Making It Happen - Part 2

 

In part one I gave some background information to give you a bit of an idea of where I was coming from when starting this whole thing, you may see a lot of myself in you, you may see me as a totally different person but that doesn't mean you can't achieve your own dream. I'm not the oracle on how to make things happen, far from it, I just made what I have work for me. I can't stress enough, you will have skills and strengths I, nor other people out there doing this stuff, have, you just have to believe in those strengths. As a no doubt great man (who's name  can't remember) once said, success is based on 5% inspiration and 95% perspiration and he was right. Don't expect a free ride from anybody, this is your thing, get out there and make it happen.

In this blog I will focus entirely on the first steps I took  to make the production of "Of Shark and Man" happen but remember, I haven't even started the edit yet, post production has begun but the early stages are unbelievably tedious and drawn out so there is still legs in this story yet. I hope you can get some snippets of inspiration you feel could be of use to you and your own challenges. 

Let's get started...

 

Have an idea!

Yes it's blindingly obvious but it's also one of the hardest parts of the whole process. An original, viable idea isn't something that shoehorns the things you like into one little box, you need to have that first spark and then work on that initial flash of inspiration and that can take years.

I first had the idea for what would become "From the Office to the Ocean" over twenty years ago believe it or not and it was just one aspect of what I wanted to do with my life. What would become "From the Office..." was actually, originally intended to be a book. I would spend twelve months travelling the globe exploring the stories relating to the human relationship with sharks in different parts of the world and include lots of lovely glossy photos and stories of my adventures with the sharks. As it transpires, it seems Juliet Eilperin recently had a similar idea and was able to go and write "Demon Fish". I haven't read it yet, I will of course, but by all accounts it's very good and although vaguely similar to my idea, it's not the same so the book is still something I will be doing in the future.

However, I digress. In 2007 I was sitting on a beach in Egypt dreading the return to work and decided that I would go ahead and see if I could make this book happen so on my return to the UK I did some research about the basics of putting a trip like that together and also, most importantly, this... Lesson five, check everywhere you can that your idea has not already been done by someone else! 

In July of 2008 I visited the Bahamas for a shark diving trip and by now the fire was raging inside me to get out and do what I wanted with my life. I was pretty successful at work at the time, hence the trips to Egypt and the Bahamas, so if I were to give up work and go for it, I knew I would be risking a hell of a lot. At that stage I was still quite vague on just how to go about putting a twelve month round the world trip together and more importantly, getting someone else to pay for it because there was no way on earth I could!

It was summer 2008 and I was still working through the minefield of logistics of putting a book together, I was emailing everyone I could think of about this great idea I had had and by now had attended my first Dive Show (more on that later).

It was at this first Dive Show where an important thing happened. I was going from stall to stall trying to discuss my idea with anyone I could in the hope they might be interested and the second stall I went to was for a small dive shop in Harrogate (or somewhere like that anyway) where the guy running the stall gave me thirty seconds of him half listening to what I was saying. 

"You written anything before and had it published?" he asked, 

"erm, no but I've...."

"Sorry mate, not interested."

He had a point so I was on my toes straight over to the Diver Magazine stand where the editor, Steve Weinman had already agreed to meet me for five minutes. He'd had a little nibble on my idea from an email I had sent him so when I asked if I could write him an article about sharks he was more than happy to let me. So I did, and my article about the benefit of shark feeding operations and addressing the misconceptions which go with them was published in the August 2008 edition of the mag.

It was also around this time when I met up with Jim Standing from Fourth Element and we discussed my idea for the book and the various pitfalls and logistical problems I would face in the coming months. It was then he said something which would change everything and start a chain of events which would change my life forever, "you'd be better off doing a film to be honest."

I explained to Jim that making films about sharks was what I had always wanted to do more than anything, that I had chosen the book route because I thought it would be easier as I knew I was a fairly good writer and I had only limited experience behind a Sony DV8 Tape Camcorder to call upon in regards to film, despite having a passionate interest in film-making but he was adamant the film option would be more likely to yield the results I wanted. I bounced out of that meeting, buzzing from the excitement of various ideas spinning around in my head and over the coming months started to look into how I could put a twelve month film production together.

