Get curated editors’ picks, peeks behind the scenes, film recommendations and more.
One Breath Around the World is the latest aquatic spectacle from the French freediving champion Guillaume Néry, and his partner, the French freediver, underwater filmmaker and dancer Julie Gautier. Without the aid of supplied air, Néry plunges into the ocean’s hidden depths, revealing remarkable views of marine geology and wildlife around the globe. Seamlessly transitioning between a range of underwater realms, the video gives the impression that Néry’s journey is taken in a single breath. With stunning camerawork by Gautier, who also held her breath while filming, the duo prove themselves expert explorers of not only water, but space and perspective as well, making these grand underwater landscapes appear almost alien. For more phenomenal freediving, watch Gautier’s extraordinary underwater dance Ama.
Via Kottke
Directors: Guillaume Néry, Julie Gautier
Websites: Les films engloutis, Almo Film
video
Biography and memoir
As her world unravels, Pilar wonders at the ‘sacred geometry’ that gives it structure
20 minutes
video
Meaning and the good life
Why strive? Stephen Fry reads Nick Cave’s letter on the threat of computed creativity
5 minutes
video
Physics
Find the building blocks of nature within a single, humble snowflake
4 minutes
video
Technology and the self
An artist swaps her head with everyday objects in a musing on consumerism
4 minutes
video
Art
The overlooked polymath whose theatrical oeuvre made all of Rome a stage
30 minutes
video
Physics
Why the golden age of total solar eclipses is already behind us
5 minutes
video
Film and visual culture
An augmented-reality filter reveals the hidden movements all around us
7 minutes
video
Beauty and aesthetics
The grit of cacti and the drumbeat of time shape a sculptor’s life philosophy
11 minutes
video
Language and linguistics
Messages born of melody – hear the whistled language of the Hmong people
18 minutes