The 22nd Newport Beach Film Festival kicked off on Oct. 21 at the Big Newport theater in Fashion Island Newport Beach with the world premiere of “Never Catch Pigeons: And Eleven More Hard Lessons from Mr. Paul Van Doren. The movie depicts the life of Paul Van Doren who invented the ultimate Southern California lifestyle brand: Vans, the lessons he learned throughout his life, and some of the most distinguished athletes he inspired. Big Newport turned into glitz but with an action sports touch. You will see the famous Vans checkerboard theme as the theme of the premiere night. Prior to the movie showing, Gregg Schwenk NBFF Founder & CEO welcomed the guests in the theater, followed by a speech from Doug Pray, director of “Never Catch Pigeons: And Eleven More Hard Lessons from Mr. Paul Van Doren.”
The event featured walking on the red carpet, live alternative music, live painting by notable muralist Robert Vargas and of course a half pipe where professional skateboarders like Tony Hawk, Lincoln Ueda, Andy Macdonald and more showcased their skateboarding tricks.
What they said on the red carpet:
Paul Van Doren Jr., Son of the Co-founder of Vans
“The opening night showed a lot of energy. They really put a lot into this. Good profile of my dad. It’s really the way he was as he comes out of the documentary. It’s a lot of fun. I’m glad they did it.”
Tony Hawk, Legendary Skateboarder, Entrepreneur, and Founder of The Skatepark Project
“I’m here supporting Vans documentary. I think it’s amazing. I honestly didn’t know there were many different films with so much different representations. It’s been exciting.”
Matthew Poslethwaite, Actor “Peaky Blinders”, “The Great Artist”
I was here five years ago. This is the first time I got the chance to come back. I have a film in this festival (his film is the “Great Artist”). I’m really excited to be here.”
Robert Vargas, Known for his High-Rise murals and Revitalizing the DTLA Art Scene
“I think it’s amazing. It’s great to be here in Newport Beach. What an exciting night to be able to celebrate the life and story of Paul Van Doren. What he means to all of us, what he means to skateboarding and the culture.”
Todd Quartararo, Co-Founder and Director of Marketing at NBFF
“It’s such a thrill to see everybody come out and support. It was really tough being closed down as an event last year due to pandemic. To be shut down was so painful but to see all the support tonight we are thrilled. It’s so good to be back.”
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