Fast forward to late summer 2009 and the defining moment of this whole process. I googled myself, "David Diley Shark" and was perplexed by the results. My article, the one I had written previously was all over the net and two people in particular were saying some very positive things, Patric Douglas at Shark Diver and a guy calling himself "DaShark" in Fiji. "Da Shark" in particular interested me because he seemed to be involved in a project about which I had been fascinated for a good few years, over a decade anyway, the Shark Reef story, so I did some research, all the while, remembering an idea for a film I had had since first hearing the story around 1998 (I think). That was it, this is my idea, I was going to go and make a film not over the course of a year all over the world, but break it up into separate films and I was gonna start with the first film in Fiji, the story of Shark Reef Marine Reserve, an amazing tale and even better, nobody else had gone and done it, something I could never, ever understand. If they're not gonna go and make the film I want to see then sod it, I'm gonna do it myself!

 

Do a proposal

I did one for the book and I did a new one for the film, in fact, it was the very first thing I did. I knew I needed a document I could send out to people who had even a tiny bit of interest. I'd never done one before so in keeping with what would be a theme for this whole project, I learned as I did.

The proposal would be done, then re-done, then re-done, the re-done again and again and again, often to focus on a specific potential sponsor so a huge amount of time was spent staring at a computer screen often until 3 or 4am and bear in mind I was still working at this point and having to get up at 7:30am so for months, I was utterly exhausted!

My proposal contained several key points, about me, about the story I wanted to tell, why I wanted to tell it, how much I would need, how I would get the money, what I was going to do with the film and perhaps most importantly, what benefits I could offer to a sponsor in return for their hard earned cash?

Putting together your budget, in other words, how much you need to make this happen, is not easy. My first budget was about £3600! Let's just say that fell way, way, way short of what it would end up costing to put this production together. That amount was with the first idea in mind, I would go alone, be the only cameraman and it was reliant on services and accommodation being provided for free. I very quickly realised the numerous mistakes I had made.

I will admit to being nervous as the cost of the project continued to escalate, I was worried that the higher the cost, the less likely it would be that someone would invest in my idea but the truth of the matter is this, lesson six, if you have a good enough idea, a good enough approach and enough benefits on offer to potential investors or sponsors, if your budget is realistic you stand a good chance of getting financial backing, in fact, the higher your budget (within reason) the more likely you are to get it, remember the old saying, "you get what you pay for!"

Make contacts!

Good, credible contacts who might just be able to help you are your most valuable asset, you need them, don't underestimate how much either because without them, you're screwed.

As I mentioned before, I had started going to the Birmingham and London Dive Shows, I have done about seven now and to this day, I haven't once done the mooching around the stalls and looking at dive gear thing, I am there solely on business and to meet people I think might see the benefit in working with me. What you will no doubt find, as I most certainly did, is that most people, to put it bluntly, couldn't give a shit about you or your idea, be ready for that and be ready to hear "no" a hundred times more than you hear "yes," further to that, expect not to hear anything at all two hundred times more than you even hear "no!"

I spent months sending emails, a minimum of twenty each day, on one particular day later into the process, I sent almost seven hundred. For all the good emails do, a phone call is better and even better than that is meeting people face to face. In the early stages I approached at least one hundred people and in that first wave of action, I met Jim Standing of Fourth Element, Steve Weinman of Diver Magazine and Mario, Dave and Duxy, then of Cameras Underwater. All these people bought into what I was doing and not only did they offer their support moving forward, their outward expression of enthusiasm and belief gave me an enormous boost.

I quit my job!

