Filmmaker’s Work to Premiere Saturday

Filmmaker John McKinney’s “Smorgasbord” will premiere at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Ventura Theatre.

“This project has taken about two years of work,” McKinney, 22, said in his makeshift studio as he put the finishing touches on his film.

Having grown up in Ventura, McKinney began bodyboarding at about age 8.

He competed and met other bodyboarders until he suffered a back injury that kept him off of the waves.

Now entering his junior year at UC Santa Barbara, McKinney is pursuing a double major in communications and film studies.

“Smorgasbord” follows the adventures of McKinney’s bodyboarding friends.

Filmed over two summers, the film features footage from Hawaii, Mexico, Chile, Japan, Indonesia and Australia.