For ROXY’s latest campaign, SUNHAZE, Noosa local Eva Bateman brings the collection to life in a campaign that feels less like a production and more like a glimpse into a life already being lived.
There are few places that could feel more natural for a ROXY campaign than Noosa.
Noosa’s slow mornings, calm surf, crystal-blue water and golden afternoons make it the kind of place that naturally lends itself to SUNHAZE, a collection inspired by golden mornings, slow afternoons, warm sunsets and that feeling of the sun on your skin. So when ROXY began shaping its latest campaign, SUNHAZE, it made sense to look to someone who already knows that world intimately.
Enter Noosa local and longboarder Eva Bateman.
Shot across different pockets of Noosa with local photographer Mélissa Hoareau, SUNHAZE captures the feeling of an Australian weekend by the coast. Surfing, sunshine, long afternoons and the everyday moments that happen around the water all come together to create a campaign that feels distinctly Noosa.
For ROXY, Eva was a natural fit.
“As a longboarder, she embodies so much of the ROXY spirit,” says Jazmine Hall, Marketing Specialist at ROXY. “An effortless sense of style, a genuine passion for surfing and a strong connection to coastal life.”
Importantly, Eva didn’t need to be placed into that world. She already lives it.
“Rather than placing Eva within the world of SUNHAZE, it already feels like a world she genuinely lives in,” Jazmine says. “Shooting in her hometown of Noosa allowed us to capture that naturally.”
While the campaign might look like it was made for someone who has spent their life in the water, Eva’s own journey into surfing is a little less conventional.
Finding your own way to the water
Eva started surfing at 23.
It’s a detail that makes her place in the campaign all the more interesting, particularly given the long-standing association between surfing and growing up around the ocean. But for ROXY, her story is a reminder that there isn’t a prescribed age, background or pathway for finding your way into the sport.
“Eva is a great reminder that there’s no right time or way to find surfing,” Jazmine says.
“In just a few years, she’s developed a genuine connection to the sport and her own distinctive style in the water. Her journey shows what can come from finding something you love and going for it.”
It’s an idea that feels particularly relevant as the culture around women’s surfing continues to evolve.
When ROXY was created more than three decades ago, surf culture was largely centred around men. The brand was built on the belief that women deserved their own space within it. Today, that space looks very different. There is no single definition of what it means to be a female surfer. It might mean competing professionally, free-surfing, longboarding, travelling between breaks or simply finding a reason to spend more time in the ocean.
“For ROXY, it’s about celebrating women across all sides of surfing while staying true to the freedom, confidence and sense of adventure at the heart of the brand,” Jazmine says.
Eva’s story fits neatly into that broader picture. She didn’t grow up surfing, but she found something she loved and developed her own relationship with it, at her own pace and in her own way.
A campaign shaped by Noosa
For anyone who knows Noosa, the choice of location feels like more than a creative decision.
The region has a long-standing relationship with Australian surf culture, from its iconic point breaks to the generations of surfers who have built their lives around the ocean. There’s a particular sense of community here, too, where surfing is as much about the life around the water as it is about what’s happening in it.
ROXY wanted that to shine through in SUNHAZE.
“Noosa has a long-standing connection to Australian surf culture, with generations of surfers drawn to its iconic point breaks and the community built around a shared love of the ocean,” Jazmine says.
“As a brand that has championed women in surfing for more than three decades, it felt so special to add our own chapter to that story through SUNHAZE.”
The shoot moved through different parts of Noosa, with each location helping to capture a different moment and mood across a day by the coast. Working with local photographer Mélissa Hoareau also allowed the campaign to retain a distinctly local perspective.
“We had a clear creative direction for SUNHAZE, but it was really important to us that Mélissa’s own perspective and photographic style came through as well,” Jazmine says.
The result is less about presenting Noosa as a postcard and more about capturing the rhythm of actually spending time here. The morning light, the surf, the people, the places and the hours in between.
When the ocean makes the plans
Of course, no surf shoot is entirely in control of its own schedule.
The swell wasn’t happening on the day of the shoot, so rather than force the conditions, Eva and Mélissa went back out together when the waves were right.
For ROXY, it ended up being one of the most fitting parts of the campaign.
“Surfing happens on the ocean’s schedule, not ours,” Jazmine says.
It’s also where the campaign’s wider approach to authenticity comes through. SUNHAZE was always intended to feel relaxed and real, rather than overly produced, and allowing the ocean to dictate the timing was a natural extension of that.
ROXY says authenticity is becoming increasingly important at a time when so much of what we see online is carefully curated.
“In a world where AI is increasingly present and the content we consume is more curated than ever, there’s something powerful about real people, places and experiences,” Jazmine says.
For the brand, that means celebrating women both in and out of the water, and recognising that surf culture extends far beyond the act of catching a wave.
“Surf culture is more than catching waves. It’s the friendships, travel, creativity, community and everyday moments that surround it.”
It’s a sentiment that feels particularly at home in Noosa.
More than surfing
Perhaps that’s what makes SUNHAZE feel like a natural fit for Eva.
The campaign isn’t just about surfing. It’s about the lifestyle that surrounds it and the freedom to find your own version of it. For Eva, that has meant discovering surfing later in life and developing a distinctive style of her own. For ROXY, it represents a broader shift in how women are able to see themselves within surf culture.
For Noosa, it’s another chapter in a story that has been unfolding along this coastline for generations. After more than 30 years of championing women in the water, ROXY says there is still plenty of ground to cover.
“We want to keep pushing boundaries, empowering women and defying the odds,” Jazmine says. “Values that have been part of ROXY from day one.”
How that looks will continue to change with each generation. You don’t have to grow up surfing. You don’t have to start young. You don’t have to fit a particular idea of what a surfer looks like.
You can find your way to the water when you’re ready, make it your own and see where it takes you.
For Eva, that journey is already happening here in Noosa. SUNHAZE just happens to have captured a little of it along the way.
The Spring Pieces We’re Loving from SUNHAZE
The pieces the paper mâché team will be wearing on repeat this spring and summer.
Sunset Mist Tank Top
Playa Mini Blanca
Palm Shadows Bikini Top & Bottom
Palisades Knit Shorts
High Noon Cowgirl Hat
Sol Rays Bikini Top & Bottom
Bella Sarong
Written by Bailey Doyle.