It was early June 2010, by now I had been in regular contact with the aforementioned "DaShark" who I had discovered via Patric Douglas, in a wonderful twist of fate, was none other than Mike Neumann, the man behind the Shark Reef Marine Reserve in Fiji! A rare stroke of luck indeed and I had made my contact, I had discussed my idea with him and sent him my proposal to which he responded extremely positively and it had come to the point when I had to ask the burning question, "Mike, if I can make this film happen would you facilitate my diving and support me in Fiji?"

I was confident he would say yes due to the nature of our previous correspondence and thankfully I wasn't disappointed but both Mike and I knew that in order to make this work, I would have to make a number of sacrifices and commit to it 100%

The weeks passed and I spent every second, of every day developing my idea and daydreaming of the moment I would set foot in Fiji for the first time. I became more and more energetic for the idea, more and more insistent that I could pull it off and even more determined to actually go and do it. Conversely, my commitment to the boring rigours of daily life went the opposite way and I viewed anything which took me away from working on my project with disdain at best and at worst, utter contempt.

The one thing which was taking up far too much time and energy better used elsewhere was my job. I've had some pretty shitty jobs for some pretty shitty bosses, I worked on the produce department at a major name supermarket chain whilst at university for a boss who was sixteen, three years younger than me,  I worked for a sports shop chain which actually paid you less per hour the more you worked, I was a steward in the away end at Barnsley FC's Oakwell ground and was paid £25 to spend match days battling with various sets of supporters from around the country, this was infinitely preferable however, to stewarding the entrance to the toilet, a vantage point where only one thing was actually visible as the game went on and that was drunk, urinating men. You get my point...

In June 2010 however, I worked for a great boss at a great little company. A boss who would actually reward hard work and endeavour and who went out of his way to make his tiny little team happy. I loved working with Dean, Lisa and Joe but I didn't love what I was doing. The rewards were good, the people great, but the actual day to day stuff was as far removed from what I wanted to do as you could get. I would view each day as one wasted which was taking me further from fulfilling my ambitions and I would dread the sound of the alarm clock. On that morning, June 28th 2010, as the alarm clock interrupted my three hours sleep, a distinct depression flowed through me, a dread, an overwhelming urge to scream from the rooftops, "f**k this!"

The voice inside me was repeating over and over again, "just quit, do it, do it, do it!" so I did. I walked in, asked Dean for a word and that was it. I have always wanted to leave a job in a blaze of glory, screaming obscenities whilst turning desks over and disappearing, leaving nothing else in my wake aside from open mouths and scattered post-it notes. I was never going to do this with Dean though, I like him far too much and hugely appreciated everything he had done for me, if I had wanted recruitment to be a career, I would have stayed there forever but I didn't and obviously, I didn't.

That Thursday was the first day of unemployment, the first day of the rest of my life and for the first time in thirty one years it felt exactly that, my life! It was a little nerve wracking but I figured the desperation of my new situation and the enormous risk I had taken would motivate me everyday to make my dream become a reality, I could concentrate full time on this gargantuan undertaking and I knew I was going to pull this off, like I said in part one, failure was never an option.

Tell the world what you are doing

The very first thing I did was to make a public commitment to seeing this through and there were two reasons for this. Firstly, I needed to build interest and initiate discussion about what it was I was doing, the more people talking about it, the more attractive it becomes to potential sponsors. Secondly, it was a way for me to get extra motivation, nobody likes to fail, even more so, nobody likes to fail in public. The more people I told, the greater the expectation on me to pull it off and alongside that, the greater the sense of embarrassment if I failed or even worse, gave up.

I started this blog, I set up a Facebook group, a website, a Twitter account and posted on various websites and forums and that was it, people were talking about this guy who had done something which looked very stupid, in the hope he could do something which looked impossible!

Go it alone or hand your idea to a Production Company?

The first plan was to get a production company on board who would put the production together and let me control the shoot, the story and the final edit which was admittedly, insanely naive. However, within less than a month, through an introduction made by Hamish, I was on the cusp of a meeting with a chief exec of a London based production company with a very good track record in factual programming and who's development producer was actually really keen on my idea.

