Free Diving Footage

[khoda23]

Hello everyone,

My name is Martin Khodabakhshian, I am an eight time Emmy award winning senior producer at ESPN who has the honor of producing my first documentary OUTSIDE of ESPN, on the legendary William Trubridge, entitled Breathe. I have posted the link of our first teaser trailer here: [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2osGJLA18lk]YouTube - "Breathe" Teaser Trailer #1[/ame]

I am already working with William and some underwater photographers on this project in shooting and gathering footage, but am writing to see if there are any filmographers out there who happen to have: a) any free diving footage of William Trubridge from 2004 to the present, and b) any examples of shallow water blackouts from basically any of the free diving disciplines. My intent there is to show the risks of free diving alone and that with a team of safety divers the chances of dying while performing this beautiful sport are slim to none.

If anyone wants to help and be a part of the documentary "Breathe" I would love to hear from you if you can help me with the above mentioned materials, especially the blackout footage. Everyone including myself is working on a pro bono agreement - unless the piece gets picked up for broadcast. That doesn't mean we can't discuss licensing if that is an issue, but this is a passion project that I know will pay off in the end and give free diving the exposure it deserves and hasn't really every received.

Thank you for reading and considering and you can email me directly at makhoda@comcast.net Thanks everyone!

 

[Kars]

Hi Martin,

Thanks for chiming in on this great Deeperblue forum, Welcome!
As you've seen your great teaser has already been posted on the main page.

I think in your teaser you put up the right and the connecting question, "why risk it?"
Indeed Freediving is one of the mysterious small sports that is, and maybe cannot be understood by the masses. If you succeed in communicating this, you'll have helped many in explaining their passion to their pears. I hope though that some mysteries remain, for that's part of the attraction on this pathway of self exploration.

Personally I cannot help you with any footage, I don't own any, but I'm sure there are many around (Competition Organisers) who like to help you out when indeed it will help, and not worsen, the idea that freediving can be done safely, like the for instance the AIDA competition records show.

Maybe your work will help people to start taking some real life calculated risks, experience, reflect, learn, grow to become colourful, responsible, thinking, adults.


Love, Courage and Water,

Kars

 

[Salehthefish]

Hello Martin and great Honor to have you on Board everyone loves this teaser...

I hope you will find what your looking for soon

All best

 

[agbiv]

Welcome from Texas! Best wishes on this interesting venture.

 

[cdavis]

The lead up to the "why" question was very well done. The question itself and how Will is filmed handling it was absolutely fantastic, one of the best things I've seen on freediving. There are lots of pat answers to that question, but the real "why" is so hard to get to. Wonderful to see someone set that out on film, thank you.

I look forward to seeing the whole thing.

Connor

 

[khoda23]

Thanks to those who've left a warm welcome. If anyone is interested, here's "Breathe" teaser trailer #2 ...

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NmMQ3-quGBI]YouTube - "Breathe" Teaser Trailer 2[/ame]

 

[nostres]

Thanks to those who've left a warm welcome. If anyone is interested, here's "Breathe" teaser trailer #2 ...

YouTube - "Breathe" Teaser Trailer 2

Warm welcome from me also, I love the shots, RED camera and Your work.
Just one thing bugs me a little. There is a statement in this taser "in April 2010 he tried to be the first free diver to reach 300ft on one breath of air".

In 2009 other free divers reached even 400ft on one breath of air. Of course we know that You mean "without fins" but to people from outside of sport it may be misleading and not fair to other world record holders.

So unless next part starts with "without fins" above statement in false, sorry
just had to clear that up. Great work nevertheless

 

[Kars]

If I were to do some nitpicking, you see William exhale, than pack (- inhale), after which you see him doing exhale banda's - diaphragm stretches.

My suggestion is to have a freediver in your team to see if it's all freediver logical and consistent.

I really like to use your film one day to show to the interested what freediving is.

 

[khoda23]

Thanks for the input and direction. I am comfortable with one breath of air because he is the first to reach that feat without any equipment. No fins, no rope, just a breath. No one before him has done it that way and not trying to be misleading - it's a tease. To get you curious and since there is truly nothing inacurrate about the statement I am comfortable with it. And both in and out of the free diving world what William and other free divers do by packing in their "last breath" despite taking several final breaths is still "one breath." thanks again for the interest in the film!
Posted via Mobile Device

 

[khoda23]

And for those of you who are concerned about accuracy Will himself is going to see and approve of this before release and am working with other free divers to ensure accuracy. A teaser is just that....the breathing exercises and tease lines are not to cheat the viewer or depict things inaccurately. It's to grab your afternoon. Spark an interest. The shots are quick - short - little description of what's going on let alone put the breathing sequence and training exercising clips in proper order. That will come with the completion of the doc. Make sense? But I rather be corrected that be wrong. In this case feel like we are ok. As with dive to 300 feet on one breath without having to mention without fins. It will be every evident what the discipline is in the doc.
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[Kars]

Thanks Martin,

Allow me to share what I liked about other freediving depictions. Hopefully you'll have some of these in yours.

I like the 2nd person perspective for it takes the viewer so easy into the world we so enjoy.

I also love the two long uninterrupted scenes of Ocean Men - Pipin diving through wreck Umberto through cave meeting dolphins, for they allow me to witness the slow meditative magic of being underwater in animated suspension. Indeed maybe a tough sell in this age of micro cuts editing to keep the attention of the overstimulated young minds glues to the screen watching cartoons mouth open, without blinking.

