Imagine a world without fish: It seems inconceivable. But top scientists warn that such a catastrophe may in fact play out in coming generations unless widespread awareness is raised to stop ocean acidification.

A SEA CHANGE draws attention on this urgent but little-known crisis. It follows retired educator and concerned grandfather Sven Huseby back to stunning ancestral sites (Norway, Alaska, the Pacific Northwest) where he finds cutting-edge ocean research underway. His journey of self-discovery brings adventure, surprise and revelation to the hard science of acidification.

FILMMAKER STATEMENT

A Sea Change Informs Us of the Dangers of Waiting Too Long

By Barbara Ettinger, Director, A Sea Change

In November 2006 my husband Sven and I read a piece in The New Yorker that changed our lives. In the article, "The Darkening Sea", journalist Elizabeth Kolbert reported in detail on ocean acidification, which she called the "flip side of global warming." We were shocked to learn that this rapidly rising acidity, the little known consequence of CO2 combining with sea water, has the potential to extinguish life in the seas.

Our desire to do something about the threat posed by ocean acidification led us on a most unusual global journey, one we hope will bring this issue to the public and to policy-makers who have the power to affect change. Making an engaging and effective documentary on this subject was a challenging undertaking but one we knew had to be completed. The result, A Sea Change, draws the audience into this story, which uncovers the immediate and ongoing effects of CO2 on our global oceans.

How bad is ocean acidification? Ocean acidification is the phenomena of ocean water becoming more acidic as a result of the absorption of increasing amounts of CO2 from the atmosphere. The combustion of fossil fuels in power plants, for transportation and a range of other human activities currently puts 70 million tons per day of CO2 into the atmosphere and of that 22 million tons, or approximately thirty percent of this CO2 is absorbed by the oceans and combines with water to form carbonic acid.

Carbonic acid in the oceans is particularly corrosive - in fact destructive - to marine organisms that have shells made from calcium carbonate. To date, ocean scientists have been able to measure the corrosive effects of ocean acidification on calcifying zooplankton species. These organisms are at the base of the ocean's food web. As a result, the food supply of many fish species consumed by people is being directly threatened.

Since CO2 emissions are changing the oceans, and the planet, so rapidly, I continue to ask myself and people around the country: What will it take to convince people that there is urgency, that we are in fact in a state of emergency?

In the same way that The New Yorker article shocked us into action, our primary goal is to use the film and the continually emerging scientific information to build awareness of ocean acidification in this country. And we want to contribute to the U.S. moving towards a leadership role at the COP 15 UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in December 2009.

As the Director, I wanted to introduce the concept of ocean acidification in a way that touches across generations on a personal level, while learning through the voices and actions of scientists. A Sea Change reveals this story through the voice of a Norwegian grandfather (Sven, my husband) who is concerned that his American grandson (Elias) will never know the seas as he did as a child. Through Sven's growing relationship with his six year-old grandson, ocean acidification becomes an issue that touches cultural and personal chords. Sven's odyssey is driven by his childhood memories as well as his lifetime concern for the environment.

Just as the film heightens the audience's concern for our oceans and our planet, it also inspires with optimism. Efforts to reduce CO2 emissions are getting underway worldwide. In A Sea Change, we meet people in the U.S. who are already poised to take advantage of the next economic boom that is predicted in alternative energy systems. We recognize that China and India are rapidly becoming world leaders in alternative energy markets. China, with a top down economy, is in a position to act quickly once they see that there is more money to be made in moving in the direction of clean energy technologies. In the last third of the film we show signs of change and provide possibilities for a better energy future.

My hope for A Sea Change is to serve as a catalyst for immediate change as it entertains and informs the audience about the dangers of waiting too long and failing to move beyond fossil fuel and "business as usual".

