Mike Mongo reveals the worlds of marine, shoreline, and in-land eco-biology

Thursday, December 20, 2007

SHARKWATER Returns to Key West


Last year when writer/director Rob Stewart and friends came out with us on Danger Charters, we had an amazing time. All of us got to interact with several sharks during the snorkel. Jump forward a year, and Rob's pro-shark documentary, SHARKWATER, is an international hit documentary. At last, the plight of sharks worldwide has begun getting attention. In a year's time, Rob has become the de facto worldwide poster boy for shark conservation.

Here on the island of Key West, our entire economy hinges upon the health of the ocean. Sharks are integral to that. Sharks keep the ocean running and in good health. But for years, catching and killing sharks had been a cheap thrill for a large portion of our charter boat community. It has taken responsible fishermen decades to even begin to fight the insane fear and blood-lust that films such as Jaws and Open Water have instilled in our mainland-dwelling counterparts.

Due to its timely and sane message, many of my colleagues feel Rob's film is especially relevant to us and our charter boat community. For instance, on Danger we see and hear "sharkphobia" almost every trip. Subsequently, our crew has been promoting SHARKWATER daily on our backcountry eco-trips as "an antidote to anti-shark hysteria." Obviously, as stewards of the Florida National Marine Refuge, we are all big fans of Rob and his crew for taking on this responsibility.

Speaking with Rob recently, Danger and the SHARKWATER team have begun to foment a Florida Keys Shark Conservation campaign. Towards this end, we are promoting the Saturday night 8 PM showing of SHARKWATER at Tropic Cinema. Most of the Danger crew and our friends will be there.

If you have anytime over the next four days — December 21 through 24 — please make a point of getting to the Tropic Cinema for SHARKWATER. And if you are free Saturday evening at 8 PM, think about joining us for the screening of this very Key West relevant and awe-inspiring documentary.

SHARKWATER official movie site.