Jonathan Bird
11-25-2006, 02:57 PM
I really should write a whole trip report, but I thought I would share a few thoughts on a place I recently visited.
I am currently shooting a feature-length high definition film about life on a coral reef. The specifics are a little bit secret until the film is done, but it's a story about a couple of animals that live on a reef and they are on a quest, facing challenges, and it has a twist ending. I am shooting it primarily in the Philippines, which I chose because it's got such great diversity of animals and habitats, and it's not too expensive. After a bunch of research I decided to shoot about 90% of the story in the Batangas. The reason is that it has great diversity, sites ranging from "muck diving" to very rich coral reefs, and close proximity to a major airport so we would not need to fly a lot of gear and people through a lot of connections and puddle-jumpers.
I had a friend of mine who is an expert in diving in the Philippines organize a lot of the details of the trip, and she ended up becoming the production manager of the film. She set us up at a nice place in the Batangas called Dive Solana and I can't say enough great things about the place. I was there for 6 weeks with the whole film crew and never got tired of the place. The staff was helpful and friendly, the divemasters knowledgable and fun, the dive boat was HUGE and great to work from, and the hotel is fantastic. (A/C, nice rooms, great food, good atmosphere.) The management bent over backwards for me at every turn. I absolutely WILL go back at some point. Six weeks wasn't enough!
The diving in Batangas is really excellent. The reefs are healthy and exploding with life. Most sites are a bit lacking on "big stuff"--you won't see sharks or huge schools of jacks. But you will see massive schools of anthias and smaller reef fishes, tons of color, a lot of healthy coral, plus macro and inverts out the wazoo. BIG frogfish, and lots of other stuff. When the film comes out, the true beauty of the area will be apparent. Just thought I would share. Most people do not realize that they can fly to Manila, drive 3 hours and be in a coral reef utopia. CHEAP and fantastic.
I'm shooting the other 10% of the film in Donsol, Philippines, and Sipadan/Mabul, Malaysia. You can't get EVERYTHING in one spot, but we came pretty close.
Jonathan
I am currently shooting a feature-length high definition film about life on a coral reef. The specifics are a little bit secret until the film is done, but it's a story about a couple of animals that live on a reef and they are on a quest, facing challenges, and it has a twist ending. I am shooting it primarily in the Philippines, which I chose because it's got such great diversity of animals and habitats, and it's not too expensive. After a bunch of research I decided to shoot about 90% of the story in the Batangas. The reason is that it has great diversity, sites ranging from "muck diving" to very rich coral reefs, and close proximity to a major airport so we would not need to fly a lot of gear and people through a lot of connections and puddle-jumpers.
I had a friend of mine who is an expert in diving in the Philippines organize a lot of the details of the trip, and she ended up becoming the production manager of the film. She set us up at a nice place in the Batangas called Dive Solana and I can't say enough great things about the place. I was there for 6 weeks with the whole film crew and never got tired of the place. The staff was helpful and friendly, the divemasters knowledgable and fun, the dive boat was HUGE and great to work from, and the hotel is fantastic. (A/C, nice rooms, great food, good atmosphere.) The management bent over backwards for me at every turn. I absolutely WILL go back at some point. Six weeks wasn't enough!
The diving in Batangas is really excellent. The reefs are healthy and exploding with life. Most sites are a bit lacking on "big stuff"--you won't see sharks or huge schools of jacks. But you will see massive schools of anthias and smaller reef fishes, tons of color, a lot of healthy coral, plus macro and inverts out the wazoo. BIG frogfish, and lots of other stuff. When the film comes out, the true beauty of the area will be apparent. Just thought I would share. Most people do not realize that they can fly to Manila, drive 3 hours and be in a coral reef utopia. CHEAP and fantastic.
I'm shooting the other 10% of the film in Donsol, Philippines, and Sipadan/Mabul, Malaysia. You can't get EVERYTHING in one spot, but we came pretty close.
Jonathan