2010 Sedona International Film Festival, USA
Won World Documentary Audience Award

2010 Honolulu International Film Festival, USA
Won Golden Kahuna Award

2010 Gaia International Festival, Italy
Won Best Video Award

2010 National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, USA
Won Environmental Hero Award

2009 FICA International Environmental Film Festival, Brazil
Won Grand Prize for Best Feature Documentary

2009 Kosovo International Documentary Film Festival
Won Green Docs Award

2009 Cottonwood Environmental Film Festival, USA
Won Dumosa Award for Best Coastal Film

2009 Polar Film Festival, Finland
Won Best Nordic Country Film Award

2009 American Conservation Film Festival, USA

2009 Anchorage International Film Festival, USA

2009 Bangalore International Film Festival, India

2009 Bioneers Moving Image Film Festival, USA

2010 China Animal and Nature Film Festival

2010 FICMA Film Festival, Spain

2010 Melbourne Environmental Film Festival, Australia

2009 Blue Ocean Film Festival, USA

2010 Eco Film Festival, Romania

2009 Dallas Video Festival, USA

2009 DC Environmental Film Festival, USA

2010 Delray Beach Film Festival, USA

2009 International Documentary Film Festival, Mexico

2009 L.A. Downtown Film Festival, USA

2010 DOXA Festival, Canada

2010 FASAI Festival, Brazil

2009 Goodplanet Film Festival, Denmark

2010 Green Mountain Film Festival, USA

2009 Kathmandu International Mountain Film Festival, Nepal

2009 Lone Star International Film Festival, USA

2010 Ourense Film Festival, Spain

2009 Planet in Focus Festival, Canada

2010 Princeton Environmental Film Festival, USA

2009 Mammoth Film Festival, USA

2010 Napa Wine Country Film Festival, USA

2009 San Francisco International Film Festival, USA

2010 San Luis Obispo Film Festival, USA

2009 Seattle International Film Festival, USA

2010 Sonoma Wine Country Film Festival, USA

2009 Southern Appalachian International Film Festival, USA

2009 Wild & Scenic Environmental Film Festival, USA

2009 Woods Hole Film Festival, USA

"'I wish I was a fish,' says young Elias when he and his grandfather Sven Huseby visit an aquarium. But as this documentary's subtitle--Imagine a World Without Fish--suggests, being a fish today is not exactly a winning proposition...Highly recommended."
VIDEO LIBRARIAN

"A magnificent synthesis of science and heart."
Anne Alexander Rowley, Chair, Oceana's Ocean Council

"[The film] is willing to grieve and simultaneously move beyond grief to hope and inspiration...While the captivating images of ocean creatures deepen our attachment to the marine world, and while the sobering science confirms our worst fears, what resonates with the viewer is the humanistic tale of a family keenly concerned about the fate of the world."
Amy Seidl, ORION MAGAZINE

"Deeply personal, yet scientific...A Sea Change is surprisingly uplifting. Much of the film identifies the ways that people, particularly young people, are trying to migrate away from a fossil fuel economy."
YES! MAGAZINE

"[At] a time when plenty of documentaries want to be the Inconvenient Truth of fill-in-the-issue, A Sea Change brings a genuinely important subject to the fore with a welcome lack of jargon and preaching."
Ann Hornaday, THE WASHINGTON POST

"Huseby launches an adorable About Schmidt-like road trip to meet the world's leading oceanographers and global warming experts to better understand the magnitude of the problem, and learn how to start curing it. Like An Inconvenient Truth, this film is both a love letter to the planet and an urgent plea to its citizens."
Justin Berton, SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE

"Equal parts captivating and troubling."
Stephen Hesse, The JAPAN TIMES

"Ocean acidification is such a scary problem that many people would rather not think about it - kind of like climate change. But A Sea Change goes a long way toward making this uncomfortable topic oh-so-human."
Erica Gies, MATTER NETWORK

“Gripping.”
Mark Yuasa, SEATTLE TIMES

“A Sea Change sounds an alarm.”
Wendy Rieger, WRC-TV, NBC

“Ocean acidification is a significant part of the climate change story. A Sea Change does a unique and excellent job of conveying this complex scientific issue to the public.”
Dr. Richard W. Spinrad, NOAA Assistant Administrator for Oceanic and Atmospheric Research

“A Sea Change could not be more timely. I believe acidification of our oceans is actually a greater threat to our survival than is temperature or sea level rise, the conventional ‘global warming’ threats. Acidification is confusing and difficult to even imagine for most people we need your film.”
Rob Moir, PhD., Executive Director, Ocean River Institute

"A Sea Change offers a searching, emotionally powerful look at ocean acidification. This problem is sometimes called the "evil twin" of climate change, and many of us regard it as an existential threat to the future of fishing. The story is full of heart, scientifically accurate, and lyrical. It also offers good reason for hope, which is indispensable in the face of such a huge challenge."
Brad Warren, Sustainable Fisheries Partnership

"A Sea Change follows ex-history teacher, activist and grandfather Sven Huseby as he travels to visit various scientists to learn more about the impacts of ocean acidification and tries to find ways to explain the problem to his 5-year-old grandson, Elias. I completely fell in love with Sven and the extraordinarily bright Elias. The people in the film are very real and approachable and the ocean footage is stunning. Optimistic, with a whole section of solutions at the end. Broad appeal for all ages."
Dr. Cat Dorey, Sustainable Seafood Advisor, Greenpeace International

“Like Sven and many others in A Sea Change, once I learned about the problem of ocean acidification I have been able to think of little else. The dire message of ocean acidification is beautifully conveyed in the film and does a wonderful job of highlighting the duty of us all to become educated and called to action.”
Jess Reese, The Climate Project Presenter