Here It Is - Teaser Trailer 2

"Of Shark and Man" Teaser Trailer 2 from Scarlet View Media on Vimeo.

So then friends, it's been a long ride but here it is, Teaser Trailer 2!

If you remember when I released the rather ambiguous and slightly "arty" first teaser earlier this year, with a flashback to the very first promo video included, I did say that there would be three teasers and I haven't hidden from the notion that part II would be "a lot more sharky" and it's fair to say it is.

This teaser focuses on the aspects of the film which centre around the sharks, their importance to the reef, to the people, to me and of course, addresses my own personal journey to shark nirvana with a hint of the absolutely epic shark feeding controversy debate thrown in for good measure.

As I mentioned when I released the first one, the point of a teaser is to tease so don't expect any questions to be answered by this, however, it does do a couple of very important things:

• Proves the shark footage has what it takes
• Gives a first look at a first draft of the film's look. Cinematic, stylised and tailored specifically to the story, this isn't a standard colour balance job, it's about taking you into another world and using a variety of palettes to tell that story
• It gives another example of the film's musical content which is a big aspect of the design of the film
• It also, importantly, introduces you to some of the many people featured in the film
• It offers and insight to the depth of content in the film

From the outset, I said I was going to make something very different, something with vigour, style and its own identity and I hope that comes across in the two trailers I have released so far.

Of course, that couldn't be achieved without the help and input from the people who not only believe in the project, but who actually give a damn, not only about sharks, but their portrayal in the media. Please read the description that accompanies the trailer on Vimeo because it highlights these individuals and also, the people who donated to the first crowd funding campaign.

In case you haven't seen it yet (where have you been you maniac?!) below is Teaser Trailer 1


"Of Shark and Man" - Teaser Trailer 1 from Scarlet View Media on Vimeo.

I can't emphasise enough the importance of sharing this amongst your various social media sites, mailing lists, websites etc so I will repeat what I said last time:

"If you like the look of the teaser, you are into the concept of the film or you just want to help support independent film, please share this stuff. This is about representing an incredible story and an incredible animal properly and accurately, treating the audience with respect and as people who can look beyond what they're used to and who might just enjoy something a little different."

It costs nothing to watch, nothing to share and the work that is going into this film is monumental, seriously, not just me either. There are people donating time, creativity and energy into helping me finish this thing and the amount of work and passion that has gone in this far is gargantuan, that deserves 60 seconds of time to post on Facebook/Twitter etc right?

With talent and the donation of time and energy in mind, a huge thank you goes to Mark Burrows for producing the soundtrack with me (yes, we even did that from scratch ourselves too) who continuously and generously gives me his time and talent and has done for the last 16 years. He's a super talented dude, part of Scarlet View Media and has his own seriously badass Rock band, here they are with a cover of The Osmond's "Crazy Horses" with Dug Pinnock of King's X and it's absolutely brilliant!




If you like the sound of the track in the trailer and want a proper listen to it in isolation, here it is...

So, what now?

Back to the edit, a little more filming which I want to add then Teaser Trailer 3 which will cover the conservation element addressed in the movie.

There will also be another crowd-funding campaign to help raise funds for the film's release. That all costs money, money I don't have, and to give this film a proper release it needs a proper campaign behind it, I have big ideas and some unbelievably cool things to put out there to help the film gather momentum and hopefully get distribution but I can't do it without the help of the people, the people for whom this film is ultimately made. Keep an eye out for that.

The trailer also has "Tip Jar" enabled on the Vimeo page, please feel free to make a little donation, it all helps!

Please as well, feedback is always welcomed here, don't be shy, knowing you enjoy these helps me get through the bad days, knowing the things you think could be improved makes me better at what I do and suggestions for what you want to see help me understand exactly what you all think makes a great shark film!

Finally, "Behind Blue Glass," is still available and still selling! Why not treat yourself this weekend and see where all this madness began?!

That's enough from me, now, get yourself off and start sharing the trailer! ;)

Upping the ante!

So, our time here is running out...FAST! I wanna apologise again for the lack of updates but for the last week or so we have been sans internet which has been very frustrating but hey, I'm in the South Pacific, what did I expect?!

The other thing which hasn't been going according to plan either is the weather, the last week or so has seen pretty miserable skies, tonnes of rain and a fair bit of wind meaning surface conditions aren't great and the viz in the water has been variable to say the least. With visibility in mind, it's a bit of a double edged sword, on one hand, the murkier water makes the Bulls in particular more energetic, more unpredictable and they get closer, very close! However, with all that cool stuff going on, the murky water also makes the capture of these sequences very difficult, more action, less clarity. C'est la vie!

