Craig Foster, as he dived into the cold waters of the southern tip of Africa, saw an octopus hiding among several shells and rocks. Fascinated, Craig began to chase the creature, trying to prove to him that he was not a predator. For days, the octopus shunned it, until after 26 days, it touched it.
"My Octopus Teacher" is a Netflix documentary film directed by Pippa Ehrlich and James Reed. The documentary, starring Craig Foster himself, who also served as the film's producer, shows exactly the journey of the 12-month relationship between him and the octopus.
It took ten years to make the documentary, a collaboration with the Sea Change Project, Off The Fence and ZDF Enterprises. It was shot in 2010 and shows exactly Craig's unique connection to the creature, a story which has received eight Jackson Wild Media nominations and won the "Best Feature" at the EarthxFilm Festival.
"If you gain a creature's trust for months, it will actually ignore you for a while and then allow you to enter its world," Craig told CNN. "The octopus showed me many behaviors that are completely new to science, because this species believed me."
The highlight of the documentary is when the octopus allowed Craig to chase after it.
Craig has spent the last ten years diving among kelp in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of South Africa, where water temperatures go up to 8 degrees Celsius. Known as "Cape of Storms" or "Cape of Good Hope", he describes this place as "the most treacherous shore in the world". While some swimmers fear sharks or other predators, Foster says his biggest fear is being crashed into a rock by a powerful wave.
Diving has calmed his mind, and he says that over the years, various species have come into contact with it, including otters, whales, cuttlefish, and even sharks.
"Creatures have chosen to come to me and have contact, showing a moment of faith. "It's all exciting and breathtaking early on."
However, nothing compares to the extraordinary connections with the octopus. Craig says people are part of nature and the world around them, not just visitors.
Burimet: IMDb, Netflix, CNN
