The Not Next Big Blue ?
Posted By Paul Kotik on 14 January 2007
Sitting in a hotel room that afternoon watching a thunderstorm, Justin and I made a pact that we would make our own film about freediving. He would be the lead actor, and I would write and direct it. We would set out to portray freediving as a beautiful and natural sport, one deserving treatment equal to any other legitimate sport.
We held an open call and assembled a group of enthusiastic San Diegans for the cast and crew. We also got a generous offer from Performance Freediving president Kirk Krack, who said if we could find a way to get down to the Cayman Islands in April 2005, he'd let Justin use the dive line after their record attempts. We pooled our frequent flier miles and made the trip. The water was crystal clear wtih 100ft plus visibility, and underwater cameraman Chris Brandson got some incredible shots that really captured the beauty of the sport.
DB - Did Justin have any freediving experience before you shot the film?
Sky - Justin had his scuba certification, but had never freedived until this project. It was very important to us that the freediving experiences in the film be authentic, so we decided not to use stunt divers.
To train Justin as a freediver, we researched various clinics and instructors and decided to go with the Performance Freediving courses because of their emphasis on safety. We attended the Basic Freediver program in Malibu, CA. and were thrilled to discover that World Champion Martin Stepanek was an actual instructor along with team coach Kirk Krack. Justin learned static and dynamic apnea techniques, depth diving techniques, and most importantly the safety standards. They also did college-style class work and Justin took a lot of notes on the breathe-up and recovery techniques so he could perform them correctly. After the clinic we put together a training program that included static and dynamic apnea in the pool, and ocean training at La Jolla Cove.
In addition, my former teammate Erin Hartwell put together a general fitness program for Justin, as he was 50 pounds overweight to begin with and needed to have Martin Stepanek-like abs by the time of filming! Justin ran, swam, and lifted weights every day.
With the help of Performance Freediving, Justin was able to hit a depth just over 100ft by the time of the shoot, which enabled us to stick to our initial goal of having all dives and training in the film be authentic.
Justin fell in love with the water, and has continued freediving after filming was over.
DB - You portray freediving as an almost spiritual experience for Max, your main character. Why was this important to you?
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