My Octopus Teacher | |
---|---|
Directed by |
|
Written by |
|
Produced by | Craig Foster |
Starring |
|
Cinematography | Roger Horrocks |
Edited by |
|
Music by | Kevin Smuts |
Production companies | Off The Fence The Sea Change Project |
Distributed by | Netflix |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 85 minutes |
Country | South Africa |
Language | English |
My Octopus Teacher is a 2020 Netflix Original documentary film directed by Pippa Ehrlich and James Reed, which documents a year spent by filmmaker Craig Foster forging a relationship with a wild common octopus in a South African kelp forest. At the 93rd Academy Awards, it won the award for Best Documentary Feature. [2] [3]
In 2018, Craig Foster began free-diving in a cold underwater kelp forest at a remote location in False Bay, near Cape Town, South Africa. [4] [5] The location was near Simon's Town on the Cape Peninsula, [6] which is exposed to the cold Benguela current of the Atlantic Ocean. [7]
He started to document his experiences and, in time, met a curious young octopus that captured his attention. The film shows Foster's growing intimate relationship with the octopus as he follows her around for nearly a year. They form a bond where she plays with Foster and allows him into her world to see how she sleeps, lives, and eats. She frequently has to defend herself against pyjama sharks. In one attack upon her, the octopus loses an arm, and retreats to her den to recover, slowly regenerating the arm over three months. In a later shark attack, she shows an incredibly improved creativity to survive, including sticking on the shark's back. After mating with a male octopus and producing numerous eggs, she dies naturally while tending to her eggs. Later, a shark scavenges her dead body and carries it off.
Foster describes the effect of this mentorship-like relationship the octopus provided him, teaching him a lesson on the fragility of life and humanity's connection with nature. [8] This transfers to Foster creating a deeper bond with his son, Tom Foster, as his son develops as a diver and marine biology student.
In partnership with Sea Change Project, Off The Fence and ZDF Enterprises, My Octopus Teacher was executively produced by Ellen Windemuth. It was directed by Pippa Ehrlich and James Reed. Cinematography was directed by underwater cameraman Roger Horrocks with footage from Craig Foster and Roger Horrocks. [9] [10] A smaller amount of underwater footage, not shown in the film, but filmed by the same pairing at the same location, had been shown previously on Blue Planet II , episode 5. [11]
Foster was also a producer via his involvement with the Sea Change Project, [12] and his wife, Indian environmental journalist Swati Thiyagarajan, was production manager for the film. [13]
The film, which Foster began filming in 2018, was years in the making and was the first South African nature documentary to be a Netflix Original. [14]
My Octopus Teacher was released on 7 September 2020 on Netflix. [15]
My Octopus Teacher received critical acclaim. On review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 95% based on 39 reviews, with an average rating of 8/10. The site's critics consensus reads "A heartwarming look at the way a meaningful bond can transcend just about any barrier, this documentary will leave you asking your friends to come and see My Octopus Teacher with you." [16] On Metacritic it has a weighted average score of 82% based on reviews from 5 critics. [17]
The film was also spoofed on the Documentary Now episode My Monkey Grifter. [18]
Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Academy Awards | 25 April 2021 | Best Documentary Feature | Pippa Ehrlich, James Reed and Craig Foster | Won | [19] |
American Cinema Editors Awards | 17 April 2021 | Best Edited Documentary (Feature) | Pippa Ehrlich and Dan Schwalm | Won | [20] |
British Academy Film Awards | 11 April 2021 | Best Documentary | Pippa Ehrlich, James Reed and Craig Foster | Won | [21] [22] |
Cinema Audio Society Awards | 17 April 2021 | Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Motion Picture – Documentary | Barry Donnelly and Charl Mostert | Nominated | [23] |
Cinema Eye Honors Awards | 9 March 2021 | Audience Choice Prize | Pippa Ehrlich and James Reed | Nominated | [24] |
Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography | Roger Horrocks | Nominated | |||
LabMeCrazy! Science Film Festival | 4 February 2021 | Best Documentary | Pippa Ehrlich and Dan Schwalm | Won | [25] |
Critics' Choice Documentary Awards | 16 November 2020 | Best Cinematography | Roger Horrocks | Won | [26] |
Best Science/Nature Documentary | My Octopus Teacher | Won | |||
Best Narration | Craig Foster | Nominated | [27] | ||
Best Documentary | My Octopus Teacher | Nominated | |||