Speaking of getting close, that's what the final stages of production will be all about getting even closer to these animals. Being within touching distance of what may be the biggest Bull Sharks in the world is a pretty awe-inspiring experience, to move away from the confines of the walls and barriers which are expertly patrolled by the safety team ensuring all guests leave fully intact is no small matter.

 

Do I think I'm ready to take those next steps? Yes, of course, is it up to me? Hell no! You can't just go and play around with these sharks if you don't know what you're doing or have an understanding of how to handle both yourself and them. Will I be nervous? Yeah, probably a bit but that's not a bad thing, I have no intention of trying to be a hero and if I get the chance and don't feel comfortable, I will say so, there would be no shame in that because not many people at all get to venture out there, certainly not many like me!

 

This film is about relationships, convictions in one's beliefs and courage and all three relate back to the sharks here, my relationship and growing level of communication with these sharks, my relationship with Mike and everyone I meet here in Fiji, and just as important, my relationship with myself but remember this isn't all about me. The courage and belief these amazing people in Fiji have displayed in establishing, protecting and servicing a one off shark diving site which has now become, in my opinion, THE model for shark conservation for the rest of the world to follow is one hell of an achievement. What we can only hope is that there are more people like Mike and his team in other parts of the world with the courage to use this model and really get stuck into saving sharks. I hope so, but I fear not.

 

Going over "the edge" could be a metaphor for many things but in essence it is what it is, challenging one's self to test his own beliefs and ideals of himself and the sharks he loves so much and trusting that they play along. It's about respect, first and foremost respect for the animals, then respect for people putting you in this situation and then, that these guys with perhaps more experience with what lazy wordsmiths refer to as "The World's Most Dangerous Shark" than anyone else on the planet, trust that I am capable of doing it right and that hopefully they respect the reasons why I am doing it and end up respecting me. It's not for the "buzz," will it be a buzz? Of course it will, is that why I want to do it? No. It is all about the above and hopefully putting out a message that "Shark Week" ain't the bastion of all shark truths, quite the opposite in fact.

Anyway, what else? I went out with Hamish this morning to film Papa and Toombi laying the bait bins at around 6am. Now, different people find enjoyment in different things, watching telly, playing sport, playing music, taking all manner of illegal chemicals, whatever, I don't judge so don't judge me when I say getting up at 5am to dump bins full of fish heads in to the sea was a blast. Going down with the bin in that eerie pre-daylight, pre-humanised world and being circled by five friendly (and totally non-threatening) Grey Reef Sharks and joined briefly by a big Bull and a Whitetip Reef Shark was, well, it was mint! Also great to spend some time with Hamish and the unlucky B.A.D Boys who got rostered with the early morning, watching a beautiful sunrise and smelling of rotting tuna. Seriously, that is my idea of fun and I want to do it again, in fact, a proper early morning dive down there would be even better but I don't see that happening.

 

As for the film itself, I'm getting there but this last week ain't gonna be a holiday. There is still a shed load to do, will we pull it off? I sure hope so but time is running out so there is a lot of sweat and tears to go, no blood though as these sharks are thankfully, pretty well behaved...Usually! There are already a few I have become particularly fond of, the really heavy set, powerful and dominant Bulls, Maite, Grandma and Gill and a Grey Reef Shark called Tootsie, although Mike usually refers to Tootsie as "an arsehole" due to her very forthright, confident and aggressive nature but all that makes her a great performer. I prefer "Tootsie."

The big story is still no Tiger and I am starting to get a horrible sinking feeling we won't get one whilst we are here, the day one did turn up, "Adi," I was not diving, instead I was either throwing up or asleep due to a 24 hour bug or some dodgy Heineken, I wasn't told to give the canned beers a swerve here due to issues before so having one as a treat before bed turned into something rather grisly a few hours later but the less said about that the better!

Due to internet issues we have been unable to upload any more video diaries which is a real shame however, to compensate, if we cannot do so in the remaining week, I'll pop a load of stuff up online when I get back by way of an apology to you all.

Finally, Alex and Lisa, tell Sam and Charlie that Uncle David is bringing them back some shark teeth and they couldn't be fresher, a couple of them popped out of the mouths of some very big sharks right before my very eyes, pretty cool eh?

After having said the weather is finally improving, it's just started raining again...Bugger. Let's hope Dakuwaqa gives me a boost and throws some good fortune my way, I want this Tiger so badly...

