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Eye-Opening Sea Shepherd Documentaries to Watch and Share

Wednesday, 12 Oct, 2022

Here are 16 must-watch documentaries of all lengths that portray our efforts in combatting some of the biggest issues facing the ocean’s biodiversity. Dive in and learn more about our marine conservation work and direct-action campaigns protecting marine wildlife around the world.

FIN (1 hour 40 mins) - Sea Shepherd's direct-action campaigns protecting sharks are featured in this 2021 documentary by the award-winning director Eli Roth as he travel the world exposing the horrors and devastation caused by the shark fin trade. Available on Discovery+ and Amazon Prime. Learn more and see the trailer here.

Chasing the Thunder (1 hour 36 mins) - Chasing the Thunder is a 2018 documentary by director Mark Benjamin about Sea Shepherd's thrilling 110-day pursuit of the rogue fishing vessel, Thunder, wanted by INTERPOL for toothfish poaching in the Southern Ocean. While the crew of the Sam Simon worked tirelessly for weeks in freezing conditions to pull in the illegal nets left behind for evidence, the Bob Barker chased the Thunder through storms and ice floes, across three oceans until it was scuttled by its own captain. Originally appearing in shorter format as part of the Ocean Warriors series on Animal Planet, it can now be watched as an independent documentary on Discovery Plus and Amazon Prime. Watch the trailer here.

Seaspiracy (1 hour 29 mins) - Three of Sea Shepherd's direct-action campaigns -- in France, the Faroe Islads, and off the coast of West Africa -- are featured in the explosive 2021 Netflix documentary, Seaspiracy, by filmmakers Ali and Lucy Tabrizi. Learn more and see the trailer here.

A Perfect Planet: Episode 5 - Humans (58 mins) - Sea Shepherd's Operation Albacore protecting Gabonese waters is featured in Sir David Attenborough's 2021 BBC series, episode 5, "Humans". In this episode he explores how humans are changing the planet so rapidly, it's affecting Earth's life support systems: the weather, the oceans, and the living world. Available for streaming on Sky,  BBC iPlayer, Amazon Prime, Apple TV.

Sea Life Savers (49 minutes) - A documentary about Sea Shepherd's Operation Albacore on board the M/V Bob Barker, working in partnership with the Gabonese military and government agencies to stop illegal fishing off the coast of West Africa . Available on Amazon Prime.

The Shark Cull (48 mins) - The Shark Cull explores the Western Australian shark cull, exposing the brutal cruelty of the controversial program that took place between January and April 2014. This explosive documentary is a must see for anyone interested in the protection of sharks and marine conservation. Watch it on YouTube.

Jeedara (46 mins) - Celebrate the victory of oil-giant Equinor recently becoming the fourth fossil fuel company to withdraw their plans for the Great Australian Bight by watching Jeedara. This film tells the story of our campaign that saw the M/V Steve Irwin sail into the heart of the Great Australian Bight in 2016 to document the beauty of the region. Watch on Youtube

Poachers' Paradise: The Fight to End Illegal Fishing in West Africa (29 mins) - Sea Shepherd Global’s campaigns with our partners in West Africa were featured in an August 2022 edition of Foreign Correspondent, the prime-time international public affairs program on Australia's national broadcaster ABC-TV. Watch it on Youtube.

Untrashing Djulpan (25 mins) - This powerful Sea Shepherd Australia documentary released in 2019 tells the story of the collaborative marine debris campaign between our passionate crew and Indigenous Rangers from Northeast Arnhem Land, NT. Watch on YouTube.

Plunderers of the Sea (24 minutes) - This 2019 Arté investigative news documentary shows the effects of illegal fishing in West Africa (Senegal and Liberia). Filmed on the M/Y Sam Simon, the second half of the documentary features Sea Shepherd's Operation Sola Stella in Liberia as an example of how partnerships between governments and marine conservationists can successfully fight this problem. It originally aired in French and German, and is now available streaming online with a choice of English, Italian, Polish or Spanish subtitles.

Part-Time Heroes (13 minutes) - This short documentary shows the dedication and hard work of Sea Shepherd's diverse crew of volunteers from around the world. It shares, in their own words, why they literally put their lives on the line to enforce international conservation law against the illegal fishing industry. Watch on YouTube. 

On the Frontlines: Illegal Fishing in Africa (12 mins) - This Sea Shepherd short docuentary released in spring 2022 takes you inside the inner workings of our campaigns around Africa and how we are working with local governments to shut down poaching in African waters and saving the lives of millions of marine animals. Watch on Youtube.

Defending Turtles in Cabo Verde (12 mins) - Every year, tons of discarded fishing gear wash up on the beaches of Cabo Verde, a remote island nation in the central Atlantic Ocean, where thousands of loggerhead sea turtles come to lay their eggs. This short documentary shows how Sea Shepherd teamed up with local conservation organisation Biosfera to remove this deadly fishing gear from the beaches and stop it from choking the mother and baby turtles before they safely reach the waters. Watch it on Youtube.

Distant Waters (10 mins) - In 2020, the world watched on in horror as a huge fleet of over 300 Chinese squid fishing vessels descended on the waters off the Galápagos Marine Reserve. In 2022, Sea Shepherd took action in a covert mission with the Ocean Warrior to shine a spotlight on the fleet. This short film documents the shocking evidence we found. Watch on Youtube.

Blood in the Bay (5 mins) - This short Waterbear Original film from 2020 highlights Sea Shepherd's Dolphin Bycatch Campaign in the Bay of Biscay, narrated by Sea Shepherd France President Lamya Essemlali. Watch for free on the Waterbear Network

Ocean Defenders (4 mins) - This short Waterbear Original film by Off the Fence Productions is a great overview of Sea Shepherd Global's direct-action mission to defend, conserve, and protect marine wildlife around the world, narrated by our CEO Alex Cornelissen. Watch for free on the Waterbear Network

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