Movies on the Alley: How Santa Barbara's Community Dive and Fishing Shop Built a Harbor Tradition
Blue Water Hunter is Santa Barbara's specialty dive shop, spearfishing shop, and fishing tackle shop, located right on the water at Santa Barbara Harbor. But beyond the gear, the wetsuits, and the rods on the wall, Blue Water Hunter has become known for something else: Movies on the Alley, a series of outdoor film screenings and community events held right in the alleyway in front of the shop. What started as one film a shop owner couldn't stop thinking about has grown into a full calendar of nights that bring together everyone who loves fishing, freediving, spearfishing, and life on the California coast.
Here's how Santa Barbara's favorite harbor tradition came together, one event at a time.
Ghost of the Pacific, March 15, 2025
It started with something Jethro, owner of Blue Water Hunter, couldn't stop thinking about. He'd heard about Ghost of the Pacific, a film from Mike Raabe Productions about white sea bass, one of the most prized and elusive gamefish for Southern California anglers and spearfishermen alike. When he couldn't find a way to just watch it, he decided to bring it to Santa Barbara himself.
Through his contacts, Jethro tracked down Mike Raabe, made his case, and eventually landed a meeting. Raabe agreed to screen the film, for a price, and the idea for an outdoor screening right in front of Blue Water Hunter, Santa Barbara's home for fishing and spearfishing gear, started to take shape. Getting there wasn't simple. It took a serious amount of legal back-and-forth with the City of Santa Barbara to get approval to close down the alleyway for an event, and it only came together with support from some of Jethro's business partners, one of whom chipped in to help cover the costs. The city was firm on one point in particular: Blue Water Hunter couldn't provide food or drinks directly, so those came from the vendors already operating in the alleyway. See the announcement on Instagram.
Raabe, as it turned out, had his own connections. He showed up that night with roughly 30 cases of free, ice-cold beer courtesy of his relationship with Salty Crew, a surprise nobody was expecting and one that went over extremely well with the harbor crowd. It was a one-off, never repeated at later events, but it set the tone for a night that felt bigger than anyone had planned.
Around 300 people showed up for that first screening. Photos from the night.
It was, by Jethro's own account, a ton of work, he was running around the whole night, but the response from the community made it worth every bit of it. People stopped him in the alley for weeks afterward, and messaged him online, to say how much they'd loved it and how important it felt to have an event like that, especially at a time when everyone seems glued to their phones. Ghost of the Pacific turned out to be more than a movie night. It was proof that Santa Barbara's fishing and diving community wanted exactly this kind of gathering.
Congratulations @the_evander_gibson on taking home the Grand Prize, a Marauder 47 from Riffe!
Fish People, June 6, 2025
The momentum from that first event carried straight into the next one: a screening of Fish People, filmed by Keith Malloy of the legendary Malloy brothers (Chris, Dan, and Keith), all local surfing icons. Jethro had gotten to know Keith personally in the lead-up to the event, taking him out surfing at Santa Rosa Island alongside his friend Travis Logue beforehand. Spending time with Keith gave Jethro a firsthand look at just how respected he is in the sport, having spent years on the North Shore surfing alongside the who's who of professional surfing, and the two have stayed friends ever since. See the post on Instagram.
It was Keith who introduced Jethro to Kimi Werner, one of the most recognized names in the freediving and spearfishing world, and one whose following, Jethro found, borders on reverence rather than typical fandom. Jethro offered to fly Kimi out for the screening, and the plan was for the two of them to go spearfishing together while she was in town. Health complications the day before sidelined that trip, but the visit was still a memorable one, and it planted the seed for something that would come full circle later in the year.
Internal Stoke: The Chris Brown Legacy, August 27, 2025
The third event took on a different tone. Internal Stoke, directed by Josh Palmer, is a tribute to Chris Brown, a longtime Santa Barbara Harbor local Jethro had known for roughly 20 years, and the screening doubled as a benefit for his daughter. "Chris Brown was a legend and a friend. Many days we traded waves on the Santa Barbara coast or in the Channel Islands."
Chris was the first professional surfer Jethro ever crossed paths with, watching him surf the waves at Rincon as a kid alongside his twin brother Nathaniel. Jethro still remembers paddling out alongside Chris one day and being told, "I just saw you on a wave, man, you paddle super hard," a small compliment that stuck with him for years. Chris later worked as a commercial fisherman when his professional surfing career wound down, and he remained a familiar, always-smiling face around the harbor for years afterward. See the post on Instagram.
The tribute screening was a well-attended night in the alley, and it reinforced something Jethro and the City had both started to notice: these events weren't just good for morale, they were good for the harbor. With no incidents and a growing reputation for reliability, the City was fully on board, and local businesses were seeing real foot traffic. An extra 300 people in Santa Barbara Harbor on a Friday night means people eating, drinking, shopping, and spending an evening exploring a part of town they might not otherwise visit.
