Few animals have inspired as much fear, fascination as the shark.
[Proof of concept, full treatment available on request. Email [email protected]]
Few animals have inspired as much fear, fascination as the shark. This feature documentary begins with a simple question – why are we so afraid of them? We meet world leading scientists, conservationists, media figures, survivors, entrepreneurs and true believers who each hold a stake in how we see these animals.
[Proof of concept, full treatment available on request. Email [email protected]]
DURATION: 85 MINUTES
Issue area
We’re addressing the deep cultural misunderstanding of sharks, and the polarised, fear-driven media narratives that surround them. As climate change and human pressure on ocean ecosystems bring people and sharks into contact in new ways, we urgently need better public conversations about risk, safety and coexistence – yet the stories we’re told are getting louder and more sensational, not clearer. The consequences are real: reactionary policy, harmful mitigation practices, and an ecological crisis unfolding largely out of public view, with more than a third of shark and ray species now threatened with extinction.
Our vision is to shift the cultural narrative around sharks from fear to understanding – from monsters to misunderstood ecological guardians.
We want audiences to leave not just informed but reoriented – seeing sharks, and the forces that shape our fears, in an entirely new light.
• Use accurate, science based language about sharks
• Support non lethal shark mitigation
• Back marine conservation groups
• Help bring ocean literacy into schools
• Challenge fear based narratives when they appear
Sean O’Reilly is a director and producer drawn to films that remind humanity of forgotten truths. He produced the short film Mother, Child (2017), which won Best Short Film at the ATOM Film Awards and screened at Melbourne International Film Festival, Houston International Film Festival, and other festivals.
Sean has also worked across branded and documentary storytelling, creating the digital docu-series Discoveries for four seasons – an award-winning series following travellers seeking life-changing experiences. His conservation storytelling includes the short film Patagonia Penguins with Dr Pablo García Borboroglu, which won the Whitley Fund for Nature gold award (2018).
Sean created and produced the 8 x 30-minute TV series My Van Life, distributed worldwide, following a young American living in a van and meeting nomads across America. He is currently producing and directing Screen Australia-supported feature documentary, Guided by Horses.
Sarah Beard — Executive Producer
Sarah Beard is a documentary and impact producer with more than 30 years’ experience delivering film and television projects for national and international audiences. Focused on ocean conservation, her credits include the award-winning BLUE, Sea Lions: Life By A Whisker (IMAX), Secrets of the Octopus (EP James Cameron, National Geographic/Disney+) and Sea Otters 3D (IMAX). She currently leads the Australian impact campaign for Ocean with David Attenborough (Minderoo Foundation) and Trade Secret (Untitled Film Works).
$157,956
FUNDING GOAL$20,000
FUNDS RAISED1
SUPPORTERS
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