A Movie about Love

Whales and dolphins are not the sole inhabitants of the world’s oceans. There are the citizens of the Maldives in the Pacific and the fishermen of Papua New Guinea, as well as the sailors who crisscross the oceans in their fishing boats, or in the numerous container ships traveling back and forth between China and the U.S. And of course the inhabitants of coastal cities such as New York, Shanghai, Rotterdam or Nagoya. Everyone knows, although we sometimes tend to forget, that we all share a planet, the blue planet. Because oceans supply us with the oxygen that we all breathe, because they also supply us with a large portion of what we eat, and because they allow us to conduct the majority of our trade, oceans are at the center of our lives.

Poorly understood, often disliked because of the lurking danger, and certainly underestimated, oceans nonetheless share a deep bond with man. The calming nature of an ocean’s waves could certainly be the reason for this deep bond. And beaches remain the favorite destination of vacationers seeking a break from their daily routine of concrete and asphalt. Or maybe our attachment actually comes from our connection with this pri- mordial soup which, some billions of years ago, allowed life to flourish and ultimately, for us to envolve. This is this connection that I wanted to portray in my film, which OMEGA has generously agreed to sponsor. I wanted to show the beauty of the oceans, their diversity, their usefulness, but also the threats that they face today and the potential solutions that mankind can bring. Indeed, mankind is both the cause and the remedy of its ills.

To see this project through, Michael Pitiot and I enlisted the help of the most talented camera crew and top ocean experts. They have teamed together to produce and assemble the most beautiful, compelling and significant images imaginable of our oceans. In a sense, this film is therefore not just mine. It is a collaborative effort which represents the various collective contributions and new associations that need to be put into place to save our planet. And it will surely be necessary for everyone to work together to change the world. Each of the photographers and cameramen with whom I have had the pleasure of working on this project has a background similar to mine: each has seen the beauty of this world, has been struck by that beauty, and has chosen to bear witness to it, in order to ultimately protect it. Even if the world has changed and is currently facing numerous threats, it remains magnificent.

Reporting on its beauty might be the start of a necessary momentum to protect it. Paul Claudel once wrote: “It is not my thorns that protect me, says the rose. It is my fragrance.” Similarly, the predictions of environmental doom and gloom will not save the world, but our capacity to be touched by the earth’s plight and to feel its beauty just might. All of us have the ability to see beauty, and this ability should be set free so that we can share it with others and allow our hearts to speak of love. Ultimately, it is love that will change this world. That is what I am trying to portray in this film. That is the message that I have always tried to convey.

Yann Arthus-Bertrand