Sea of Shadows
Sea of Shadows is a documentary about environmental activists (Sea Shepherd), the Mexican Navy, and undercover investigators trying to prevent the extinction of the vaquita, a species of porpoise and the smallest whale in the world, by pulling gillnets, doing research, and fighting back Mexican cartels and Chinese mafia who are destroying ocean habitats in their brutal pursuit to harvest the swim bladder of the totoaba fish, known as the "cocaine of the sea".[5][6][2][3][7][8] The 1 hour and 44 minutes long film is directed by Richard Ladkani.
Sea of Shadows | |
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Directed by | Richard Ladkani[1] |
Produced by | Wolfgang Knöpfler Walter Köhler[2] |
Starring | Romel Eduardo Ledezma Abaroa Rafael Pacchiano Alamán Hector Capetillo Andrea Crosta and others[3] |
Music by | H. Scott Salinas[2] |
Cinematography | Richard Ladkani[3] |
Edited by | Georg Michael Fischer Verena Schönauer[2] |
Production company | Terra Mater Factual Studios[4] |
Distributed by | National Geographic, National Geographic Channel[3] |
Release date | September 20, 2019[3] |
Running time | 104 minutes[2] |
Country | Austria[3] |
Language | English + Spanish[3] |
Box office | $1,996[3] |
Reception
Sea of Shadows premiered in Austria on September 20, 2019.[3] It won the Sundance award for World Cinema Documentary and was acquired by the National Geographic Channel for broadcast.[9][10] "Conveying just how fraught and delicate conservation efforts can be, logistically and emotionally, an extraordinary sequence unfolds as a pursuit on the water, placing the viewer smack in the midst of it."[8]
See also
- The Cove (film)
- Behind The Cove, a documentary in response to the film
- Blackfish (film)
- The Whale (2011 film)
References
- "Sea of Shadows". Austrian Films.
- "Film Review: 'Sea of Shadows'". Variety. 2019-02-21.
- Sea of Shadows, retrieved 2020-02-01
- How 'rapid impact' films are igniting change for the planet
- Bentley, Jean (2019-11-08). "The Director of 'Sea of Shadows' Faced Down Cartels to Show the Fight to Save the World's Smallest Porpoise – IndieWire".
- Bradshaw, Peter (September 26, 2019). "Sea of Shadows review – porpoise documentary slips through the net" – via www.theguardian.com.
- National Geographic (2019-05-30). "Sea of Shadows Official Trailer - National Geographic". YouTube.com. National Geographic. Retrieved 2020-02-29. (1:58) "In award-winning SEA OF SHADOWS, a multinational team of scientists, activists, journalists and undercover agents go up against drug cartels and illegal traffickers to save the most endangered whale on Earth. In select theaters July 12."
- Linden, Sheri (2019-01-30). "'Sea of Shadows': Film Review - Sundance 2019". HollywoodReporter.com. Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2020-02-29.
- Hipes, Patrick (October 22, 2019). "Sundance Winner 'Sea Of Shadows' Gets Nat Geo Airdate".
- Sundance Institute (2019-01-08). "World Documentary Competition: Sea of Shadows". YouTube.com. Sundance Institute. Retrieved 2020-02-29. (2:54) "Meet Richard Ladkani, director of Sea of Shadows, playing in the World Cinema Documentary Competition at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival."