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.

Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Sharkwater opens November 2nd

Sharwater movie poster
It's been a year since we reported on Rob Stewart's coming out with his film Sharkwater, and in that time the film has been discovered and re-discovered over and over. It's been blogged about, reviewed in showbiz newsdaily Variety, and currently enjoys a very respectable "77%" rating on RottenTomatoes. Amazing accomplishments for such a simple work. Sharkwater is "the little big shark documentary that could."

Oddly, it has yet to even open! That's right, Sharkwater opens this weekend in the US.

This is thrilling. After all the build-up and momentum Sharkwater has achieved, it is possible that Rob's movie is making a tremendous impact above and beyond the awareness to the plight of the oceans — and more specifically, sharks — Sharkwater has already garnered. Watching this unfold everyday before my eyes on the Internet, and on the boats of Danger Charters, it is a dream come true. A person follows their dream, pursues their passion, and in the process of being rewarded makes a difference in our world.

Congratulations Rob, Tyler, and the entire team with Sharkwater Productions. It has been an amazing year, your work is making a difference, and the best is yet to come!

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Linda Whitehurst, Intelligent Human



The terrific thing about this story is that the woman, Linda Whitehurst, kept her head about her and fought off the shark — by remembering that she was smarter than the shark.

Bravo, Linda! Some sharks are big, and they are intelligent, of course. But in this type of situation, the only way to come out on top is to remember: We are higher on the evolutionary ladder!

Saturday, February 03, 2007

Wednesday, January 31, 2007

Thursday, January 11, 2007