INTERVIEW: Sea Shepherd’s campaign continues in new doc ‘Chasing the Thunder’
Photo: Chasing the Thunder follows the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society on an epic 110-day journey. Photo courtesy of Discovery / Provided by network with permission.
Over the years, thanks to TV shows, books and newspaper articles, the public has had the chance to follow the activism and adventures of Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, the environmental organization founded by Paul Watson in 1977. They advocate for oceans and oceanic life, most notably whales, and they often take their fight out on the open water.
Their most recent project is the new documentary Chasing the Thunder, now streaming on discovery+, the new platform from Discovery. Billed as an eco-thriller, the film follows the Sea Shepherd crew on a record-breaking 110-day journey as they pursue a vessel called the Thunder. The allegations are that the Thunder has been poaching the waters, and it’s up to the Sea Shepherd’s two boats, the Bob Barker and Sam Simon, to track down and stop the Thunder. Along the way, they both assist and are assisted by Interpol.
“I’ve been making lots of television series for years, mostly social justice, and the last six years I’ve kind of flipped the script and only done environmental justice,” said Mark Benjamin, one of the filmmakers behind Chasing the Thunder. “Producers know how to get things done, so I figured out how to meet Paul Watson. And I was invited to a gathering of the global Sea Shepherd movement, which I think is in 40 countries. They’ve got branches everywhere, and they had a gathering in Vermont, at a place where Paul was housed.”
There apparently was mutual respect between Benjamin and Watson, and production companies soon enough started working together. Then Discovery came onboard, mostly because Sea Shepherd has a long history with the network — in particular the successful Whale Wars reality show.
“So we had hundreds of hours — 110 days — and this was such an honor because at the time when it was happening we didn’t know it was going to end like it did,” the director said, alluding to the thrilling finale of the documentary. “Who could know? We were aware that the ocean has a lot of problems with overfishing. … We spent a year in the editing room cutting this material. There were so many ways to cut it because they shot every day. Of course, you want to make the best film, so you really are digging through with a fine-tooth comb to try to figure out how to make the best film. That’s what we got with the Thunder.”
There were many team members and camera operators trying to bring this convoluted tale to audience members. For example, there were Sea Shepherd crew members who were capturing footage on both the Bob Barker (with Captain Peter Hammarstedt) and Sam Simon (with Captain Siddharth Chakravarty). For Benjamin, his cinematographic work focused on the law enforcement side with Interpol.
“I’m a director and cameraman, so it was easy for me to go do the Interpol section, which was very sensitive,” he said. “Interpol doesn’t let people in the building. They let us in. We were able to film at Interpol. The cooperation between Interpol, and the Sam Simon with Captain Siddharth Chakravarty and the Bob Barker with Peter Hammarstedt, was terrific. Their relationship evolved during the filming, and today it is terrific. We’re very close to Interpol now. We’ve had them come to screenings around the world.”
For Benjamin, the key to making the film, and the hopeful takeaway from the audience’s perspective, is to turn a critical eye to the many dramas that happen on the ocean and how these dramas impact oceanic life. “The thing about fish is they’re going to be there whether man is fishing or not,” Benjamin said. “The question is how many are we going to leave in the ocean so the rejuvenated quality that the ocean has will persist and won’t crash because it is crashing now.”
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Chasing the Thunder, directed by Mark Benjamin and Marc Levin, is now available to stream on discovery+. Click here for more information.
