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A MULTI-TRIP DOCUMENTARY PROJECT IN THE GREATEST COLD WATER DIVING ON EARTH! Join the film crew! As everyone knows, film budgets are shrinking and these days, not many film makers have the budget to have a large crew on location working on a natural history film. Last year I experimented with a new way of making a documentary. I went to the Philippines to work on a documentary about life on a coral reef with a very small budget. Instead of hiring an expensive professional crew, I was joined by a small band of rugged volunteers working on the film with me in an "earthwatch" style. That means they paid their own way and had a very unique diving vacation experience. They learned underwater film production on-the-job as they helped set up gear and shots, scout animals, locations and behaviors, and wrangle the critters to get the shots. It was challenging, it was hard work, and it was extremely fun. At the end of the trip, everyone expressed interest in doing it again, and truly seemed to enjoy the experience. Although I felt I might have been working the team a little hard, most felt that I could have even worked them harder. The more challenging the shot, the more the team pulled together, and the more exciting it was when we finally completed the shot. That film, called Secrets of the Reef, is now in post production and will probably be finished in 6-8 months. The rough cut is amazing. I had so much fun and enjoyed working on the film so much that I decided I would like to do another film this way. Since it takes a while to set these things up, I have to start planning now, even though we don't start shooting until 2007. Of course, I like a challenge, so rather than one long shoot to do the whole film in one location, I'm doing at least 5 shoots over the next 2 years all up and down the coast of British Columbia. For now I have not planned the 2008 shoots, but only 2007. We will need to see what we get in 2007 before we can plan the 2008 trips. It's a film about life in the cold waters of the Pacific northwest. Although I have not completely planned the entire storyline and script yet, this is a film that will tell a story about a cast of characters that are largely unknown outside of diving circles. We will be filming fish, invertebrates, dolphins, whales, sharks, kelp, baitballs, and pretty much anything else you can imagine. Natural behavior shots will be an important and challenging part of the shoots. I'm sure anyone reading this is aware that British Columbia has the finest cold water diving anywhere on Earth. The trick is finding people who are comfortable enough in the water with drysuits to handle the kind of work we will be doing. What kind of work is that??? • Repeated dives in 45 degree water • Handling wild animals • Going places where the average tourist doesn't dive to get just the right shot. • Working at times in current • Handling heavy and cumbersome high definition video gear including lights, a tripod, weights to hold everything down, bait, etc. • Long days. Are you the kind of person that thrives on challenges? Do you want a vacation that offers a little extra? Do you like diving with a purpose rather than just looking at the fish dive after dive? Like to see your name in the credits? This is your kind of trip. We need a team who are very confident and capable cold water divers and have experience in a dry suit. You should be able to get along with others in close quarters (that means, have a good sense of humor, like to have fun and not get annoyed easily when things don't go exactly right, because they rarely do!) If you think you are that person, drop me a line! We have only 5 spots on each of the 2007 trips on a 7 person team. That means there will be 5 volunteer team members along with me and the production manager Julia Cichowski. These spots will not last long, and the people who get to work on this project will have the experience of a lifetime. DATES (2008-to be announced):
COST: Approx USD $2,299.00 per person, but variable based on each trip. INCLUDES: All diving, meals, airfills, tanks, weights, drinks and airport transfers. Does not include airfare. You will need to fly into Vancouver, BC then either take a small commuter flight to Port Hardy or a ferry to Nanaimo, depending on where we decide to start each trip. That information will be available shortly. Both of the 2007 trips will concentrate on fish and invertebrate behavior sequences in BC, with emphasis on the Port Hardy area. That means, the best diving in BC! |
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Last Update 9/27/05