Unfortunately and through no fault of my own or on the part of the production company, this meeting didn't take place and I was back to square one, a blow of course but I knew it wasn't going to be easy and there would be plenty more false dawns to come yet.

I did my research on suitable companies and did the rounds, emails, phone calls, those first two months or so were filled with conversations with producers, development execs and surly receptionists. When I got past the dreaded gate keeping jobsworths on reception (only joking, okay, half joking...) the conversations were helpful and pleasant, a little dismissive but they were polite nonetheless, but they didn't go anywhere. It was frustrating but at least they were all nice people and wished me luck!...Apart from one.

I have toyed with the idea of naming the absolute horror of a woman I spoke to at one production company in particular but I don't think that would be very professional, nor does she deserve to have her name linked with this project in any way shape or form, especially because, in being utterly detestable during our twenty minute conversation, she actually did me a huge favour! I have hinted at this story before but never told it, however, it's an important part of the journey so I'm going to tell it now because the chances are, you'll have your own story just like this to tell in the future...

I had spoken to this person's assistant twice already and she was enthusiastic, helpful and very friendly so I was feeling good, especially when she said to expect a call back when she had spoken to her boss. The phone rang the following day and thinking it was the assistant again, I answered cheerily greeting her by name and thanking her for calling me back;

"It's not ***** it's ****, I have a message to call you about something or other, what is it?"

I was taken aback by her somewhat confrontational approach but put it down to her being busy so gave my elevator pitch, a brief description of what I wanted to do...Silence.

I asked if she had any questions;

"Why do you want to do this then?"

"It's a fresh approach to shark related media, it's exciting, it's an amazing story and it's never been done before" I answered.

"Yes it has, we've done it." she barked.

I was surprised at this because I knew they hadn't and when I questioned this, the example she gave was so far removed from what I was doing I had wondered if she had heard what I said, it featured someone almost as far removed from the "everyman" as you can get, was based in the UK and had nothing to do with sharks or shark conservation. At that point, I knew the conversation wasn't going to bare fruit, but she continued;

"Who are you anyway, why should anyone give a damn about you and your story?! I'm sorry but people want to see familiar faces, you're a nobody, nobody is interested in watching other nobodies on television!"

This wasn't going well and she smelled blood, it was then I ended any hope of her taking me seriously;

"Why do you think someone like you can do something we haven't already, if you were worth knowing, I'd know you and I haven't a clue who you are!" She said.

"To be honest," I replied, "I think people are tired of seeing the same things in regards to sharks, the same places, the same people, the same stories and the same sharks, I know shark media better than most and in regards to television documentaries, it's stale, it has been for the last fifteen years, it's all been done before and to be honest, I think it's lazy, I want to inject new vigour into it."

"I've been making those shark documentaries for twenty years."

Oops!...To be honest, I didn't really care that I had offended her, in my mind, she needed telling and I just wanted the call to end, "so I take it you're not interested, thank you for your time anyway, I do appreciate you calling me."

"The only thing we would do is invite you for a screen test..."

Hang on, what's this? Maybe she's been breaking my balls to see what I'm made of and she is interested? I've more than fought my corner, maybe she is getting a modicum of respect for me?

"You need to send me full details of your idea, a screenplay and what you've done so far and we'll see about arranging a screen test afterwards."

Alarm bells started ringing, "what if you decide you don't like me after the screen test? I'm a little nervous at basically handing my idea over to you on the strength of you saying I might get a screen test." There was a pause...

"...Look, if we don't like you then we don't like you, do you want this film to be made or not? You have to realise though, if I want to make this film and take your idea I will and there will be nothing you can do about it. I have worked in this industry a long time and you're just some bloke with an idea, you ain't gonna make this on your own so you need me but I'll be honest, the chances of you being in it are slim, we have people we use all the time for stuff like this so why shouldn't I just replace you with them?!"