Directors Guild of America Awards | 10 April 2021 | Outstanding Directional Achievement in Documentary | Pippa Ehrlich and James Reed | Nominated | [28] |
EarthxFilm Festival | 26 April 2020 | Best Feature Film | The Octopus Teacher | Won | [29] |
GREEN SCREEN Wildlife Film Festival | 12 September 2020 | Best Film | Pippa Ehrlich and James Reed | Won | |
Best Marine Film | Pippa Ehrlich and James Reed | Won | |||
Best Story | Pippa Ehrlich and James Reed | Won | |||
Best Independent Production | Pippa Ehrlich and James Reed | Nominated | |||
Best Score | Kevin Smuts | Nominated | |||
Heinz Sielmann Award | Pippa Ehrlich and James Reed | Nominated | |||
Guangzhou International Documentary Film Festival | 17 December 2020 | Best Documentary Director | Pippa Ehrlich and James Reed | Won | [30] |
Houston Film Critics Society Awards | 18 January 2021 | Best Documentary Feature | My Octopus Teacher | Won | [31] |
International Documentary Association Awards | 16 January 2021 | Best Music Score | Kevin Smuts | Won | [32] |
Best Writing | Pippa Ehrlich and James Reed | Nominated | |||
Pare Lorentz Award | Pippa Ehrlich, James Reed and Craig Foster | Won | |||
Jackson Hole Film Festival | 1 October 2020 | Grand Teton Award | My Octopus Teacher | Won | [33] |
Best People & Nature Film – Long Form | My Octopus Teacher | Won | |||
Best Science in Nature Film – Long Form | My Octopus Teacher | Won | |||
Best Editing | Pippa Ehrlich, Dan Schwalm and Jinx Godfrey | Won | |||
Best Ecosystem Film – Long Form | My Octopus Teacher | Nominated | |||
Best Feature Film | My Octopus Teacher | Nominated | |||
Best Cinematography | Roger Horrocks and Craig Foster | Nominated | |||
Best Original Music Score | Kevin Smuts | Nominated | |||
Best Audioscape | Barry Donnelly | Nominated | |||
Motion Picture Sound Editors Awards | 16 April 2021 | Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Feature Documentary | Barry Donnelly and Charl Mostert | Nominated | [34] |
Producers Guild of America Awards | 24 March 2021 | Outstanding Producer of Documentary Theatrical Motion Pictures | Craig Foster | Won | [35] |
San Diego Film Critics Society Awards | 11 January 2021 | Best Documentary Film | My Octopus Teacher | Nominated | [36] |
St. Louis Film Critics Association Awards | 17 January 2021 | Best Documentary Feature | My Octopus Teacher | Nominated | [37] |
Ruth Negga is an Irish actress known for her roles in the AMC television series Preacher (2016–2019) and the film Loving (2016). For her portrayal of Mildred Loving in the latter, Negga received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress. For her Broadway debut as Lady Macbeth in a production of Shakespeare's Macbeth in 2022, she earned a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play.
Jo-Issa Rae Diop, credited professionally as Issa Rae, is an American actress, writer, and producer. Founder of Hoorae Media, she achieved wider recognition as the co-creator, co-writer, and star of the HBO television series Insecure (2016–2021), for which she was nominated for multiple Golden Globes Awards and Primetime Emmy Awards.
Emilia Annis I. Jones is a British actress. She is best known for her lead role as Ruby Rossi in the Academy Award-winning film CODA (2021) for which she received a British Academy Film Award nomination for Best Actress. She is also known for playing Kinsey Locke in the Netflix series Locke & Key (2020–2022).
Danielle Brooks is an American actress. Her breakthrough role was as prison inmate Tasha "Taystee" Jefferson in the Netflix comedy-drama series Orange Is the New Black (2013–2019).
Saniyya Sidney is an American actress. Her accolades include nominations for three Black Reel Awards, two Critics' Choice Awards, an NAACP Image Award, and two Screen Actors Guild Awards.
Alana Mychal Haim is an American musician and actress. She is a member of the pop rock band Haim, along with her two older sisters Este and Danielle, where she performs piano, guitar and vocals. In 2020, the band received a nomination for Grammy Award for Album of the Year for their third album, Women in Music Pt. III.
Don't Look Up is a 2021 American science fiction comedy drama film written, co-produced, and directed by Adam McKay from a story he co-wrote with David Sirota. It stars an ensemble cast featuring Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, Rob Morgan, Jonah Hill, Mark Rylance, Tyler Perry, Timothée Chalamet, Ron Perlman, Ariana Grande, Kid Cudi, Cate Blanchett, and Meryl Streep. The film tells the story of two astronomers attempting to warn humanity about an approaching comet that will destroy human civilization. The impact event is an allegory for climate change, and the film is a satire of government, political, celebrity, and media indifference to the climate crisis.
