WaterBear Studios Signs Deal with Olympian Carissa Moore

WaterBear Studios, Portal A and String Light Group have inked a development deal with gold medal-winning Olympian Carissa Moore to develop a surf series.

The eight-episode series will explore why some of the best breaks in the world might not be around for much longer. Moore will travel the world to discover the connection between the choices we make every day and the ripple effect they have on the worlds of nature and sports.

From the unexpected waves in the coldest parts of the planet to the barrels that have defined the sport of surfing, Moore will take viewers along on a journey to understand why these waves exist, why they are at risk of going away and what we can do about it.

Moore will be attending her second Olympics at the end of July. She uses surfing as a platform to inspire and ignite the next generation of surfers. She has also vowed to shift her focus to changing the future of the planet, saving the ocean and the sea and investing in future generations.

The series will be executive produced by Justin Jung, Brad Simpson, Megan G Wells, Oliver Allgrove and Jacob Motz. It is expected to begin preproduction at the close of this year’s Olympic Games and will look to begin shooting later this fall.

“As I’m looking forward to the next chapter in my own professional career, I can’t help but see parallels of change in our planet and specifically, the ocean,” Moore said. “The time really is now to tell this story, and I couldn’t be more thrilled to be part of this amazing project and to collaborate with WaterBear to raise awareness about the impact of climate change on our planet’s invaluable resources.”

Sam Sutaria, CEO of WaterBear, commented, “This co-development deal is a game-changing moment for WaterBear as we accelerate our push into multi-format production. We are a new type of story studio; we develop a variety of formats that link entertainment with impact. Our focus is to give audiences across the world more opportunities to become engaged in action—across everything from documentary and unscripted to scripted and narrative. We believe in the power of story and collaborative creativity. Partnering with award-winning talent like Carissa, Portal A and String Light Group to develop this series, we will create a tentpole format that puts impact at the heart of an adventure at the intersection of sport, travel and action.”