I was incredulous, maybe naively, I couldn't believe she would be so up front and arrogant about stealing my idea. Needless to say, that was the end of the call and the email was never sent. At that moment, in a potentially reckless display of defiance and with a "f**k you" attitude I said to myself that I was doing this alone and I didn't need a production company, I was going to set about doing this whole production entirely independent of the bullshit I had just had to put up with. It was one of the best decisions I would ever make...

To be continued...

Some exciting news!!

I am absolutely delighted, over the moon in fact and extremely proud to announce that photographic and moving image giant, Canon, are now endorsing myself and "From the Office to the Ocean."

So what does this mean? Well, firstly, I will personally be using Canon cameras and lenses for the long term future for both film and photographic work, it also means that I will have the considerable weight of the Canon brand and their marketing behind me. This is a big deal, Canon can realistically claim to be the makers of the best camera equipment around, the professional photos and films you see everyday are most likely captured using at least Canon lenses and more often than not Canon cameras so it is a guarantee of quality that is important in the making of everything that carries the "From the Office..." name.

Why Canon? This wasn't a case of just emailing and phoning a load of camera companies and hoping one of them was interested, I wanted it to be Canon and after speaking to one of the guys there was incredibly impressed by his attitude, technical knowledge and enthusiasm for what I am doing and was sold right from the beginning.

The camera I will very soon be the proud owner of, is the one above, the Canon 7D. I was introduced to the range of DSLR's by a friend of mine, Liam Wright, who runs his own production company, Banter Media and who was interviewing me for a documentary he is making. When he turned up with the Canon 5D MK II, I was surprised, I thought we were doing an interview, not a photo shoot and it was here when I learned about the capability of these amazing cameras. Not only do they shoot stills in 18-21 megapixels, they also shoot broadcast quality 1920x1080 HD video!

George Lucas is using them, Shane Meadows shot much of "This is England '86" on the 7D and they are rapidly becoming the tool of choice for filmmakers in need of flexibility, they offer an astonishing level of depth of field and after using Hamish's Canon 550D to shoot the teaser trailer I was absolutely insistent I wanted one of my own to film all of my footage for "From the Office to the Ocean."

There are three main reasons I am so keen on these Canon DSLRs. First of all, the quality is absolutely exceptional, full HD broadcast quality and professional standard stills capability. They also offer a depth of field range which is difficult to achieve with standard hand held filming cameras.

Secondly and perhaps most important is that they are affordable to an ordinary consumer budget. They're not cheap, that goes without saying, you don't get this kind of quality for peanuts but for less than £2000 you can get a camera and a couple of lenses that can get you professional results. It is important to me that if I am aiming to inspire ordinary people to do things, that I do it in a way in which they can also achieve the same results, i.e. that people would be able to do exactly what I do if they wanted to, instead of me trying to inspire you to follow in my footsteps but using equipment that is out of the reach of most people.

Finally, for a diver like me, these cameras are the answer to all my prayers. Every dive I do, I want to film but I also want the capability to take stills, this means a bulky housing for video and then having to have a separate stills camera in the pocket of my BCD and juggling between the two, also meaning having to buy two cameras and two housings. These canon DSLRs completely remove those problems, one camera, one housing and professional results in both still and film. Amazing.

It is also important for me to point out that I am not being paid to say any of this! Canon are not providing funding, they are however providing equipment, support and marketing for me and I am very happy to be able to have the pleasure of being able to endorse cameras I genuinely believe to be the best around for a consumer market looking to achieve professional results. For some examples of what this camera can do when in the hands of amateurs, look here

In other good news, the rather appalling screen shot above actually shows the BBC website and a brief interview they did with me about the shark attacks in Egypt. It's a very condensed write up of a conversation we had on Tuesday and whereas it's a little back to front,  have to say, fair play to them for being willing to give the shark's side of the story, they also turned it around in less than 24 hours. It's difficult for people with no understanding of something as complex as shark behaviour and the triggers for shark attack to be able to grasp the intricacies during a thirty minute phone call but well done them for being so open to trying to give a different slant on the reporting of the attacks. It also doesn't hurt that they have mentioned and linked "From the Office to the Ocean" and also the Shark Trust.