What I also like is to hear a voice over of William talking the viewer through his dive as we see him go. Some technical details, but mostly about his mind and perspective being so far from the world up there. One of reasons I like to repeat the old records is I like to see and feel how those before me may have felt doing that depth.

Oh and why I commented about the accuracy - and I think it will be fine now btw - is that one of the things that get me out of a movie is seeing unbelievable and stupid stuff.
These are spell breakers to me pulling me out of the happy world of the movie I was in.

BTW nice camera and colour work, I like the focus depth, framing, vibrant colours.

Keep up the good work!

 

[khoda23]

Thanks KARS. hopefully you, and both free divers and non free divers alike will enjoy te film. I appreciate the insight and support.
Posted via Mobile Device

 

[nostres]

Thanks for the input and direction. I am comfortable with one breath of air because he is the first to reach that feat without any equipment. No fins, no rope, just a breath. No one before him has done it that way and not trying to be misleading - it's a tease. To get you curious and since there is truly nothing inacurrate about the statement I am comfortable with it. And both in and out of the free diving world what William and other free divers do by packing in their "last breath" despite taking several final breaths is still "one breath." thanks again for the interest in the film!
Posted via Mobile Device

In my previous post I simply meant that freediving=one breath, no matter CWT, FIM or CNF. Therefore statement "In 2009 freedivers reached 400ft on one breath" is correct.

But that's OK, it's Your film so You can express any feelings You want and that's the beauty of filmmaking.

 

[dannybuoy]

Something about that question 'why risk it?' stuck with me for a month, and i tried to word it here:

Daan Verhoeven: 'Why risk it?'

About safety footage: one of the most famous surface blackout video is this one taken during Nordic Deep 2007 where things are a little hectic after a relatively deep BO

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLe81lUbPNg]YouTube - Freediver blackout surface video[/ame]

and there's a few in this one

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AaRhm16yR-Q]YouTube - Nordic Deep 2006 Freediving Competition[/ame]

I think both videos are owned by Sebastian Naslund; he might be able to help you with the originals and more.

 

[Kars]

Nice write up Daan.

Oh and euhm I'm in the second video doing a BO at 1'49" - those were the days

"Why risk it?"

For me a good dive is like an odyssey. It's an adventure to explore, test and find your true inner self. A way to rid myself of distractions and see what's pure and everlasting. After a transcending descend, flowing back to the surface my heart is clean and my view has cleared allowing me to feel the vibrant colours of love and compassion in this dull gray dark world.

- I will use this colour edit idea for my own little freediving film I want to make. -

 

[cdavis]

Excellent discussion by Daan V. Except I don't think it is a crap question at all and , I suspect, neither does he. Maybe it should be asked in different words like "Why do we freedive?" Same question, different flavor, just as hard to answer. Diving the depths that Will does, its pretty hard to argue that its not risky. The question is fair as worded, IMHO.

Connor

 

[khoda23]

Hey Dean thanks for the posts. I've actually reached out to Sebastian regarding the first harrowing SWB but he mentioned that he was really too busy to help and dig through his raws to find that particular footage or any other shallow water black outs. Bummed by I respect his schedule and am sure he doesn't have time to find that footage and I don't want to pester him again. If he finds time I am sure he will reach bak out to me. He is the one who sent me to this forum! Wish he could help. That footage is compelling and truly shows the importance of not free diving alone.
Posted via Mobile Device

 

[khoda23]

Also Daan (sorry my last post miscorrected your name to Dean, Daan is much cooler) I am glad my question lingered with you. As a man who doesn't free dive the why risk it question is an obvious one. Why do it? Why hold your breath for four plus minutes and dive as deep as you can? I know that in the free diving world
the risk doesn't seem evident because everyone is so prepared, well trained and focused. But that's like saying there's no risk in mountain climbing or drag racing. Playing pronfootball or jumping out a plane. Don't mistake risk with recklessness or thrill seeking. The question is simple: why donaonething that pushes your body in this way? Where one panic moment, or miscalculation or a meter too far can end in serious trouble? That's all. Simple. You'll have to wait for the film
to hear Will's answer! But I appreciate you writing about it even though you thought it was a crap question. It stuck with you and you wrote about it so it couldn't have been that bad!

Posted via Mobile Device

 

[dannybuoy]

Of course i understand the question from your point of view, but from the point of view of a freediver it is a question with so many assumptions and pre-conceived notions, asked so many times, that it becomes quite tedious. Nobody asks this question of for example football-players, a sport where the risks of injury are much greater. In holland we've had people dying on the soccer field, but nobody asks why 22 grown men would risk running after a ball. Plus 'Why risk it?' is a question based on fear, and freediving is a passion. From your footage and your choice of camera i can see you have a passion for documentary film-making and shooting, so you understand passion -don't you think the question 'what do you love about it?' would then be more inclusive?

Let me flip it: it's the difference between me asking you as a documentary film-maker "Why are you bugging your subjects with all these questions?" and asking "What fascinates you about people?" The answer will probably be about the same, the spirit in which it is given quite different.

That's what i thought was crap about the question, but you're right, it did bug me, so it was good crap. There's another crap question in that first teaser that's bugging me, much in the same vein, but i'm still brewing on that one.

 

[dannybuoy]

Done brewing:

Daan Verhoeven: normal vs. extreme

Sorry to read Seb is too busy; maybe Lotta Ericson can help you. She's one of the owners of Freedive Dahab and has organized a ton of competitions.