My Octopus Teacher

Last updated

My Octopus Teacher
My Octopus Teacher poster.jpg
Directed by
  • Pippa Ehrlich
  • James Reed
Written by
  • Pippa Ehrlich
  • James Reed
Produced by Craig Foster
Starring
  • Craig Foster
  • Tom Foster
  • Octopus
CinematographyRoger Horrocks
Edited by
  • Pippa Ehrlich
  • Dan Schwalm
Music byKevin Smuts
Production
companies
Off The Fence
The Sea Change Project
Distributed by Netflix
Release dates
  • 4 September 2020 (2020-09-04)(Millennium Docs Against Gravity) [1]
  • 7 September 2020 (2020-09-07)(Netflix)
Running time
85 minutes
CountrySouth Africa
LanguageEnglish

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]

Contents

Common Octopus

Synopsis

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.

Production

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]

Reception and legacy

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]

Accolades

Award nominations for My Octopus Teacher
AwardDate of ceremonyCategoryRecipient(s)ResultRef.
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 SchwalmWon [20]
British Academy Film Awards 11 April 2021 Best Documentary Pippa Ehrlich, James Reed and Craig FosterWon [21] [22]
Cinema Audio Society Awards 17 April 2021 Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Motion Picture – Documentary Barry Donnelly and Charl MostertNominated [23]
Cinema Eye Honors Awards 9 March 2021Audience Choice PrizePippa Ehrlich and James ReedNominated [24]
Outstanding Achievement in CinematographyRoger HorrocksNominated
LabMeCrazy! Science Film Festival4 February 2021Best DocumentaryPippa Ehrlich and Dan SchwalmWon [25]
Critics' Choice Documentary Awards 16 November 2020Best CinematographyRoger HorrocksWon [26]
Best Science/Nature DocumentaryMy Octopus TeacherWon
Best NarrationCraig FosterNominated [27]
Best DocumentaryMy Octopus TeacherNominated
Directors Guild of America Awards 10 April 2021 Outstanding Directional Achievement in Documentary Pippa Ehrlich and James ReedNominated [28]
EarthxFilm Festival 26 April 2020Best Feature FilmThe Octopus TeacherWon [29]
GREEN SCREEN Wildlife Film Festival 12 September 2020Best FilmPippa Ehrlich and James ReedWon
Best Marine FilmPippa Ehrlich and James ReedWon
Best StoryPippa Ehrlich and James ReedWon
Best Independent ProductionPippa Ehrlich and James ReedNominated
Best ScoreKevin SmutsNominated
Heinz Sielmann AwardPippa Ehrlich and James ReedNominated
Guangzhou International Documentary Film Festival 17 December 2020Best Documentary DirectorPippa Ehrlich and James ReedWon [30]
Houston Film Critics Society Awards 18 January 2021 Best Documentary FeatureMy Octopus TeacherWon [31]
International Documentary Association Awards 16 January 2021Best Music ScoreKevin SmutsWon [32]
Best WritingPippa Ehrlich and James ReedNominated
Pare Lorentz AwardPippa Ehrlich, James Reed and Craig FosterWon
Jackson Hole Film Festival 1 October 2020Grand Teton AwardMy Octopus TeacherWon [33]
Best People & Nature Film – Long FormMy Octopus TeacherWon
Best Science in Nature Film – Long FormMy Octopus TeacherWon
Best EditingPippa Ehrlich, Dan Schwalm and Jinx GodfreyWon
Best Ecosystem Film – Long FormMy Octopus TeacherNominated
Best Feature FilmMy Octopus TeacherNominated
Best CinematographyRoger Horrocks and Craig FosterNominated
Best Original Music ScoreKevin SmutsNominated
Best AudioscapeBarry DonnellyNominated
Motion Picture Sound Editors Awards 16 April 2021Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Feature DocumentaryBarry Donnelly and Charl MostertNominated [34]
Producers Guild of America Awards 24 March 2021 Outstanding Producer of Documentary Theatrical Motion Pictures Craig FosterWon [35]
San Diego Film Critics Society Awards 11 January 2021 Best Documentary FilmMy Octopus TeacherNominated [36]
St. Louis Film Critics Association Awards 17 January 2021Best Documentary FeatureMy Octopus TeacherNominated [37]

See also

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