The Official Teaser Trailer for "From the Office to the Ocean!"

"From the Office to the Ocean" - Official Teaser Trailer from David Diley on Vimeo.

A huge thank you to Hamish for the additional camera work for shots involving me, Mark Burrows for his skill in recording, mixing and mastering my music, Lee for the use of his roof terrace and Nick Rowan for allowing me to film in his office!

Please let me know what you think!

Quick review of October so far...

The last couple of weeks have been all about the trailer, the endless editing, generating effects, in particular reflections in glass (not easy) the recording of the music and writing the narration. The shot above is was taken during filming and I must say, the difference between broadcast HD and standard camcorder quality is nothing short of outstanding! The actual camera I am using at present is the one I intend to use to film my sequences for the film itself and is frankly, an amazing piece of kit. I'm not going to tell you what it is just yet though as I am waiting to hear back from them to see if they want to be involved, if they do, I would happily scream from the rooftops how much I love this camera!

The cost of shooting the trailer currently stands at £2, that is, two £1 bus tickets to travel the distance between two stops, I have been chased by a Gypsy's horse, been followed by two shirtless ne'er do wells outside a prison and got in to bed with Hamish in the middle of the afternoon...It's been an interesting experience to say the least!

The trailer needs to be finished in a week's time at the latest and there is still the last bit of music to record, the narration and some final text, it's going to be close but fingers crossed it will be done, up and ready to view by next weekend...ish!

With the Dive Show in Birmingham approaching fast, I am panicking somewhat about having all my printed material ready, hopefully it's just a case of me worrying about things more than I should (not unusual) but I have still to design and have printed, leaflets, fliers and posters promoting "From the Office..." I also have some T-Shirts and hoodies in front of me that need printing so we can be recognisable on the day so all in all with the trailer and Dive Show material to take into account, you could say I have my hands full!

As if all that wasn't enough, I am about a week away from almost certainly making the decision to become homeless. I'm not over the moon about this to say the least, I love my independence, I love having my own place where I can sit in my underpants and watch "Deal or No Deal" and "Malcolm in the Middle" without having to worry about offending people so those days will most likely be a thing of the past for a while and although this is frightening, it is also something which I am more than aware I need to do. It's worth noting that when I said at the beginning of all this, I was risking everything, it wasn't an empty statement and I wasn't lying. I am giving up everything to make this happen so if you are out there and think you may be able to help in some way, don't be shy, get in touch because I need it and appreciate any support offered to me.

If you're at the Dive Show, please come and say hello, I will have my own section of the Cameras Underwater stand and will be the dashingly handsome, shaven headed man in "from the Office to the Ocean," apparel and hopefully if he's available, will be accompanied by a large, rotund and loud individual also decked out in some funky Office to Ocean clobber!

The paypal link on the website www.officetoocean.com is up and running and can be found in "The Project" section under "contribute," if you're feeling flush and want to help out a bit, it is always humbly appreciated!

I also want to say a wholehearted congratulations to my friend in Florida, Susana, for her recent good news (I am delighted for you) and to thank her for a wonderful and very kind article she wrote about yours truly which can be found here

I hope you are all well, there will be a video diary coming soon plus the possibility of another radio interview in the pipeline, please keep an eye out, make your friends aware of this blog, the website and the facebook page and keep up the comments and questions, it's nice to feel I have friends out there!

David

Ambition...But at what price?

I heard a saying a few years ago that has stuck with me since, "In every great success story is a chapter entitled 'The Hard Times'..."

It's fair to say that what constitutes "hard times" is wholly relevant to the normal standards to which one is accustomed, these hard times may be fleeting glimpses of how those less fortunate than you live, causing you to once again appreciate your good fortune, for others, they encapsulate a lifelong struggle to get by, a situation whereby life is not for living, but enduring.

I was discussing with a friend last week, which would be worse, going through life not knowing what you want to achieve or spending your entire life with an overwhelming passion and ambition, striving to achieve something that almost always seems out of your reach. We came to the conclusion that each is probably equal and the only people who can be easily pleased are those who are satisfied with what they're given, nine-to-five job, mortgage, wife or husband they can tolerate enough to spend their lives with and a kid or two, they accept that this is their lot, at least they have a night out with their mates once a week to look forward to...

Think back to when you were a child, I would bet that every single one of you had an ambition, doctor, teacher, footballer, astronaut, movie star...How many of you have achieved your childhood dreams to at least some extent? Probably the minority, for those who didn't, do you still dream the same dream from time to time?

