AD 2017 Q4

©XL CATLIN SEAVIEW SURVEY/THE OCEAN AGENCY /CHRISTOPHE BAILHACHE
Seaview Survey and unveiled it through the Street View
feature of Google Maps. But that wasn’t enough.
With their own eyes, Vevers and Orlowski saw an
ocean struggling for survival, but how could pretty
pictures of seals or sea turtles convey that? Vevers
looked to scientists for answers and found the story
of coral reefs. Reefs offered a visual way to reveal the
ocean’s plight.
With Orlowski along for the ride, Vevers met with
scientist after scientist about the keystone species of the
ocean’s most diverse ecosystem: the corals themselves.
They were getting sick, bleaching bright white and, in
some cases, dying. Vevers found scientists who could
predict the location of the next bleaching event based on
(abnormally high) ocean temperatures. They assembled
a team of diver-cinematographers to capture the
bleaching as it transpired.
Enter Rago, resident coral nerd. Although he grew up
in landlocked Colorado, Rago sought out the sea and its
quietest, most unassuming creatures at every opportunity.
He looks at coral the way most people would look at baby
monkeys — with love and fascination.
After four years of work, the team got the footage
it needed. Chasing Coral premiered at Sundance Film
A member of the Chasing Coral team captures footage of Glover’s
Reef, Belize.
Opposite: Chasing Coral director Jeff Orlowski prepares the team’s
custom-built drone for flight.
Festival in January 2017, and so began a quest to “speak
for the corals” and show audiences what is happening
beneath the waves. The group hopes viewers
worldwide will heed the corals’ warning.
I caught up with Orlowski a couple of weeks ago, and
we talked about the filmmaking process and the perks
and pitfalls of some of the diving he did during filming.
How did you start diving?
In 2005 I went to Thailand after the tsunami. After
helping out with cleanup for a week, I went to a
different part of Thailand to get my open-water
certification. I didn’t dive again until this film started,
but in the course of filming I got my advanced
open-water and rescue diver certifications. Now I’m
wrapping up my divemaster training.
What prompted you to make an underwater film?
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