Thanks to everyone for the feedback on my last article about the Egyptian Shark attacks, it has already had over 3000 unique views in the space of four days which is pretty amazing and I love the comments and questions. If anyone has any requests for blogs for me to do, please send me your sharky suggestions and I'll do what I can.

Also, there is only 43 days left on my Indiegogo fundraising page, if you can help in any way, please do so, I will be more appreciative than you could ever imagine and there's also some pretty cool things up for grabs for you as well! I am getting closer and closer to making this film a reality but the closer I get, the harder my own situation becomes due to financial strains, I accepted this from the beginning and it's all part of the journey and I'm still happier than ever!



Finally, here's the teaser trailer again to show the results you can get with these canon cameras, as far as the range goes, the camera used for this was the "bottom" of that range, that is the 550D, 60D, 5DMKII and 7D and was the first time I had ever used one but the results speak for themselves I think.



Thanks for continuing to read this blog and support me and welcome to all my new friends and subscribers, it's great to have you! Huge, enormous and massive thanks to Alan and Dave at Canon, it was a pleasure to sit down with you at HQ and get the benefit of your expertise and generosity, you guys are awesome!

David

The super happy sunshine blog!

 

My friend Mike  pointed out to me on email recently that he could sense some frustration in one of my previous blogs and to be honest, he was right. When you focus all your energy and efforts on one thing it can sometimes lead to frustration when things aren't necessarily going your way and despite your best efforts, it feels like sometimes even the slightest obstacles are insurmountable.

Things are a bit different now though however and I can say from experience that tenacity, belief and enthusiasm DO pay off in the end so by way of cancelling out any previous negative vibes this is the super happy sunshine positivity blog!

First off, reaction to the Teaser Trailer has been absolutely incredible! It has received well over a thousand views in only seven days and comments have been supportive, complimentary and effusive in praise for how it looks, its message and the music. Also, the feedback from people I have nothing but total respect for has been hugely positive and fortified my belief in what I am doing. Here are some examples from Patric Douglas, Mike Neumann, Felix Leander and Richard Theiss

It's also worth pointing out that this blog is now averaging 4,500 unique views every month, that's approximately 150 people every day which is pretty amazing really seeing as it has only been live online since this July and I would like to thank every single one of you who regularly come back to read it!

The Dive Show was a huge success. Thank you to Jussi for the poster (see the above image) and once again the Cameras Underwater guys were an absolute pleasure to be around. Dave, Duxy, Mario and Caroline have to easily rank up there within the top one per cent of the nicest people in the world and their expertise and knowledge on all things relating to capturing underwater images meant the stand was never anything other than rammed, great news for me as I got to speak to a lot of new people!

It was great to catch up with Jim, Lea and the guys from Fourth Element, the amazing Alex Tattersall, Nick and Helen, Laura Evans, Paul Rose (who is looking more and more like a contender for James Bond every year), Steve Weinman and also to finally meet the incredibly friendly Blue Planet team. Martin from the Fiji Tourist Board was an absolute pleasure to be around and had it not been for it actually being at the show, my conversation with Alan Harbourne from canon would have gone from what was originally a mere introduction to us being chucked out of a pub at closing time, what a nice fella!

I was also very fortunate to finally get to spend some time with the lovely Lesley Rochat. Her talk on shark conservation and the (often unsung) work she and her colleagues undertake in South Africa was a definite highlight of the weekend. She is a passionate, articulate and knowledgeable shark advocate and some of the initiatives she has been involved in, in particular the marketing of pro-shark events and media, was nothing short of inspired! Lesley gets far less exposure than other shark conservationists and although personal exposure is not on her remit, she deserves far more. She's not in it to make money or become famous, she's in it because of a love for sharks and the ocean. She is also a case in point of someone who once was terrified of sharks until she had a face to face encounter which changed her life forever, inspiring her to commit her life to helping save what she once feared so much.

