MOST know James Cameron as the visionary director of Titanic, Avatar, The Terminator, Aliens and The Abyss.
He is also known as the man with a strong passion for the deep ocean.
The story has it that it was his persistence and peserverance that gave him access to actual footage of the ill-fated British ocean liner Titanic on the seabed of the North Atlantic Ocean.
In his documentary, Deepsea Challenge, you will learn more of his fascination towards the vast oceans.
As the National Geographic explorer-in-residence, he embarks on a major expedition by diving into the deepest point in the planet — the ocean floors of Mariana Trench, which is 10,908m below the sea surface.
The trench, located in the western North Pacific Ocean, is so deep that Mount Everest could fit into it with 2,000m to spare.
Who knows what lives there? However, that has not deterred Cameron from diving headfirst (no pun intended) into the unknown.
The documentary begins as the Canadian director tells viewers about his interest in diving which began when he was a child.
This growing fascination towards the deep waters influenced his future expeditions to the wrecks of Titanic and German battleship Bismarck.
Cameron wants to go even deeper into the sea.
Here, he targets the Mariana Trench, also for reasons to help humans understand nature better.
By exploring these depths, Cameron can discover new life forms and learn more about undersea earthquakes and the tsunami they cause.
Before this, only two men have ever been in the Mariana Trench, na mely ocea nographer Don Walsh and scientist Jacques Piccard back in 1960.
Since then, no other individual has ever made it back there.
“There’s still a vast frontier here on Planet Earth that’s unexplored,” Cameron says.
He diligently works with his team of experts on building a full-oceandepth submersible he affectionately calls the Deepsea Challenger that can withstand the crushing pressure of the deep ocean.
The Challenger can only fit one person, so Cameron has to pilot the submarine himself.
This can be considered a deadly mission because if anything goes wrong, there is no one to help him down there.
The sheer idea of going into uncharted territory is scary for anyone, let alone travelling there by yourself in a cramped vehicle that can explode anytime.
The endless possibilities don’t seem to frighten Cameron at all, as he strides forward optimistically despite the fact that he may not make it back to the surface and that there are about a 100 ways to die in this mission.
Cameron makes a few test dives before going for the Mariana Trench , including at Jer vis Bay, Sydney and New Britain, Papua New Guinea.
Like any tough mission, Cameron and his team’s plans are not smooth-sailing as they face one hurdle after another.
The technical obstacles are thankfully explained briefly without going into too much scientific detail.
These moments provide climactic scenes to the documentary and give it some colour, just like how they would in a feature film.
Here, we can see Cameron working as a no-nonsense leader, and how he wants things to get done, no matter what.
However, there are moments when he jokes with his team, which balances things out.
Cameron also explains his thoughts and feelings as he travels undersea.
His voice sounds so soothing and assured, partly complimented by the view of serene blue waters.
The documentary also possesses a great script.
Cameron’s words are artfully constructed to provide viewers with an elaborate idea of how beautiful the ocean life and surrounding are.
You further understand what the expedition, and deep sea diving in general, mean to a man like Cameron.
At the same time, he asks himself: “Am I a full-time filmmaker and part-time explorer, or a full-time explorer and part-time filmmaker?” The documentary shows clips from Cameron’s films, namely The Abyss, Avatar and Titanic to show his love for filmmaking.
Interviews with members of Cameron’s expedition team and his wife, Suzy, are also included to give a human touch to such scientific exploration.
As viewers will get to see, deepsea exploration is something Cameron holds close to his heart.
His words are quite inspiring too, giving much hope to anybody to achieve their dreams through hard work and dedication.
The documentary offers a stunning view (complimented by some 3D effects) of the deep ocean and its creatures, some of which viewers may have never seen before.
Although children in general may find the documentary a bit dready, those with a deep interest in science and the vast ocean will find it appealing.
See a different side to the filmmaker and his passion for deepsea exploring.
NOW SHOWING
DEEPSEA
CHALLENGE 3D
Directed by John
Bruno, Ray Quint and
Andrew Wight
Starring James
Cameron
Duration 91 mins
Rating U
DO YOU KNOW...
• The deepest part of the world’s oceans, the Mariana Trench is a 2,414km-long underwater gash in the earth’s crust located in the western Pacific Ocean.
• The idea for a full-oceandepth vehicle was born in 2002.
Over the following three years, Cameron and Australian engineer Ron Allum developed the concept, officially kicking off the engineering process in 2005.
It took a further seven years of research, design, building and testing before the Deepsea Challenger was ready for the expedition.
• The Deepsea Challenger is 7.3m tall and weighs 10,432kg.
When diving to full ocean depth the sub carries 544kg of ballast, which must be jettisoned in order to return to the surface.
• Later analysis of the specimens Cameron collected during this and other dives in the sub reveal many life forms, with at least 100 of them already identified as new species.
One shrimplike amphipod was found to produce a compound that was already in clinical trials to treat Alzheimer’s disease.
• Cameron earned his scuba certification at 16 while living in rural Canada.
While still in high school, he wrote a short story titled The Abyss, which became the seed for his 1989 science-fiction deep-ocean diving adventure film of the same title.
He has led eight deep ocean expeditions, made over 80 submersible dives, and is an accomplished submersible and ROV (remotely operated underwater vehicle) pilot.