Let's be honest, many people have dreams that are very, very unlikely to ever become reality, the most common being "I want to be *insert celebrity*." This is obviously impossible because you can only be you, that is why the majority of people don't fulfill their ambitions, perhaps its a case of wanting to be that person now, without having to have put in all the work, writing their own chapter entitled "The Hard Times" in order to get there?

There is a school of thought that states "if you want it enough, you'll get it," well I'm afraid it's not that easy. The reality is that life gets in the way of what you truly want and in order to give yourself the best opportunity to achieve the things you dream of, you have to remove yourself from your previously "normal" life, focus everything of your being on your ambition and work like you have never worked before to make opportunities where you get that stroke of luck become more likely. The harder you work, the luckier you get...or so the saying goes.

I'll be honest, as I will always be, I haven't had any luck in this process so far, everything has happened because of something I have done to give myself a chance to make an opportunity for it to happen. Some things haven't gone to plan, others have gone better than expected, what I'm saying is that although some people get everything handed to them on a plate, others, like me and most likely you, don't and we have to work ten times harder to get to where we want to be. Is that struggle worth it? If not, give up. If you want it enough though, if you believe in it with everything you have, that then gives you the emotional strength to fight the fight, no matter how insurmountable your task may seem. That though, is only the beginning.

It's all about money. Say it again, it's all about money.

Why is it all about money? Because you don't have any of it, or at least enough of it to set you on the way to achieving your ambitions. That's when you need people that do have enough of it to help you but they want something back which is obviously only fair! You absolutely must be prepared to repay their benevolence in the manner they deem acceptable.

Here is where I am with everything so far, I need one thing and one thing only in order to actually achieve the first of my ambitions, the first film as part of "From the Office to the Ocean," and that one thing is £29,078.16, for arguments sake we'll say thirty grand.

What can I offer in return for that amount of cash? Plenty, alongside a willingness to discuss any other ideas of how my sponsors or investors will benefit from being involved in the process of this film being made. In ordinary situations, I wouldn't dream of asking people for financial assistance for things but this is as far away from being an ordinary situation as possible. I have planned to begin filming in February 2011 for four weeks, before returning to the UK to edit everything together alongside shooting and editing a "making of" feature and writing a number of articles about my story and the stories I explore whilst shooting the film. This means that realistically, the latest I can secure funding is in December of this year if it is to go to schedule.

That is not all, I will most likely have to leave my flat at the end of October at the latest and it is almost certain that I will have to rely on the kindness of others in allowing me to impose upon them until they deem my presence an annoyance and I have to move on again! Is it a stressful and pressurised situation? You bet your life it is but I wouldn't swap it for an easier life back in an office, slowly dying away and dreaming of what could have been!

This is me in my bedroom in my parents' house twenty years ago, holding one of my most prized possessions in the world, a signed book, sent all the way from Australia, from the one and only Valerie Taylor. I can't tell you how overwhelmed I was when it came in the post and to this day it takes pride of place in my living room.

The ambitions I have now are the same as then, to make a series of films about the relationship between sharks and humans, breaking new ground and doing something that focuses on getting more and more people to love and cherish sharks like I do and in turn, caring about their protection. The difference now is that I am in a position to actually do that, barring of course one rather sizable obstacle.

I do believe though however, that someone out there has it and would want to give it to me, it may even be ten people who want to give me three grand each or even a hundred who donate £300, either way, I want to repay those who help me make this happen and that is a cast iron promise and I never go back on my word. I believe it, Cameras Underwater believe it, several people of note in the diving, shark and media industries believe it and it is that belief and the validation of that belief from others that keeps me going.

My belief is so strong that should the unthinkable happen and I don't get the funding, I actually do have a backup plan, a very drastic, risky and slightly ridiculous backup plan which I would rather avoid if you don't mind!

So, to return to the quote with which I started this blog, I am going through the hard times now, it's not a problem, most of my adult life would fill this part of my story but the difference this time is that I am in the process of writing the following chapter. A friend of mine says to his son, "think of your life like a book, make it one you'd want to read," he thinks it's a bit daft, I personally think he's nailed it.

I'll finish by saying that I do appreciate you reading my blog, actually, properly appreciate it because its honest and your taking the time to read it does actually mean a lot to me. If I could ask you one favour, if you read it and enjoy it, please pass it on to at least one person who hasn't seen it, it may be about my journey but it's a story which I think resonates with most people and if I succeed, anyone who has followed my story will be a part of that success and see that it is possible!

