOD, FEATURING FREE, PHUZZ, ANDROID, ANDY DECKARD, BEN UNDERHILL, ANAKWAD, ARAPATA
PUBLISHED BY PUBCO (BMI) / RYKOMUSIC LTD.
COURTESY OF RYKODISC

Breathe
WRITTEN BY FREE
PERFORMED BY SOULFOOD, FEATURING FREE, PHUZZ, ANDROID, ARAPATA, ANDY DECKARD & BEN UNDERHILL
PUBLISHED BY PUBCO (BMI) / RYKOMUSIC LTD.
COURTESY OF RYKODISC

Chameleon
WRITTEN BY PHIL VAN DE WERKEN & CRAIG ANDEMAR
PERFORMED BY SOULFOOD, FEATURING PHUZZ, ANDROID, FREE & ARAPATA
PUBLISHED BY PHIL VAN DE WERKEN & CRAIG ANDEMAR (ASCAP)
COURTESY OF RYKODISC

Wayob
WRITTEN BY FREE
PERFORMED BY SOULFOOD, FEATURING FREE, PHUZZ, ANDROID & ANAKWAD
PUBLISHED BY PUBCO (BMI) / RYKOMUSIC LTD.
COURTESY OF RYKODISC

First Flight
WRITTEN BY ANDREW JERVIS AND PAUL SCRIVER
PERFORMED BY BETTER DAZE
PUBLISHED BY B3 JAZZ SESAC
(P) (C) 1995 UBIQUITY RECORDINGS, INC.

16 Kilos of Chill
WRITTEN BY DAVID BIEGEL
PERFORMED BY SKYJUICE
PUBLISHED BY B3 JAZZ SESAC
(P) (C) 1997 UBIQUITY RECORDINGS, INC.

There’s a Light Inside Your Mind
WRITTEN BY C. BRANN
PERFORMED BY P’TAAH
PUBLISHED B3 VIBES / WAMDUE MUSIC ASCAP
(P) (C) 2001 UBIQUITY RECORDINGS, INC.

Modus Operandi (Q-Burns Abstract Message Remix)
WRITTEN BY PAUL SCRIVER & ANDREW JERVIS
PERFORMED BY BETTER DAZE WITH
EXTRA PRODUCTION BY Q-BURNS ABSTRACT MESSAGE
PUBLISHED BY B3 JAZZ SESAC
(P) (C) 1997 UBIQUITY RECORDINGS, INC.

It’s Hot as Haiti (Modaji Voodoo Sun Edit Remix)
WRITTEN BY D. REKLAW
PERFORMED BY DERF REKLAW WITH EXTRA PRODUCTION BY MODAJI FOR RESTLESS SOUL PRODUCTIONS
PUBLISHED BY UBIQUITUNES BMI / HOSSCOLLAR MUSIC BMI
(P) (C) 1999 UBIQUITY RECORDINGS, INC.

Sound design by
SOULFOOD MUSIC

Sound effects and foley by
P.J. POWELL, GORDY SCHAEFFER, PAT EPSTEIN

Sound mix by
GORDY SCHAEFFER AND GREG REIERSON
AT PRECISION POWERHOUSE

Special thanks to:
GERMAINE DEAGAN
PETER BEYAK
NEILS DE JONG FRANKEN
BOB MCKNIGHT
KENT MAUL
MICHAEL MCFADIN
ILLANA MONDSCHEIN
KENI SUMPTER
TURTLE BAY HILTON, OAHU
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE
UNITED STATES COAST GUARD
UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII
UNITED STATES CIVIL DEFENSE
HAWAIIAN WATER PATROL

IMAX is a registered trademark of IMAX Corporation.

For NATURE:

Series Editor
JANET HESS

Supervising Producer
JANICE YOUNG

Producers
PATTY JACOBSON
JILL CLARKE

Associate Producer
GIANNA SAVOIE

Researcher
SUSANE LEE

Production Assistant
IRENE TEJARATCHI

Production Secretary
AUSTIN RIPLEY

Manager
EILEEN FRAHER

Production Manager
JULIE SCHAPIRO THORMAN

On-Line Editor
BARRY GLINER