Savage and the Sea
Rowing The Pacific To Save The Oceans

A documentary film series

In 2005 a five-foot-four, 120-pound woman set out to row – alone - 3000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in a 24-foot rowboat. After 103 days of storms, solitude and soul-searching, she arrived to an ecstatic welcome in Antigua.

Roz Savage’s feat is all the more astonishing because she had no previous experience as an adventurer. She had worked for 11 years as a management consultant before coming to a startling realization.

“I saw that if I carried on doing as I did today, and repeated it 365 times, in a year’s time I would not be where I wanted to be. When I made that connection between present action and future outcome, I saw clearly that I was not creating the life I wanted.”

Roz subsequently turned her back on her materialistic lifestyle to seek personal fulfillment through voyages of exploration, both literal and spiritual. This led to a further epiphany.

“I also saw that as a species we have the same problem making the connection between present action and future outcome – and this is the root cause of the global environmental crisis we face right now. If we, humankind, continue treating our environment as we do today, are we creating the kind of world that we want to live in?"

Now Roz Savage intends to become the first woman to row solo across the Pacific. As she knows from her Atlantic experience, the challenge will push her to her very limits – but every stroke will be worthwhile if she succeeds in her mission to illuminate the desperate state of the world's oceans, and to inspire people to take action.

This 3-stage challenge will launch in Summer 2008, covering 7,600 miles from California to Australia, with stopovers in Hawaii and Tuvalu. The three-stage route will maximize opportunities to explain and publicize a broad range of environmental issues:
Stage One: plastics pollution and its role in reducing the ocean’s ability to absorb CO2 – illustrated by footage of the North Pacific Garbage Patch and clean-up of a massively fouled Hawaiian beach.
Stage Two: climate change and rising oceans – illustrated by Tuvalu, a small island kingdom that will probably disappear beneath the waves within 20 years.
Stage Three: the destruction of coral reefs – illustrated by footage of the Great Barrier Reef and the devastation caused to it by over-fishing, pollutants and climate change.



FACTS:

THE OCEAN PROVIDES 70-85% OF THE WORLD'S OXYGEN.

ALL LIFE ON EARTH DEPENDS ON THE HEALTH OF THE OCEAN,

AND THE OCEAN IS DYING.



MESSAGE of Savage and the Sea:

Environmental problems caused by humankind are now so widespread and seemingly intractable that solving them becomes more difficult with every passing day.

Every environmental mistake we have made is reflected in the dramatic destruction of the ecosystems of the world's oceans.

But it is not too late. If we each take responsibility for our individual environmental impact and unite in a worldwide effort to stop this destruction right now, we have the power, individually and collectively, to make a difference.



MISSION of Savage and the Sea:

Action will arise from education, and film is the most effective medium to convey the messages that will provide the catalyst for change, by presenting images of man-made devastation that will shock audiences out of their complacency. We will use the film of Roz’s adventure to explore what is happening in the oceans, explain how this crisis will impact us all, and show what individuals can do to take positive action.



FORMAT of Savage and the Sea:

Savage and the Sea will be produced initially as three 30-minute episodes, one for each of the three stages of the row, each episode to be released soon after the conclusion of that leg of the trip. At the conclusion of the expedition a feature-length theatrical documentary will be produced. Material from the three episodes will be drawn together into a dramatic and insightful account of Roz's adventure and a complete, highly educational picture of the status of the world’s oceans.

Each episode will include:
• Preparations for the next stage of the voyage.
• The history and current problems of the world’s seas, relative to the area of the ocean for that leg of the trip, illuminated by interviews with marine and environmental experts, archival film, photographs, animation and graphics.
• A short history of ocean navigation relative to each area Roz is traversing.
• The daily trials and triumphs of her journey, as recorded by Roz using her three on-board cameras.
• Departures and arrivals in California, Hawaii, Tuvalu and Australia.

Each episode will be anchored by Roz herself, providing commentary in her own unique voice, with reflections on life and adventure, ruminations on the drama and beauty of the seas, and the preciousness of our fragile ocean environment.



DISTRIBUTION

The subject of this film has appeal to a broad worldwide audience. Each of the first two episodes will be completed and released on television during the expedition. While it is too early in the project to make any firm commitments, outlets such as PBS and DISCOVERY in the U.S. and the BBC and Channel 4 in the U.K. will be approached. Other worldwide television outlets will also be developed. This strategy, along with Roz's ongoing blog, podcasting and website activity, will build a large potential audience for theatrical release of the final film.

The complete feature length film will be first introduced through dozens of film festivals worldwide. Subsequently our primary distribution goal will be a theatrical release, followed by television.

Most importantly, after the initial public distribution the film will enjoy a vigorous educational distribution to institutions at all levels, both as a series of three films and as one feature length film: educators can choose which format would be appropriate for their classes. Subjects illustrated by the film are:
• marine science
• sports science
• ecology
• meteorology
• women's studies
• psychology
• history of adventure/exploration

Teacher guides for each educational level will be produced to accompany the films.



INTERNET AUDIENCE

The film will also enjoy the support of a large Internet audience through Roz’s very comprehensive website. Please look at <www.rozsavage.com> for photographs, video, and a more detailed description of all Roz's activities. This site has been building a large fan base since her Atlantic voyage, and uses video blogs, podcasts, text, photos and text alerts to keep the audience actively engaged in Roz’s adventures. Renowned Radio, TV and Podcasting journalist Leo LaPorte will be interviewing Roz regularly while she is on the ocean, and the recording will be available as a downloadable podcast.



BIOS

Roz Savage:
A latecomer to the life of adventure, Roz Savage was in her mid-thirties when she decided to get out of the office and onto the ocean. She now uses her rowing adventures to raise awareness of environmental issues and to inspire others to face their own challenges.

See http://www.rozsavage.com


Bill Chayes:
Bill began his career in film production, exhibition design and education by working with classic film documentarians Richard Leacock at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and John Marshall at the Center for Documentary Anthropology in Cambridge, Mass.

He began a teaching career at Tufts University and Clark University in Massachusetts that culminated when he became Senior Lecturer in Film Production at San Francisco State University and was awarded the Meritorious Performance and Professional Excellence Award.

He served Berkeley, California’s Magnes Museum as Exhibition Designer and Curator of Film, Photography, Digital Art and Music where he designed and/or curated over 70 major exhibitions.

As producer/director of documentary, experimental and educational films, Chayes has won many national and international awards, including an EMMY nomination for the PBS prime time "special" Los Romeros: Royal Family of the Guitar. His films appear regularly on PBS and are in hundreds of university libraries across the country. Chayes Productions has now nearly completed work on the environmental documentary Call it Home: Searching for Truth on Bolinas Lagoon, a film about the world famous and endangered Bolinas Lagoon in Northern California.

As exhibition designer Bill recently completed the design and installation of the major exhibition Paul Robeson: The Tallest Tree in our Forest, for the African American Museum and Library at Oakland.

CONTACTS:

Bill Chayes
Chayes Productions
956 Chileno Valley Road
Petaluma, CA 94952
Tel: (707) 782-9131 E-mail: billchayes@gotsky.com
www.chayesproductions.com