Holden’s Blue delivers a sad message about our oceans
Award-winning film a sobering look at the state of our seas
From literally choking on plastics to being wiped out by factory fishing, our oceans are in big trouble.
The award-winning documentary film Blue is a stunning, sobering look at the state of our seas and some of the smart, brave, underfunded activists who are taking action and working to pull our waterways back from the dangerous precipice of complete failure.
Filmed in Australia, Hawaii, the Philippines, Indonesia and the South Pacific, Blue is being screened across the country on World Oceans Day on June 7. It’s in Vancouver at the Park Theatre, and you need to pre-book tickets at ca.demand.film/blue/
Postmedia News caught up with the film’s Australian director, Karina Holden, and talked about her experience and the state of our seas.
Q What was the impetus for making this film?
A All of my life I have lived by the ocean. I have been a surfer, a sailor and a swimmer. Salt water has been my constant. But my relationship with the ocean has changed profoundly while making the film Blue. A filmmaker tells a story by immersing themselves in a subject. I was literally able to do this by diving into the central character of the film. I would let the ocean hold me, knowing this would guide my instincts while making Blue. My job was to tell the untold story of ocean change at a critical time when the marine world is on a precipice.
Q As a filmmaker, what were the biggest challenges in making this movie?
A Trying to find a way to tell this story that invites people in and empowers them was the biggest challenge, but I truly feel it’s something we achieved in spades. The film premiered at the United Nations and has since been screened around the world to audiences and won several major prizes, including Best Impact film at Vancouver Film Festival and the Okeanos Award for services to the ocean. But being in a cinema with audiences — aged from five to 85 years of age — and having people of all walks of life come up to me and tell me the profound impact Blue has had on their lives, well, that’s the biggest prize of all.
Q There is no sugar coating in this film. The oceans are at great risk and you show that clearly. What situation do you think is the most critical of the ones you focused on?
A I had always taken plastic for granted, but I never will again. When I witnessed the impact plastic is having directly on marine life that was a huge turning point for me … Every piece of plastic ever created is still on our planet today, cumulating as landfill or entering the oceans where it is being taken up in the food chain. Plastic particles and tiny microfibres are being ingested by krill and tiny fish, then being fed on my larger fish, meaning we’re also consuming plastic ourselves. It’s so important we start to use less plastic and find alternatives.
Q How do you feel about the future?
A To my mind, watching Blue is like diving. It is a descent into the unknown. And it does become darker the deeper you go. But we return to the surface, with hope and where it is light. And that first breath we take at the end of the film feels restorative.
That is why Blue is important. We need to delve into the darkness but feel how possible it is to make change. We need a better grasp of how to live on our finite planet, but also an understanding of how the future is something we can all affect. When you are doing something about the future, you can face it with hope.
Q Why is there so little political will to make substantial changes?
A I find the lack of big-picture political thinking around the environment shocking. But it comes down to the fact our society has placed more importance on commerce than conservation: exploit resources while we can. Ironically, the more we ignore these issues of the environment being in decline, the greater they will become for future leaders to address.
As communities we need to use our voice to speak out about how these things matter and bring them to the forefront. Blue is a film that speaks about the power of the individual to make a difference. We are individuals, but it’s us individuals that make up communities and communities make up constituencies that make up nations — and so together we can come together and create change and awareness. Not only do we need a better grasp of how to live on our finite planet, but also an understanding of how the future is something we can all affect.
Q At this very critical point what are the basic things we need to change in our lives? What can we do?
A It’s easy to untether yourself from nature when we live as urban creatures. We don’t suffer hardships — we turn on the air conditioner when it’s too hot and we turn on the electric blanket when it’s too cold. Everything comes to us out of season and packaged up. We have coddled ourselves away from these natural forces, and every now and then a storm or a bushfire might come through and take us by surprise, but increasingly we’ve seen ourselves separate to nature.
But now, more than ever, we need to embrace the mindset where we see ourselves as part of nature, not separate from it. Spending time in wild places is so nourishing for the soul but it also builds a connection back to the natural world. And when we love something, we’ll feel more impassioned to respect it and, if necessary, fight.