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Short Summary
In early August of 2015, marathon swimmer
Simon Dominguez will be the first to attempt a treacherous 30-mile swim from
the mouth of the Golden Gate to the shark-infested waters of the Farallon
islands. The water will be cold, the sea will be rough, and the task will be
physically and mentally draining, but Simon, a seasoned veteran and champion of
the length of Lake Tahoe and the English Channel, is ready for the challenge.
No matter what his historical journey holds in store, we feel his story must be
shared with the world.
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What are the Farallons?
Lying 30 miles west of the Golden Gate bridge, the Farallons are a small collection of ocean islands and sea stacks that were first "discovered" by Spanish explorer Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo in 1539 (farallón is Spanish for "pillar" or "sea cliff"), although the Farallons had been dubbed "The Islands of the Dead" by local Native American peoples long before the arrival of conquistadors. Officially part of the city and county of San Francisco, the islands are a protected wildlife refuge and are home to a team of research biologists throughout the year. Perhaps the most notable fact about the Farallons is their infamous association with sharks, given that the islands are home to the largest great white shark breeding ground in the world. They carry with them a reputation for mystery and danger.
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Impact
Simon’s story is a truly inspirational one, not simply for swimmers and others of the same ilk, but really for anyone who could benefit from witnessing the hard work of one man pay off in an exceptional way. Marathon swimmers don’t do what they do for fame or wealth. They swim because they love to swim and because, at the end of the day, no matter what happens, no one can take their greatest achievements away from them. It is high time a marathon swimmer got the attention he deserved.
Challenges
Perhaps our greatest challenge will be capturing the actual swim, which will entail about 20 hours of on-boat shooting for the duration of the event. Despite a likely propensity toward seasickness, our struggles will be nothing compared to what Simon will go through over the course of the swim, and we feel we owe it to him and to the swimming community to do as best a job we can. With your support, we believe we can reach our full potential.
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What We Need & What You Get
We are asking for $10,000 to cover production expenses. In detail, your pledge will cover equipment costs, locations and studio rentals, sound mixing, and music licensing.
Please browse the perks in the right-hand column to decide which donation amount is best for you. Thanks for all of your generous support!
Other Ways You Can Help
You can still help by spreading the word via social media. Helping us to get the word out is just as important as getting $1. IndieGoGo has plenty of sharing tools that make it very convenient to let your friends and family know about our project.
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About the Filmmakers
Award-winning filmmakers Jack Bushell and Alex Herz met while students at Redwood High School and have been collaborating on film productions ever since. Despite their relatively young ages, the two have completed a variety of successful film projects over their past three years as partners, including a high school “lip dub” video which was featured on the major news networks KRON 4, KTVU, NBC Bay Area, and ABC 7 and currently has 100,000 views on YouTube, as well as the narrative short film “Over the Mountain, by the Sea” which has been accepted to film festivals across the country and won 2nd prize at the Santa Monica Teen Festival. Jack is attending Emerson College while Alex is attends Northwestern University where they are both pursuing degrees in film, television and radio. Jack and Alex look forward to utilizing their collaborative skills once more in order to tell a story they feel needs to be told.
