The Gem Bethel, ME
Kyle Wosner
The Chewonki Foundation
My Octopus Teacher— Life in the intertidal zone: Tide pools & kelp forests
Program Description
Chewonki Foundation’s Traveling Natural History Program: Tide Pools
The tide pool is home to a variety of species whose unique adaptations allow them to maintain stability in a world that is in a constant state of change. Which species can endure the waves, tides and temperature changes of the rocky coast? Using this interactive traveling display, participants will dip their hands into the three zones of Maine’s rocky intertidal ecosystem and touch some of the ocean’s most magnificent species.
Presented At
The Gem Bethel, ME
Film Synopsis
A filmmaker forges an unusual friendship with an octopus living in a South African kelp forest.
Craig Foster, suffering from a loss of purpose, begins a daily diving regimen in the freezing kelp forests at the tip of Africa in order to re-energize himself. What he discovers below the water’s surface is a totally alien motivation in the form of an unusually curious octopus. This beautiful record of an animal’s entire life—something seldom achieved in the wild, let alone underwater—was shot over a full year and explores the habits and personality of a strange, undulating creature that most of us have only ever eaten.
Beyond intelligent, dextrous and resilient, the cephalopod shares her secret world with Foster as they develop a touching bond. The underwater encounters are literally breathtaking as Foster holds his breath while interacting with the octopus. An immersive portrait of human–animal understanding, brimming with danger, drama and devastating emotion, My Octopus Teacher grabs you with all eight arms and changes its camouflage—showing you colours and textures you’ve never seen before. [Angie Driscoll, Hot Docs Film Fest]
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