By Terry Hunsicker
TAMPA, Fla. — In the early evening of March 26, a large crowd gathered in the lobby of AMC West Shore 14 theater in anticipation of a new film being screened. Decorating the theater was a small red carpet with a banner bearing the logo of the Gasparilla International Film Festival along with a stand for volunteers working at the festival. The theater room for the night was directly connected to the lobby. At the center of the crowd was Jadon Cal, the director and starring actor of the soon-to-be award-winning film, Off Rip.
Jadon Cal is an independent filmmaker and actor whose film, Off Rip, was presented as part of the Gasparilla International Film Festival. The film was set in and filmed in the St. Petersburg area where Cal grew up, and it took inspiration from Cal’s own life and experiences of the area. At the conclusion of the film festival, Off Rip was awarded the Grand Jury award for “Best Focus on Florida Feature Film.”
Cal currently lives in Los Angeles, where he was born, but he spent most of his childhood up until high school in the St. Petersburg area. While making the film, he wanted to create something that proudly showcased the town where he grew up. As tribute, parts of the film were shot in locations such as Indian Rocks Beach, Indian Shores, Treasure Island, and Seminole High School.
“It meant the world, man,” said Cal. “I wanted to write something as like a love letter signing off to Pinellas County.”
Cal played the leading role of Chris in the film, a high school student training for a skimboarding competition while experiencing various hardships in life. The film delves into themes of family, drug addiction, and relationships.
The premise of the film is centered around an approaching skimboarding competition that the protagonist is training for. Cal explained that he was looking to explore a niche sport that other films had not done yet.
“It’s just never been done before, so I just kind of jumped on it,” said Cal.
Professional skimboarders and the skimboarding community were involved with the production, with Red Bull athlete Lucas Fink appearing in the film. Furthermore, Zap Skimboards, a business that sells skimboards based out of Venice, Florida, was also involved in the film.
Originally beginning his career as an actor, following in the footsteps of his parents, who were also both actors, Cal made the decision to begin directing and producing his own films.
Off Rip was the first original full-length feature that he directed, and he also starred as the film’s leading actor. With Off Rip, Cal balanced directing, acting, and writing for the film, describing the experience as cohesive.
“I felt like it was all intertwined,” said Cal. “You have the vision, and then you execute it.”
Attending the festival that night alongside Cal was cinematographer Jake Jalbert. Jalbert met Cal towards the end of 2019 when Cal reached out to Jalbert’s studio looking for work.
“He showed me a short film, Time Off,” said Jalbert. “Him and his dad [were] acting in it. It was incredible. I was like, ‘Dude, this kid’s really good, really talented.’”
The first feature that they worked together on was a film called Mind Games, released in 2021. They then worked together on a film called Shark Waters, released a year later in 2022. The two have been working together ever since.
The creation of Off Rip as a whole was documented in a YouTube video series titled Making a Film From Scratch. The five-episode video series consisted of a vlog that follows various stages of production, such as on-set filming and casting.
“For me it was, ‘Oh, I wanna share what I’m doing,’” said Cal. “It’s a cool little time capsule of where I was at in life.”
His favorite moment captured in the series was location scouting alongside Jalbert, driving across St. Petersburg in a Slingshot.
“The adventure is what it’s all about,” Cal said. “It’s all about just the journey of doing it, you know, going out and having fun.”
At the end of the screening on March 26, Cal spent much of his time talking with other attendees.
Jalbert described the movie as the best thing he has worked on to date, and Cal said that the movie turned out amazing. The award they received for the “Best Focus on Florida Feature Film” was proof of their success.
“It’s great to be recognized after putting so many years of hard work in and to have made a film that impacts people in such a way that they would vote for our movie,” said Cal.
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Thumbnail image caption: Jadon Cal and Jake Jalbert posing for photos on the Gasparilla International Film Festival red carpet. Photo courtesy of Terry Hunsicker.