ABOUT

WHAT MAKES YOU STOKED?

Darieus Legg grew up on a sailboat on the ocean and in Kona, Hawaii. Under the tutelage of legendary big-wave surfer Shane Dorian, he competed on the World Qualifying Series for three years before transitioning to a life in film at 21.

He has been making portraits of people since he held a camera at five years old. That impulse — to watch someone closely, to find the story they can't see about themselves, and to hold it up like a mirror — has guided everything since.

As a director, producer, and narrative strategist, Darieus has led creative productions across documentary, branded content, and experiential events for organizations including Red Bull, Johnson & Johnson, the Hawaii International Film Festival, and Cornerstone OnDemand. His work has earned eight international film awards, two Golden Telly awards, two National Gold Addy awards, and a TEDx stage in Vancouver where he delivered the closing talk, "What Makes You Stoked?"

His surf documentary, Stoker Machine (2023), won Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Animation, and Best Sports Documentary across festivals from Paris to Toronto to Cannes. That same year, he was named Featured Artist at the 43rd Hawaii International Film Festival, where he was given carte blanche to direct the festival's animated trailer and rebrand its visual identity.

Out of his years making documentary portraits, Darieus developed the STOKE methodology — a five-step framework built around Stillness, Trust, Observation, Kindle, and Embody. He teaches STOKE as a keynote and workshop for organizations, and as a creative storytelling curriculum for middle school students through the Coast Film Festival.

Darieus believes to serve is to live. He thinks we were all put here to be useful to one another. Documenting someone's story, and using film and art as a mirror so they can see something about themselves they never did before — that is his way of helping. He founded Stoker Machine Studios in 2023.

He is currently directing and producing a feature documentary on Jamie O'Brien with Red Bull. He has been meditating since he was 15. He spends his time between California and Hawaii, and loves to travel, read, movies, and surf.