Caymanite Releases Debut Original Film 'Brothers of the Sea'

Caymanite has released its first original film, 'Brothers of the Sea.' The film premiered at Mountainfilm earlier this year in Telluride, CO and has made the rounds at film festivals around the world. It began out of a desire by director Ethan Edmunds to share the story of how two brothers he grew up with in Mexico meaningfully shaped his perspective on life. The collaboration with Caymanite and producer/DP Armin Korsos elevated the production process and helped bring on incredible talent as the film went into post, such as Clark Griffiths (colourist), Henry Miles (composer), and Frankie Radochia (mix).

Q> Where did the idea for the film come from?

Ethan Edmunds> I developed a connection with the two characters in the film (Bernardo and Diego) because I spent a portion of my childhood growing up in the small fishing village of Chacala on the Pacific Coast of Mexico. Growing up alongside them in Mexico had a transformational effect on how I view the world and has been a unique source of inspiration in my life and work. It opened my eyes to how culture can shape our outlook on life and affect how we answer life’s most important questions.

We shared many surf sessions and bonded over our love for the ocean. In one way, they lived the dream, surfing perfect waves all day and living by the sea. But, they had also been abandoned by their parents forcing them to grow up fast and support themselves from a young age. It never seemed fair that they had to grow up in such challenging situations, but I always admired their positive attitude amid such struggles.

It always struck me how on the one hand they grew up with so little but on the other hand, had so much. They didn’t have many of the same material resources or familial support that many of my peers and I in the US did, but they had a sense of contentment that so many lacked. Reflecting on this as I grew up caused me to wrestle with the question, “What is success?” In comparing my experiences between Mexico and the US. I realised how much our culture & environment can influence our perspective of success.

For myself, success can often bring to mind topics of career, finances, or influence. However, when I step back and spend time surrounded by what matters most (close friends/family, and nature) I’m able to clearly see what matters most in life. This perspective was a valuable lesson I learned from spending time with Bernardo and Diego, and something I hope to share through this film.

Seeing Bernardo and Diego go from orphans scraping by to put a roof over their head to integral members in their communities, running businesses, and now having families and two young sons of their own has been a beautiful transition to witness and one of those stories I just had to tell.

I hope to inspire people to step back and reflect on how the environment they are immersed in shapes their perspective of success and what it looks like to live a meaningful life.

Q> What was the biggest challenge for the film? What made production difficult?

Ethan> The biggest challenge for the film was the logistics of traveling through the jungles and ocean of Mexico. Our main filming location was only accessible by boat (which involved wading to shore over slippery rocks) or an hour hike through the jungle.

‍While it was challenging to carry gear on a long jungle hike or spend hours swimming through the line up with a camera, it was also one of my favourite aspects of making the film. A core theme of the film is how valuable it is to be closely connected with nature so it felt right that we spent production outside closely embedded in nature.

Armin Korsos> Filming this project was physically demanding in ways you can’t fully plan for. I’d be left on shore for hours at a time, completely isolated - not many backup batteries, a few granola bars, and one water bottle - while the boat disappeared until pickup. Ethan was so tough for floating in the waves for hours with his dive housing, waiting for the right moments to unfold. We made a really great team having a camera operator in the water and on land at the same time, effectively cutting our shooting time in half.

You don’t really realise how much work goes into a film until you’re deep in it, and filming surfing is especially hard. Sometimes it takes an hour just to get into the rhythm of the waves and the surfers - finding the right spot, the right angle - and you miss a lot of shots. Between the speed of the waves, tight focal lengths, and pulling focus manually at 600-800mm, it’s a constant battle of timing and intuition.

Collaboration

Ethan> One aspect of creating the film I enjoyed most was being able to collaborate with such talented individuals.

Partnering with Caymanite on this story as an Original Film was a game changer. It feels great when you find alignment with a production company that can also see the vision and the value behind telling a story. Armin Korsos from Caymanite, came down to Mexico to help DP, and I couldn’t have asked for a better partner on the film. Not only is he incredibly skilled at nailing the shot in high pressure rapidly changing environments, but he’s up for any outdoor adventure. Whether it was scrambling up a mountain or traversing a rocky coastline at 4:00am, he always brought great energy and a positive attitude to set.

For colour we partnered with Clark Griffith’s at Bruton Strobe who did an incredible job at making the footage come to life and he absolutely nailed it. His stunning work elevated the visuals of the film to a whole new level.

Clark Griffiths> When I first saw screen grabs from what Ethan and Armin were capturing I knew I wanted to grade the project. Grading something shot in such a beautiful location is always a pleasure while also challenging. Since the guys shot with a few different camera types matching the hues of the water and greens of the trees throughout was my main focus. I also really wanted to heighten the oranges and reds that you get when the sun sets on the beach. The guys did such a fantastic job catching those moments.

Even though this is a documentary style short I was able to give the film such a rich cinematic look very easily given how well the footage was captured.

Armin Korsos> One thing is for certain, we loved the challenge of shooting this film, and neither of us are the complaining type. Whether it was the 3:30am wakeup calls, or shooting on a rocky beach with scorpions, and hopping out of a boat into sea urchin infested water, we are always down for an adventure. It takes a special type of person to enjoy projects like this. Ethan was such a pleasure and honour to collaborate with, and we already can’t wait to see where the next story takes us around the world.

Working together on the post production side to elevate this film really brought the film to the next level. It was a pleasure to be collaborating with Clark Griffiths again, bringing out the colours we wanted and matching water hues and colour temperatures between different cameras was a challenge we knew he would excel at. Ethan was even able to fly to St. Louis to see the final colour grade in the Bruton Strobe studio, an experience we don’t take for granted with these low budget projects. Premiering at Mountainfilm was such a treat, but screening the film back in Chacala for the community was incredibly special. That moment brought everything full circle.

Henry Miles> Working on Brothers of the Sea was a really enjoyable process, especially as it was the second time Ethan and I collaborated. It’s a dream for a composer to be brought into a project with such a clear vision and a story that genuinely has a deep meaning, this inspires me straight away. Our task became translating that vision into music - reaching the emotional spaces where the (amazing) visuals couldn’t. I developed the idea of the 'waves of life' as the core of the score: a sonic metaphor for the cyclical nature of the sea, fatherhood, and life’s challenges. The sound palette reflects the brothers’ relationship with the ocean, with guitars in dialogue with arpeggiated synths and the orchestra swelling like a wave as the next generation learns how to ride it.

You can watch Brothers of the Sea online for free here.