Javier Bardem to star in deep-sea documentary Sanctuary
JAVIER Bardem is to star in a documentary about his dive to the bottom of the Antarctic Ocean. The ‘Skyfall’ star will also produce and provide a voiceover for the film, ‘Sanctuary’, as part of a campaign to get the Antarctic seafloor declared a protected area. Javier told Variety ‘Sanctuary’ is “not about the messenger, it’s about the message, and what we need to do to get that message heard by people who really know how to create change.” The 48-year-old Oscar-winning actor — who is married to actress Penelope Cruz — dived 900 feet in a two-man submarine to the bottom of ocean in January to see for himself the extraordinary variety of life growing there. He said at the time: “As soon as we reached the seafloor, I was completely amazed by the overwhelming variety of colours and life all around us. I’m not a biologist, but to find a pink, yellow and green world of corals and sponges at the bottom of the Antarctic Ocean was a real surprise to me.”
‘Sanctuary’, directed by documentary filmmaker Alvaro Longoria, will feature footage from the dive, as well as other marine life in the area such as whales and penguins.
These species are endangered by climate change, one-use plastic bags and mass fishing practices.
The aim of the film is to promote the campaign to declare an 1.8 million square kilometre Antarctic Ocean Sanctuary, which would be the largest protected area on Earth.
Javier’s brother Carlos Bardem will also appear in the film and the brothers will produce the project together through their company Pingun Films.
The brothers will visit Berlin, Germany this week to show footage of the dive to the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR). A final decision as to whether to create the sanctuary will be taken by CCAMLR in October.
As soon as we reached the seafloor, I was completely amazed by the overwhelming variety of colours and life all around us. Javier Bardem