Surfing
Surfing
Meet Indonesia's next big thing in his insane new biopic Becoming Bronson
From a sleepy Indonesian fishing village, Becoming Bronson tells the story of Bronson Meydi, the quiet surfer with stardom looming on the horizon.
Bronson Meydi – from Sumbawa to the world
© Hamish Humphreys
Bronson Meydi backdooring his beloved Lakey Peak right
© Hamish Humphreys
Bronson plants his back foot and buries serious rail at home in Sumbawa
© Hamish Humphreys
Bronson Meydi shoots for the stars, somewhere over Sumbawa
© Hamish Humphreys
Although he would never say it out loud, Bronson's surfing slowly began to make plenty of noise over the past decade, and it didn't take long for visiting surfers to start taking notice of the welterweight local lad mixing it up with the pros and putting on a show for their assorted camera crews.
Slowly but surely, sponsors came knocking and one day Indonesian surfing statesman Rizal Tandjung, whose son Varun is great friends with Bronson, offered to take the young gun under his wing in Bali and fast track his road to surfing success. Bronson's development since he island-hopped has been staggering: Bali is treating him superbly.
Bronson Meydi putting up his hand to be Indonesia's next big star
© Hamish Humphreys
Bronson's playground
© Hamish Humphreys
Even in fading light Bronson Meydi's future shines bright
© Hamish Humphreys
Bronson Meydi pulling into the kind of wave you could mindsurf all day
© Hamish Humphreys
Becoming Bronson announces the arrival of Indonesia's next great hope. Rizal followed on from local legends like Made Lana, and started gaining Indonesian surfers recognition overseas. The next generation – Marlon Gerber, Garut Widiarta, Mega Semahdi, Betet Merta and friends – built on his legacy. Now we see guys like Rio Waida competing in the Olympics and racing up the WSL rankings with Bronson right behind him, happily flying along in his slipstream.
Although Kelly claims in the movie he struggles to tell Bronson and Eli apart, as the pair of phenoms grow up their styles are becoming more distinct, and it's fair to say there are shades of Bruce Irons' legendary flair to the way Bronson now attacks waves. As you'll see in the edit, whether it's launching over the ramps of Bali's east coast to threading tubes on the Bukit Peninsula, or mixing it all up at home in Lakey Peak, Bronson's game is well rounded and getting better with every session.
The prince of Lakey Peak surveys his domain
© Hamish Humphreys
It's safe to say the Lakey Peak left has Bronson's backhand looking lethal
© Hamish Humphreys
The smile of a kid who knows his star is on the rise
© Hamish Humphreys
A textbook frontside grab, as demonstrated by Bronson Meydi
© Hamish Humphreys
So please, get comfortable, hit play, and soak up what will probably be your first encounter with Bronson Meydi. If you've been to Lakey Peak before, then savour the walk down memory lane while meeting the new hometown hero; if you haven't, then good luck resisting the urge to book the first possible flight to Sumbawa once you see how good Bronson makes it look.
We owe a debt of gratitude to Scotty and co. for pulling together this first incredible insight into Indonesia's next big thing, and cheers to Hamish Humphreys for capturing all of the sterling stills you see on this page. Most importantly, though, thank you – terima kasih! – to Bronson Meydi for letting us into his life, and best of luck on the road ahead, though we've got a feeling, you're not going to need it. Enjoy!