It was also great to catch up with another leader in the world of shark conservation, the brilliant Richard Peirce of the Shark Trust, and to enjoy his talk about his new book and film, "Shark Attack Britain," a slightly irreverent look at shark encounters in the UK.

The meetings I had at the Dive Show were very fruitful and I am hoping to have some exciting updates in the weeks to come! Watch this space....

If you're not aware of Indiegogo, it is a site which hosts people's independent projects and provides a platform for investment from anybody who may want to help the independent arts with donations large and small. In essence it showcases talent and also the often overlooked philanthropic nature of people who want to do their bit to help others succeed. The whole thing basically exudes goodness and positivity and with that in mind, as you can imagine, From the Office to the Ocean is featured! You will see that I have already received $355 in voluntary donations and that is in less than twenty four hours! I would love to articulate how much people's generosity means to me but I don't think it's possible, it means so much to me that people I know and also complete strangers, want to see me succeed. The whole concept of "From the Office..." is progress and achievement through positivity and inspiration and this is a perfect case in point. Donations are made in return for anything from a film credit to an invite to a premiere screening in the UK so have a look and see what you think.

The project is really now starting to gain momentum and big, household name organisations and companies and industry professionals are really starting to take me seriously which is great, it shows that if you focus and work hard you CAN achieve what at first seems almost impossible, it is also testament to the fact that most people, the large majority in fact, are decent, friendly and kind and do want to see people deserving of success, succeed.

With all this positivity flying around I want to thank the following people for their support friendship and encouragement as I may well not have mentioned them previously, Kris Allen, Mark Burrows, Mark Thorpe, Duncan Carson, Nicky Crawford, Laura Evans, Red Issue and all my United mates (too many to name however Andy McIntyre gets a mention as I know he wants one!), Richard Peirce, Terry Goss, Amanda Robinson, Jan Bailey, Benedikte Lydsal Uslam, Susana Navajas, Jim Standing and Howard Sawyer.

On the subject of Howard, check out his website. Howard and I have recently become acquainted and as well as being an articulate, intelligent writer and an excellent photographer, he's also a fascinating bloke. Check out his articles on the site, there are a couple about sharks, in particular shark feeding and the numbers used by shark conservation groups. He doesn't shirk issues and speaks his mind and I admire that, it's also worth pointing out that he addresses issues which are important to shark conservation from the angle of someone who openly admits to not being an all out shark enthusiast. It's an interesting take on an interesting subject, check out his articles and make up your own mind. He's a good guy and an intelligent guy and even if you don't agree with some of his views, at least enjoy some of his awesome photos.

That's it from me for another blog, as the winter draws in and the industrial grime envelopes my surroundings, I can still see rays of sunshine everyday and that's because of the brilliant people I am fortunate enough to know, many of whom I can count as genuine friends so a heartfelt thanks from me to you and if United can emerge victorious again in tomorrow's derby, that will ensure an extra wide smile on my mush for the days ahead!

"Sharks and Nazis..."

Rotund comedy genius, Ricky Gervais, once said that National Geographic's sole broadcasting output was programming focusing on either sharks or Nazis, obviously he was joking but one could argue that the media, for many years, has struggled to differentiate their message about sharks and Nazis. An all encompassing, malevolent force of evil, intent on the destruction of all mankind, personified in the image of a sneaky, heartless devil with an attitude problem...Their message about Mr Hitler and his brethren wasn't all together dissimilar either.

