MY OCTOPUS TEACHER
Craig Foster on his Oscar-winning film MY RELATIONSHIP WITH HUMANS CHANGED
NEVER in their wildest dreams did they imagine their “little film” would enjoy this kind of success. Back when it all started, filmmaker Craig Foster was suffering from such bad burnout he’d become disconnected from his teenage son and his wife, Swati Thiyagarajan, was desperately worried.
But one thing proved to be better therapy than all the human experts in the world: diving into the icy waters of the Atlantic Ocean and meeting an extraordinary eight-limbed creature that would touch him so deeply it gave him reason to engage with the world again.
The story Craig (53) went on to tell in My Octopus Teacher resonated with viewers in all four corners of the globe and became one of the top Netflix hits of 2020.
And the cherry on top of the film’s success was recently winning the Oscar for best documentary, hot on the heels of its gong at the Baftas. “I’m utterly overwhelmed. It’s an honour we never dreamt possible,” said Pippa Ehrlich, who accepted the Oscar in Los Angeles along with co-director James Reed. “In many ways this really is a tiny, personal story that played out in a sea forest at the very tip of Africa, but on a more universal level I hope it provided a glimpse of a different relationship between human beings and the natural world.”
For Craig and Swati (49), an Indian-born journalist and conservationist who also helped on the film, the experience has been life-changing. “When we started making this film in a small room in my house in Simon’s Town with no budget we didn’t even know how we’d get it broadcast,” Craig tells YOU.
“We just felt compelled to tell the story and we were very lucky that, after a few rough edit structures put together by Pippa, James and myself, Netflix came on board. For us that was huge – knowing we’d be beamed into countries around the world and in many languages.
“We were aware we’d probably get interest from wildlife and nature film festivals, but we had no idea how big this would actually become.”
CRAIG grew up in a wooden bungalow near a beach on the Cape Peninsula and spent his childhood in the surf and surrounding rock pools. He had his first dive aged just three. As an adult he lived in the Kalahari Desert for two years where the San taught him to survive. He turned that experience
‘SHE WAS WILD KIN TO ME AND IT WAS SUCH A PRIVILEGE TO BE LET INTO HER WORLD’
into the award-winning documentary The Great Dance: A Hunter’s Story in 2000 – and a gift for storytelling was born.
But as the years rolled by and work started to place increasing demands on him, he started to suffer from burnout and anxiety. The journey that would become My Octopus Teacher proved the best thing that could ever happen to Craig, Swati says. “Being in the ocean and in the sea forest was so healing for him and so of course I encouraged that. For four years we worked on the movie – it was a huge part of our lives.”
He viewed his remarkable octopus friend as a mentor who taught him life lessons. “In a strange way, our lives began to mirror each other and my relationship with humans changed,” says Craig.
The octopus also helped him improve his relationship with his son, Tom (now 18). “I’ve always been really close to Tom but when I was going through my burnout I didn’t have the energy and commitment to be a good parent,” Craig says.
Things changed when Craig took his boy to meet his underwater friend. Tom then started joining his dad on his daily dives and their bond began to improve.
“Being in nature and sharing all those experiences with him brought us even closer and the beautiful thing is when we finally made the film, he contributed by composing some of the music and doing all the drone footage,” he says proudly.
MY OCTOPUS Teacher, the first South African documentary to become a Netflix Original, was released during the global lockdown, which Pippa says helped its success.
“In a difficult year where many of us were stuck inside, feeling afraid and confused, a positive story that transports you to a magical world has a powerful appeal. Parts of this story are universal – love and friendship and connection and hope.”
In a video message, Craig, who was away on assignment at the time of the Oscars, says he’s “deeply honoured”. The avid conservationist has dedicated his life to learning about the secrets of the Great African Sea Forest – the kelp stretch along the Southern African coastline – and is co-founder of the Sea Change Project, an ocean conservation non-profit group that produced My Octopus Teacher.
He says he hopes the Oscar victory will finally “get this wonderful eco-sytem onto the world map”.
“It’s one of the most biodiverse places on our planet and it’s critical that we protect it,” he says.
“What’s been most exciting for us as an organisation has been the feedback. We’ve received thousands of messages from people around the world, many of whom have started diving.”
Swati is incredibly proud of how Craig has helped to inspire people to make deep connections with nature, but admits the attention can be overwhelming.
“It’s been a lot,” she says. “While it’s fantastic that people have loved this film – and we’re so grateful for that – if Craig had to respond to every single person who wants his time or his presence he’d never get another bit of work done.”
Craig is currently working on a book with Sea Change Project co-founder Ross Frylink. “We’re currently re-convening it and getting it ready for the US market. It will be called Underwater Wild,” he says. He and Swati remain passionately committed to the long-term protection and regeneration of the Great African Sea Forest. “That remains our main goal,” Swati says. “It’s just so wonderful that the country feels this pride in our film and that we’ve had such fantastic support from South Africans.”
Craig still dives and films every day. “This ecosystem offers a lifetime of learning,” he says.
And each time he enters the water he thinks of his dear friend. “She was wild kin to me and it was such a privilege to be let into her world.”
If there’s one thing he wants people to learn from the film it’s that “we humans are very much a part of this natural world”. “Any idea of separation or feeling superior is not just stupid, it’s dangerous. This is our home. It’s our food and water. There’s no separation. All life is precious and we need to cherish this wonderful gift we’ve been given.”
Thanks to his daily interactions with the octopus, and gradually gaining her trust, he’s now “very aware that each animal has their own personality”.
“My octopus teacher taught me they have deeply evolved, interesting lives of their own. We’re not the only sentient creatures on the planet.”