Synopsis

 At 33 years old, Jon Mozo was on top of the world as a renowned surf photographer in Hawaii. Transcend is the journey of a young man who constantly confronted dangerous surf and survived a near fatal shark attack, yet continued to face his fears and live passionately. In an instant his love affair with the ocean resulted in his last breath, he died doing what he loved. A year later, his family found a hidden note that read, “The ocean has given me so much; one day it will take and I will give”.

This is the story of the fury and beauty of an untamed ocean, and Jon’s determination to capture it. His intense focus and deep-rooted respect for the ocean transports you into an aquatic world where energy, passion and intense beauty will leave you breathless. Follow Jon as he pushes through the limits of human endurance to bring the ocean’s depths to light. Transcend is not the tragic ending of a life lived on the edge, it’s the inspiring beginning of immense majesty immortalized and a family’s resolve to continue that legacy.

Producer and Director: Devin Graham (DevinSuperTramp)

At the age of only 33 Jon Mozo, a well known photographer and surfer passed away doing what he was most passionate about. Though he lived a short life, It was full.

I discovered Jon Mozo’s story in 2010, during a time when I was struggling to take the necessary steps in my life. When I first heard Jon’s story, it deeply resonated with me. I saw myself in Jon’s story, and wanted to learn more from someone who had lived life with so much passion.

My last year in college I decided to drop out and pursue this story further. I felt it had the potential to answer the very questions I had sought after for so long: How do we discover our passion? What is the best way to deal with death? How do we balance passion with things that matter most in life- Ohana? Transcend- The Jon Mozo story began answering many of those questions for me.

Though Jon lived a simple life with family, friends, and surfing as a priority, Jon’s true purpose was to love and serve those around him. As described by others, he was anything but ordinary. Though I had never met Jon, I have felt his influence, through the people he inspired and the legacy he left behind. I attribute the discovery of my own voice because of Jon's story. I was inspired to pursue my own passion, and remember the importance of my voice and influence on others.

My hope is that others can feel the sense of self discovery this story gave to me. I hope it will give people courage to live out their passion and that it will help those dealing with the loss of a loved one. Most importantly, I hope that we can be reminded of the power each of us holds to influence those around us for the better.

Writer and Director: Nikki Mozo

A few years after Jon died I decided to attend graduate school. One of the projects I was working on was an after school club for young entrepreneurs. I wanted Jon to serve as a mentor to these students, even though he was no longer here. So, I asked around to see if anyone knew of someone who could put a short video together about Jon. I thought maybe it would be about 10 minutes long. That’s when I was introduced to Devin Graham. He was in film school at BYU Provo at the time, but I offered him a sweet deal. It involved a free place to live and the use of the family’s old Toyota van. I guess he was sold because he dropped out of school and showed up on my doorstep for what we thought would be 3 months. That 3 months stretched into over a year and Devin (and his family) have been an important part of our family ever since. We have spent many hours together talking about Jon and going to his favorite places. Working on Transcend has been both painful and cathardic. We didn’t know how the story would evolve and sometimes we just needed to stop and give it time to simmer, but it revealed itself to us over time. Although it has taken much longer to complete than we anticipated, the timing feels perfect and we are excited to share it with the world. It is due to Devin and Kaitlin’s generosity, compassion and patience that this film was born. They waited on me when I needed time to grieve and figure things out, and allowed me to rewrite the whole script just weeks before it was due for completion. Their love parallels Jon’s love and has moved our family forward toward peace and healing.

Editor - Kaitlin Snow Seamons

Kaitlin Snow Seamons met Devin Graham at BYU Provo where she was studying Film with an emphasis on Video Editing and Documentary. They had the opportunity to work together and she helped him edit a 3 episode web series for Orabrush, who later hired her as their video editor. She worked there for three years growing her skills in editing, producing, and directing. Meanwhile, Devin went off to Hawaii where he met the Mozo family. When he came back he continued to use Kaitlin as an editor on select projects. When he told her about The Mozo Project she was very interested. She was excited to cut a real story, saturated with substance and feeling.  She spent hours after work at Orabrush sifting through interviews, photos, and videos of Jon’s life; crafting a story she felt would be compelling to more than just ocean lovers and those who knew Jon. She felt even closer to the project when she met Nikki in Utah during one of her trips. “It made the whole thing very real for me, she wasn’t just a person on a screen, but a strong, powerful, real woman living life day to day,” Kaitlin reflects.

However, in June 2013 she left the edit behind for Devin to finish while she served as an LDS Missionary in California for 18 months. A few months after returning home from her mission she reconnected with Devin, and learned her help was still needed to get the project done. With a fresh eye and improved skill she was able to make adjustments. “I have learned a lot about humility and trust with this project. Nikki and the family made many suggestions to the edit I couldn’t see working at first- but they really made the story that much better, it was helpful to have the narrative weaved by someone who was there through it all.” Kaitlin shared, “The last changes were done with Jon here by my side, everything just WORKED together so flawlessly as I edited hours and hours into the night, night after night”.This is a story, she believes, God wants told and is humbled, grateful and honored to be a part of it.

Narration - Norris Alaiasa and Nikki Mozo

Featuring:

(In order of appearance)