It was a (Southern) Blast!
Great food, great company and great vibe at Ocean Movie Night Narooma
We had a SELL OUT event at Narooma Surf Club, hearing the roar of the surf as we dipped into a screening of short films about our magnificent big blue in celebration of World Ocean's Day, featuring guest speaker talk (with Q&A) Rebreathers at Midnight from Sydney-based underwater film-makers Harriet & Woody Spark about their experience working on National Geographic Secrets of the Octopus (a 3-part documentary which launched on DisneyPlus in May 2024), there was a local Ocean Art Exhibition of paintings, photography and sculpture. Event supported by the Fish Tank, Narooma, Grumpy Turtle & Surfrider Foundation
The audience were captivated with stories of wonder, beauty and sobering destruction were shared to a full house as the South Coast community came together in a show of support for World Ocean Day.
Nature Coast Marine Group Eurobodalla, together with Surfrider Foundation Yuin, presented an Ocean Movie Night at Narooma Surf Club, Saturday, June 15.
For the second year, the event was held as a fundraiser for both organisations to continue their advocacy protecting estuarine, coastal and marine environments.
The event seemed to be growing, with double the audience numbers this year to last.
Filmmakers Harriet and Richard Spark shared wondrous stories of their time filming on 'Secrets of the Octopus', parts of which were filmed in Narooma.
'Secrets of the Octopus' filmmakers Harriet Spark and Richard Spark at the Narooma event. Picture by Vic Silk
Volunteers worked steadfastly in the kitchen as the first two films, 'The Custodians' and 'Eye to Eye' were screened.
'The Custodians' produced by Patagonia, focused on four locals on the West Coast of Scotland working to reclaim their shorelines by restoring the crucial sea-grass beds.
An Australian short, 'Eye to Eye' captured a beautiful moment between man and mammal as researcher John Totterdell came eye to eye with an endangered southern right whale.
After a superb dinner was served up, the final film 'Southern Blast' was screened.
Made by Surfrider Foundation Australia, the film was a confronting and eye-opening look into the little-known practice of seismic blasting used for the exploration of offshore oil and gas.
Nature Coast Marine Group president Dane Willmott on the tools in the kitchen
A beautifully shot and sobering film, that advocates for the cessation of the practice.
Nature Coast Marine Group president Dane Willmott believed events such as Ocean Movie Night were a great way of raising awareness.
"They are tough pills to swallow but we can't walk around with our eyes closed and have cotton wool in our ears when it comes to these matters," he said
"It's important that we react ...we must redesign and reshape our systems... we must change if we are to survive.
"We had a great show of support from the community and we're very grateful for the money that was raised to go towards Nature Coast.
"We'll be using that to further our reef life survey team, support our education programs for the high schools and community.
"Thanks to all that came and were part of a great night."
To find out more visit Nature Coast Marine Group visit at www.ncmg.org.au and Surfrider Foundation Australia at www.surfrider.org.au.