BAJO: THE GUARDIANS OF THE REEF Film Review— Preserving Life Under Water

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Divers hold their breath several meters underwater harpooning enough food for their families. They dive among the Sulawesi Reefs, the most bio-diverse in the world. The bright colors of the reefs splash across the screen as the divers meander under the ocean. We see children learning to dive, jumping from houses built above the sea on stilts.

We follow Dafine as he paddles into the open ocean, diving in the traditional ways of his ancestors. Like many local divers, he was once lured to use cyanide or dynamite to increase his catch. He saw how these methods indiscriminately kill fish large and small, young and old and gravely disrupt the delicate balance of the reefs.

BAJO: THE GUARDIANS OF THE REEF Shines a Light on Endangered Reefs

Today, more than 95% of the reefs are in danger. Dafine explains that once he saw the damage wrecked by these non-traditional ways, he was convinced the old methods were the only sustainable way to insure the livelihood of his way of life and that of his community.

This short documentary immerses us in the world of free divers on the coast of Indonesia. Directors Alice Colfox and Boris Roylance have created, in this writer’s opinion, an understated gem of film poetry with few words and brief narration. There is no preaching, just a simple story of a people trying to survive and one man’s transformation into a proponent for traditional methods that preserve the reefs.

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Running Time: 4 minutes 38 seconds

Directed by: Alice Colfax and Boris Roylance

Watch Bajo:The Guardians of the Reefs on vimeo.

For more information, visit Pacific Whale Foundation’s website, along with Maui Whale Film Festival’s website.  

Photos courtesy of Baja: The Guardians of the Reefs