Maestro is a 2023 American biographical romantic drama film that centers on the relationship between American composer Leonard Bernstein and his wife Felicia Montealegre. It was directed by Bradley Cooper, from a screenplay he wrote with Josh Singer. It was produced by Cooper, Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, Kristie Macosko Krieger, Fred Berner and Amy Durning. The film stars Carey Mulligan as Montealegre alongside Cooper as Bernstein; Matt Bomer, Maya Hawke, and Sarah Silverman appear in supporting roles.
Dick Johnson Is Dead is a 2020 American documentary film directed by Kirsten Johnson and co-written by Johnson and Nels Bangerter. The story focuses on Johnson's father Richard, who suffers from dementia, portraying different ways—some of them violent "accidents"—in which he could ultimately die. In each scenario, the elderly Johnson plays along with his daughter's black humor and imaginative fantasies. The film premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, where it won the Special Jury Award for Innovation in Non-fiction Storytelling. It was released on Netflix on October 2, 2020.
The Lost Daughter is a 2021 psychological drama film written and directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal, based on the 2006 novel of the same name by Elena Ferrante. The film stars Olivia Colman, Dakota Johnson, Jessie Buckley, Paul Mescal, Dagmara Domińczyk, Jack Farthing, Oliver Jackson-Cohen, Peter Sarsgaard, and Ed Harris. Colman also served as an executive producer.
The Life Ahead is a 2020 Italian drama film directed by Edoardo Ponti, from a screenplay by Ponti and Ugo Chiti. It is the third screen adaptation of the 1975 novel The Life Before Us by Romain Gary. It stars Sophia Loren, Ibrahima Gueye and Abril Zamora, and is set in Bari, Italy.
Sidney Jeanne Flanigan is an American actress and singer-songwriter. Flanigan made her acting debut with the acclaimed independent drama film Never Rarely Sometimes Always (2020), for which she received nominations for the Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Actress and the Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead.
The Mole Agent is a 2020 internationally co-produced documentary film directed by Maite Alberdi. It was screened at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival in the World Cinema Documentary Competition. At the 93rd Academy Awards, It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature and was selected as the Chilean entry for Best International Feature Film, making the shortlist of fifteen films.
Craig Foster is a South African documentary filmmaker, naturalist, and founder of the Sea Change Project. He is known for the 2020 film My Octopus Teacher, for which he won an Academy Award in 2021.
Swati Thiyagarajan is an Indian conservationist, documentary filmmaker and environmental journalist, based in Cape Town, South Africa and New Delhi, India. She is a core team member of the Sea Change Project in South Africa and environmental editor at the Indian television news network of NDTV. Thiyagarajan is the recipient of the Carl Zeiss Award, Earth Heroes Award and two Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Awards. Her work as the environmental editor at NDTV has been acclaimed internationally and she has been described as the doyenne of environmental journalism in India.
Summer of Soul is a 2021 American independent documentary film about the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival, directed by Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in his directorial debut. It had its world premiere at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival on January 28, 2021, where it won the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award in the documentary categories. It had a limited theatrical release in the U.S. by Searchlight Pictures on June 25, 2021, before expanding and being released for streaming on Hulu the next weekend.
The Rescue is a 2021 documentary film directed and produced by Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin. It follows the Tham Luang cave rescue, a 2018 mission that saved a junior association football team from an underwater cave.
All Quiet on the Western Front is a 2022 German epic anti-war film based on the 1929 novel of the same name by Erich Maria Remarque. It is the third film adaptation of the book, after the 1930 and 1979 versions. Co-written, directed and co-produced by Edward Berger, it stars Felix Kammerer, Albrecht Schuch, Daniel Brühl, Sebastian Hülk, Aaron Hilmer, Edin Hasanovic, and Devid Striesow.
Fire of Love is a 2022 independent documentary film about the lives and careers of volcanologists Katia and Maurice Krafft. Directed, written, and produced by Sara Dosa, the film had its world premiere at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival on January 20, 2022, where it won the Jonathan Oppenheim Editing Award. It was released on July 6, 2022, by National Geographic Documentary Films and Neon. It received acclaim from critics, and was nominated for Best Documentary Feature at the 95th Academy Awards.
Nyad is a 2023 American biographical sports drama film about swimmer Diana Nyad's multiple attempts in the early 2010s to swim the Straits of Florida, with flashbacks to her early life. It is directed by Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin and written by Julia Cox, based on Nyad's 2015 memoir Find a Way. It stars Annette Bening as Nyad, with Jodie Foster and Rhys Ifans in supporting roles.