Once excluded from scientific diving, today women are on the front lines of the climate crisis, making scientific discoveries beneath the ocean's surface.
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ABOUT THE FILM
Breaking the Surface: The Women of Scientific Diving
Representation matters. Rarely have women been featured in nature and science documentaries. While this is changing, more films about women working in traditionally male-dominated spaces are needed to show aspiring scientists of all genders that they too can work and thrive in marine science. This novel film will showcase modern and pioneering women scientists who have broken barriers by using SCUBA diving to better understand and protect our oceans. We will produce a film that highlights the incredible ground-breaking research of women underwater scientists and illustrates their capacity to work anywhere on the planet, from the hot tropics of French Polynesia to under the sea ice in Antarctica. By doing so, we hope to inspire women and other underrepresented community members to become the next generation of scientific divers and join the battle against global climate change.
Release Date: October 2024
FILMAKER BIOS
Dr. Rowan McLachlan – Co-director/producer - Rowan is a marine biologist and scientific diver. For her research, she investigates the impacts of global and local environmental stressors on the health and survival of marine invertebrates. Through her work, she has researched the effects of ocean warming and acidification of Hawaiian coral reefs, the effects of nutrient pollution and over-fishing on the reefs of French Polynesia, and finally how methane seeps impact the seafloor marine life in Antarctica. She holds a Ph.D. from Ohio State University (USA) and a B.Sc. from St Andrews University (Scotland). She has used SCUBA diving as a tool to study marine life on six continents.
To learn more about Rowan's scientific research, or to follow her expedition blog, please click here to visit her website.
Justin Smith – Co-director/producer - Justin is an award-winning documentary director and scientific diver with extensive experience producing films about conserving the natural environment during the global climate crisis. His filmmaking has led him to all seven continents, including filming under the sea ice of Antarctica. He has also worked in the feature film industry in Los Angeles. He holds a degree in film from the University of Utah (USA) and an MBA from Oregon State University (USA).
Justin's work includes directing/co-directing: “Kel Wer”, “Relentless”, and “Saving Atlantis”. In addition, he was a cinematographer for “American Wine Story”, “The Second Warning”, and “The Wonder and the Worry”.
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CONTACT
If you have any questions about our film, would like to get involved, or are interested in supporting our project, please don't hesitate to email Rowan.
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"Breaking the Surface: The Women of Scientific Diving" is a film about women SCUBA diving scientists which will be released in October 2024