"From the Office to the Ocean" has two primary messages, cherish, love and protect sharks and be inspired to make your dreams become reality, I know I have readers who feel as though I am speaking directly to them, they have told me themselves, if the message gets through and people start to embrace life, I will have succeeded in at least one of my goals, you never know, maybe someone will read it who can help me make this happen!

If you're on Facebook, there is now a group, just search for "From the Office to the Ocean," ditto on Twitter. To learn a bit more, check out www.officetoocean.com and in the coming days, I will blog here, more detail about part one of "From the Office..."

Sharks rule.

To be somebody...

There I was, sitting in the office pondering various sales targets whilst trying to speak to people I desperatley needed to contact who had seemingly disappeared off the face off the planet at the worst time possible. At that moment the phone rang, it was yet another client expecting me to work twice as hard but for a massive discount on the standard fee we would charge...

"It's the recession" they said, it's what they all said, here I am with my own rent and bills to pay, barely scraping by, merely existing from month to month and they wanted to talk to me about the recession! At that moment, barely two months ago, I made up my mind that I wasn't going to put up with mediocrity anymore, I was sick of having no control over my life, I loved the people I worked with, my boss was great but it just wasn't me, I wasn't achieving anything and most importantly I wasn't making a difference in the world.

When I was six I told my parents I wanted to spend my life diving with sharks and making films, just like my heroes, Ron and Valerie Taylor, but here I was at thirty-one, sitting in a stuffy office, spending all day wishing I was somewhere else, I would wake up on Monday morning with that sense of dread, so on that Monday morning I made a decision...I quit.

Don't get the wrong idea, I'm skint, my parents are skint, everyone I know is skint so I didn't have a safety net, the only safety net I have is my belief in myself and what I can achieve when I put my mind to it. I had already built a band from nothing, with no support (particularly financial) to one which appeared in Joel McIver's A-Z of the most important Rock bands in the world, shifting hundreds of thousands of EP's, albums and downloads and becoming one of the most critically acclaimed and popular underground Metal bands in the country. I figured the absolute desperation of my situation would drive me to achieve what everyone had told me to give up dreaming about so six weeks ago I set about realising the first of my many shark based ambitions...

Last year I wrote an article that appeared in the August 2009 edition of DIVER magazine which had managed to make it's way around the world. A couple of months ago I discovered my article had been posted on various websites and blogs with some highly complimentary feedback from some serious individuals within the shark world. I tracked one of these individuals down and formulated the idea for a film I wanted to make. In the space of a week I had gained full access to the story I wanted, I just needed the money to make it!

Just to remind you, I am skint, I certainly can't afford to pay for it, and so here begins my quest to make this film happen, the endless telephone conversations, emails and door knocking, all in a race against time before I lose my flat, end up homeless and have to go back to work, undoubtedly doing something I hate!

See, that's the thing about me, most people would imagine coming face to face with a large predatory shark to be their idea of hell, to me that is heaven, sitting in an office, clockwatching, making endless phone calls and wearing a suit is hell. It is that motivation that pushes me to achieve what I know I am capable of.

In the grand scheme of things, I am a nobody, but this nobody has so far managed to secure the services of an award winning underwater cameraman and interest from two major production companies, interested in discussing the posibility of making this film happen and a number of organisations who are discussing with me, the possibility of becoming involved. That's the point of this blog, I want to show all of you, also made to feel like nobodies by the restraints on your life through work, family and what you perceive to be your own boundaries that sometimes risks pay off and that ordinary people like you and I can achieve extraordinary things.

Great achievements happen through two two major factors, inspiration and perspiration. I would say that perspiration makes up 90% of this equation, the inspiration is covered, I have a great idea, a few great ideas actually but the perspiration is the hard bit! You may be asking where luck falls into this, I am firmly of the belief the harder you work the luckier you get, I also don't want to be relying on luck given my current situation!

I would imagine every person who reads this blog has a dream and that 99% of you haven't achieved that dream yet, hopefully I can show you that it is possible. I am an ordinary bloke from Manchester with an extraordinary passion for sharks, your passions may differ from mine but if I can help you go for it and realise at least some of your ambitions, I would consider that a pretty good result!

So here it is, Wednesday July 28th, I have no money, most likely won't have anywhere to live soon but I have a great idea, okay I have had interest in my idea, but at this stage all I have in the world is a great idea, passion, enthusiasm, knowledge and self belief...Should be one hell of a journey!