Kimi's Kitchen Book Signing, March 20, 2026
By early 2026, Kimi Werner was back on Jethro's radar, this time with a new book launching: Kimi's Kitchen. Jethro suggested she launch it right there at the harbor, home base for Blue Water Hunter's dive, spearfishing, and freediving classes, and she agreed. See the post on Instagram.
The event turned into a full book signing, and this time, Jethro finally got Kimi out on the water, taking her out to the islands for a dive. She didn't shoot a white sea bass that day. In fact, she'd never even seen one underwater before. But Jethro did, and there's a photo from that trip of him holding one up next to her that says it all. Kimi's still planning to come back one of these days to get her own.
Coastlines, April 17, 2026
Next up was Coastlines, a movie premiere brought to Santa Barbara by Connor Coffin, the pro surfer, and Salty Crew, following a trip down to Mag Bay to document a fishing and surfing expedition. Connor is a Santa Barbara local himself and a regular at Blue Water Hunter, stopping by the shop for gear as an avid fisherman in his own right, alongside his long, decorated surfing career and following. See the post on Instagram.
One story from around that time still makes Jethro laugh: his son Mateo landed his first white sea bass, and Connor spotted the catch on Instagram and left a comment telling him "nice fish." Mateo had no idea who'd complimented him until Jethro explained who Connor Coffin was, at which point his son was thoroughly impressed. The Salty Crew team loved the venue, and having Connor in the mix made the whole night a natural fit for the community and great exposure for the shop. Photos from the premiere.
Keiki Paddle Kickoff, May 29, 2026
The fifth event shifted focus toward giving back. The idea came from Patrick McDermott, a longtime friend of Jethro's, who asked if Blue Water Hunter could help host the Keiki Paddle crew's 2026 season kickoff, a fundraiser supporting a local girl named Isla Faye who is in need of support. The City had some initial questions about what exactly was being planned, but Jethro felt strongly about backing a cause led by so many young people working to help one of their own.
The night featured live music from a band featuring Hawk and Koa Modisette along with Summer Victoria, plus videos and a raffle. Between the sponsors the Keiki Paddle team brought on board and the energy of the night, the event raised more than $70,000 for the cause, a testament to how much the harbor community shows up when it matters. See the post on Instagram.
Fishing the Wild, August 21, 2026
The seventh event traced back to a friendship formed years earlier and an ocean away. Jethro had met spearfisherman Daniel Mann while living in Rome, through a mutual friend who owned Polo Sub and hosted dive trips for a small group of divers off an island near the coast of Tuscany. Daniel and his wife, Hannah, were assigned to Jethro's boat since most of the other divers spoke only Italian, and the two spent three unforgettable days diving together as part of what Jethro still calls the dream team. See the post on Instagram.
Jethro and Daniel stayed in touch, and Daniel eventually connected him with Mike Robinson, host of the show Fishing the Wild. The show had planned to film at a set of oil rigs, but when the boat captain fell ill, the team considered Panama or Mexico as alternatives. Jethro, having recently returned from Costa Rica and heard from locals about an exceptional dive spot he still keeps unnamed, suggested they go there instead. The trip became legendary among the crew. Fellow diver Joe Pike, who joined the Costa Rica shoot, called it the best trip he'd ever been on. See the post on Instagram.
For Jethro personally, the trip came with its share of frustration too. Diving with new spearguns he hadn't yet tested, he missed shot after shot on fish he'd normally hit without trouble, including a sailfish, a pargo, and what would have been the biggest tuna of his life, a yellowfin estimated at 250 pounds. The team later brought the Fishing the Wild crew back to Santa Barbara to film three more episodes, right in Blue Water Hunter's backyard, and that trip and those episodes became the basis for one of the most special Movies on the Alley screenings in this run. See the post on Instagram.
Taku Kondo Book Launch, Friday, September 25, 2026
The most recent addition to the lineup is a launch for Coastal Harvest: Fish, Forage, and Feast, the debut cookbook from Taku Kondo. Taku is a popular YouTuber and former sushi chef who sustainably harvests his own ingredients to create masterful dishes, focusing mainly on fishing and foraging and specializing in preparing restaurant-quality meals in the great outdoors, all documented for his hundreds of thousands of followers on his channel, Outdoor Chef Life, as well as Instagram.
Jethro reached out to Taku cold, over Instagram, sharing what Blue Water Hunter was building in the alley and the kind of community showing up for it. The style of living Taku was putting out into the world resonated with Jethro, and the feeling turned out to be mutual. After some back and forth, the two connected in person when Taku was passing through Santa Barbara, and discovered an unexpected bond: Taku lives in Mendocino, the same stretch of California coast where Jethro was raised. See the post on Instagram.
The event has drawn a strong sponsor lineup, including Traeger, Stardust Sportfishing, Coral Sea, Aloha Collection, and Costa Del Mar sunglasses. Traeger and Stardust are anchoring the night, and the Traeger connection came together with help from Mike Robinson of Fishing the Wild, another thread tying this run of events back to the people who've shaped it from the start.
Details and tickets for the next Movies on the Alley night are on our Events page.