In fact, as the troops marched into battle at the Somme in 1916, blood simultaneously stained the beaches (and creek) of a popular Jersey Shore tourist resort as in just twelve days, sharks (I won't get on to the singular shark argument here, I could go on all day) killed four people and seriously injured another. The events at Matawan Creek altered society's perception of the shark forever, it was the only event in wartime America that removed the war from the front pages of the newspapers and from then on it was not uncommon to see cartoonists using sharks as caricatures of German U-Boats, there was even a widespread rumour circulating that the Germans had brought hundreds of ravenous sharks to the shores of the United States as some kind of biological super weapon to devour beach goers trying to cool off during the worst heatwave for a century. It was official, sharks were almost as big a threat to us all as the tyranny of evil, laying waste to thousands of young men on the battlefields of Europe...

That was ninety-four years ago, in between we have had the Indianapolis disaster, South Africa's Black December, high profile and widespread reported shark attacks such as those on Albert Kogler, Barry Wilson and Robert L Pamperin and of course, the ultimate shark shocker, JAWS. Here we are in 2010, have we really progressed much in regards to the media's representation of the shark?

It might be a controversial view but I don't think we have.

Why? Because there is still a distinct barrier between the scientific community and the "man on the street." Of course, there have been huge strides in the last decade or so in regards to wider reporting of the catastrophic plight facing the world's sharks and our oceans on a wider scale but it's thirty years too late and although coverage in the media is becoming more commonplace, it still needs more and for the media to focus on the real issues about sharks.

Shark Week has come and gone, being in the UK, I was unable to watch it as we haven't had the pleasure yet but looking at the titles of Discovery's programming I'm going to stick my neck out and say loads of really bad reconstructions, rehashing of documentaries that have been done before (and better) and perhaps a brief focus on the conservation issues. I have no problem with documentaries about shark attacks, it is an area of particular interest and expertise personally, but the wider stories are almost always missed.

Not being fortunate enough to have grown up in the Bahamas, Florida or Australia, I relied upon documentary films to feed my passion and shape my ambitions. Ron & Valerie Taylor were, and still are, somewhat god-like to me, their groundbreaking approach to interacting with sharks, their scientific yet personal presentation and Valerie's passionate yet reassuring narration heralded a golden age of underwater film-making. We have more technology at our disposal than ever before yet it seems, more often than not, the focus is on "yee-haw" macho men, "the housewives' favourites" or merely putting someone with a biology degree in front of a camera for sixty minutes to do the best he can with a script and story so dry you risk getting eczema merely watching it...

There are of course exceptions, Mike Rutzen's recent films have been consistently good, helped by his amiable personality and passion for his work, the BBC's Paul Rose is another who I want to see more of on our screens, he was by far the standout presence in the excellent "Oceans" series and having had the pleasure of his company on a few occasions, I can say from experience he is also an exceptionally nice bloke! Rob Stewart and Rick O'Barry also deserve praise for the work they have done, I have stated on here before my admiration for Rick and his passionate belief in actually doing something to make a difference.

Shark documentaries aside, the general standard of programming in the UK is atrocious, "101 ways to leave a game show," anything with Katie Price/Peter Andre attached to it and the recruitment process for T4's presenters in particular deserve a special mention. Reality television is as popular as ever, is that a case of the public getting what they want, or what they're given, you decide, however there is a case to be argued that says what can be more fascinating, intriguing or gripping than actual real life?

Where the majority of reality based television programmes focus on making ordinary people look daft, why not have reality television with a difference, where ordinary people can inspire, where their stories can illustrate wider issues and encourage dialect among the man on the street where previously he saw no relevance? Why not have reality television that shows ordinary people can actually do something just, worthwhile and with value?...Combine that with sharks and I think you'd be on to a winner!

If anybody connected with television happens to read this, I'd be happy to point you in the direction of someone who can make that programme for you!

That aside, I will state that where we are now in regards to the shark's media persona, is a far cry from yesteryear and for that we should all be grateful and may the upward curve in the personification of the shark as something at which we should all marvel and something to be enjoyed and treasured be a steep one!

Finally, if I could ask a favour, if you think you may know anyone who would be interested in my shark-centric ramblings, I would be delighted if you could point them in the direction of this blog, maybe encourage them to subscribe? We all need a little love from time to time ;)

www.officetoocean.com

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!