An older man with white hair and a beard sits in an industrial-style building, reminiscent of a scene from Watson's era, with large, bright windows. He's wearing a gray shirt, his expression serious as soft natural light bathes the space.
A diver in camouflage gear swims underwater near a large whale, capturing stunning footage with a Watson camera. The ocean water is clear, and sunlight filters down from above, illuminating the mesmerizing scene.
An older man with white hair and a beard is engrossed in a large book on a desk, his glasses glinting as he points at the pages. The room, filled with framed pictures, is softly lit by sunlight streaming through the window, casting gentle shadows reminiscent of Watson's tranquil studies.

WATSON

Conservation·1 x 100 min·Completed

'WATSON' follows Sea Shepherd founder Paul Watson's daring, lifelong mission to protect ocean wildlife, confronting illegal whalers and poachers worldwide.

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Genre
Conservation
Nature & Wildlife
Duration
1 × 100 min
Definition
4K
Audio
5.1
Status
Completed
Year
2019
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Synopsis

Like a crime-fighting superhero of the high seas, Sea Shepherd founder Paul Watson has spent his life sailing the globe to keep our oceans and their inhabitants safe.

A daring ship’s captain with no fear of danger, Watson and his crews have confronted illegal whaling vessels from Europe to the Southern Ocean, seal hunters in Canada, and shark finners in Central America. Impervious to threats, with more than one nation issuing warrants for his arrest, Watson continues to intervene on behalf of his “clients”: the ocean creatures endangered by overfishing and illegal activities on the high seas.

As a teenager in the 1960s, Watson left an abusive home and shipped out as a deck hand on a merchant vessel. Upon his return he helped found Greenpeace, putting himself in harm’s way to protect marine mammals. But in 1977, when his bold interventions got him kicked off of Greenpeace’s board of directors, he launched Sea Shepherd with a ragtag crew and a single ship. Four decades later, the direct-action group has chapters around the world and an international fleet of 13 ships, the world’s largest private navy.

Blending revealing contemporary interviews with Watson, archival clips of Sea Shepherd’s dramatic encounters, and spectacular underwater nature footage, award-winning documentarian Lesley Chilcott (An Inconvenient Truth, Waiting for “Superman”) paints a fascinating portrait of a man willing to put his own life and liberty at risk in a relentless quest to protect the oceans and the marine life within.

Team

Production Companies Animal Plant Presents Participant Media & Terra Mater Factual Studios Present An Invented by Girls Production
Directed by Lesley Chilcott
Produced by Louise Runge, p.g.a., Lesley Chilcott, p.g.a.
Producer Wolfgang Knöpfler

Team

Production Companies Animal Plant Presents Participant Media & Terra Mater Factual Studios Present An Invented by Girls Production
Directed by Lesley Chilcott
Produced by Louise Runge, p.g.a., Lesley Chilcott, p.g.a.
Producer Wolfgang Knöpfler
Executive producers Jeff Skoll, Diane Weyermann, Elise Pearlstein, Walter Köhler, Dinah Czezik-Müller
Edited by Greg Finton, ACE
Director of Photography Logan Schneider
Music by Christophe Beck
Underwater Photography by Cristian Dimitrius
Production Design by Heidi Adams
Sound Design by Frank Gaeta

Awards & Recognitions

San Juan Island, USA Friday Harbor Film Festival Winner: Explorers & Adventures Award 2022
San Juan Island, USA Friday Harbor Film Festival Nomination Best Overall Feature Film 2022
Shepherdstown, USA American Conservation Film Festival In official Selection 2021
UN HQ NYC, USA World Wildlife Day Film Showcase: Biodiversity Winner: Category Issues and Solutions 2020
Zurich, Switzerland films for future festival Activation Award: Most motivational Film 2020
Innsbruck, Austria INFF – Innsbruck Nature Film Festival In official Selection 2020
Dallas, USA EarthX Film Festival Audience Award: Best Feature Film 2019
Kiel, Germany Cinemare International Ocean Film Festival Ocean Conservation Award 2019
New York, USA Hamptons International Film Festival Winner: Zelda Penzel Giving Voice to the Voiceless Award 2019
New York City, USA Tribeca Film Festival Winner: Audience Award 2019
Bologna, Italy Biografilm Festival In official Selection 2019
Aspen, USA Areday Festival In official Selection 2019
Melbourne, Australia Melbourne International Film Festival In official Selection 2019
Camden, United Kingdom Camden Film Festival In official Selection 2019
Zurich, Switzerland Zurich Film Festival In official Selection 2019
Bergen, Norway Bergen International Film Festival In official Selection 2019
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