Two-time Academy Award®-nominated filmmaker Liz Garbus takes an inside look at Jacques-Yves Cousteau’s life, iconic films, inventions, and the experiences that made him the 20th century’s most unique and renowned environmental voice — and the man who inspired generations to protect the Earth.
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ABOUT
BECOMING COUSTEAU examines the epic life of Jacques Yves Cousteau, the ocean explorer who spanned the globe with a misfit crew of divers and filmmakers, under the lifelong creed, “Il faut aller voir” -- “We must go and see for ourselves”. The Frenchman who first sounded the alarm to save the oceans was born with a dream to fly, but a car accident grounded his aviation career, and he found rehabilitation and inspiration through free-diving in the South of France. His desire to go deeper and further led him to inventions that would forever change the way we see and know the undersea world, co-inventing the “aqualung” and revolutionizing underwater cinematography. At the start, a burgeoning oil industry backed his explorations paving the way for ocean exploitation. Then, the television industry made him an international star. His trailblazing underwater cinematography and high sea adventures aboard the Calypso introduced generations around the world to the wonders of the seas, but when Cousteau started to see with his own eyes the destruction and degradation of the oceans, he sounded the alarm. But was it too late?
Synopsis
BECOMING COUSTEAU examines the epic life of Jacques Yves Cousteau, the ocean explorer who spanned the globe with a misfit crew of divers and filmmakers, under the lifelong creed, “Il faut aller voir” -- “We must go and see for ourselves”. The Frenchman who first sounded the alarm to save the oceans was born with a dream to fly, but a car accident grounded his aviation career, and he found rehabilitation and inspiration through free-diving in the South of France. His desire to go deeper and further led him to inventions that would forever change the way we see and know the undersea world, co-inventing the “aqualung” and revolutionizing underwater cinematography. At the start, a burgeoning oil industry backed his explorations paving the way for ocean exploitation. Then, the television industry made him an international star. His trailblazing underwater cinematography and high sea adventures aboard the Calypso introduced generations around the world to the wonders of the seas, but when Cousteau started to see with his own eyes the destruction and degradation of the oceans, he sounded the alarm. But was it too late?
FILMMAKER
Two-time Oscar Nominee, two-time Emmy Winner, Peabody Winner, Grammy Nominee, and DGA-Nominated director Liz Garbus is one of the most celebrated American documentary filmmakers working today. Garbus’ The Fourth Estate, a Showtime original, is nominated for a 2018 Emmy for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series. The docuseries follows New York Times reporters covering the Trump Presidency. What Happened, Miss Simone?, a Netflix original, was nominated for a 2016 Oscar for Best Documentary Feature, received a Peabody Award, and six Emmy nominations including Best Directing. It took home the Emmy Award for Best Documentary or Nonfiction Special. The film delves into the life of Nina Simone, drawing from more than 100 hours of never-before-heard audiotapes, rare concert footage, and archival interviews.
Liz Garbus
Two-time Oscar Nominee, two-time Emmy Winner, Peabody Winner, Grammy Nominee, and DGA-Nominated director Liz Garbus is one of the most celebrated American documentary filmmakers working today. Garbus’ The Fourth Estate, a Showtime original, is nominated for a 2018 Emmy for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series. The docuseries follows New York Times reporters covering the Trump Presidency. What Happened, Miss Simone?, a Netflix original, was nominated for a 2016 Oscar for Best Documentary Feature, received a Peabody Award, and six Emmy nominations including Best Directing. It took home the Emmy Award for Best Documentary or Nonfiction Special. The film delves into the life of Nina Simone, drawing from more than 100 hours of never-before-heard audiotapes, rare concert footage, and archival interviews.
Past work includes: A Dangerous Son (HBO, 2018), Nothing Left Unsaid: Gloria Vanderbilt & Anderson Cooper (HBO) which had its world premiere at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival, Love, Marilyn, which was a Gala Premiere at the 2012 Toronto Film Festival and released worldwide by StudioCanal and HBO. In 2011 her film Bobby Fischer Against the World opened the Premiere Documentary section of the Sundance Film Festival, and won a prestigious UK Grierson Award for Best Cinema Documentary and earned an Emmy nomination for Best Doc. Garbus’ first documentary film, The Farm: Angola, USA, won the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival, was awarded ten other festival and critics’ awards, and was nominated for an Oscar in 1998. Other films as director include: There's Something Wrong with Aunt Diane (HBO, 2011), Girlhood (Wellspring, 2003), and as producer Street Fight (PBS, Oscar Nominated, 2005), Ghosts of Abu Ghraib (HBO, Emmy for Best Doc, 2007), and Killing in the Name (HBO, Oscar nominated, 2010).
Reviews
"Cousteau’s story couldn’t be more timely in light of the urgency surrounding the climate crisis" - Screen Daily
“A wonderfully intimate portrait” - The Hollywood Reporter
“A dazzling dive into the depths of an undersea world” -IndieWire
“[A] respectful, visually compelling biography” - The Wrap