BEHIND THE SCENES
A look behind the camera at the people, places and moments that shape a 6ixb Productions film.
INTO THE BLUE
Behind Into the Blue
From the beginning, I wanted Into the Blue to feel immersive rather than simply tell Kelsey’s story from the outside. The film is really about her connection with the ocean and, in particular, sharks, so I wanted the audience to experience some of that anticipation, calm and sense of wonder with her.
We filmed across three locations in the Newquay area, with much of the shoot following Kelsey as she trained in the pool and then prepared to head out to sea. The boat scenes were filmed aboard a local Sea Safari craft, skippered by its owner, and we were ridiculously lucky with the weather. For March in Cornwall, it couldn’t have been better: gloriously warm, blue skies, a calm sea and barely a breath of wind. It gave us exactly the atmosphere I had hoped for.
A lot of the film grew out of simply observing Kelsey rather than trying to manufacture moments. Watching her train, prepare her equipment and get ready to leave the harbour gave us the quieter details that helped make the film feel personal. I also used Kelsey’s own GoPro footage from Cornwall and South Africa, keeping the original underwater sound wherever possible. That helped bring us even closer to her world and made the shark encounters feel immediate and real.
Ultimately, I wanted the film to move away from the usual fear-based way sharks are often presented, and instead see them through Kelsey’s eyes. That became the heart of the film.
MICROPLASTICS: BEYOND THE GUT
Behind Microplastics: Beyond the Gut
Not long after making Into the Blue, I found myself working with Kelsey again, but this time on something quite different. Rather than creating an immersive portrait, Microplastics: Beyond the Gut was much more science-led, built around Kelsey presenting her research into microplastics in sharks.
Kelsey wrote the script herself, which gave the film a strong foundation and meant the science stayed firmly in her voice. My job was to find a documentary style that would keep all that information clear and engaging without making it feel like a formal presentation.
We filmed across three locations: Newquay Harbour, Great Western Beach and Newquay University Centre. A lot of the filming had a more journalistic feel, particularly the walking-and-talking sections, which helped keep things moving and made the research feel more immediate and accessible.
Visually, I wanted it to feel connected to the places behind the research rather than simply sit Kelsey in front of a camera. Moving between the harbour, the beach and the university gave us a natural way to break up the information and place the science back into the environment it relates to.
It was a very different film to Into the Blue, but that was part of the appeal. This time the challenge wasn’t creating a sense of calm or immersion. It was finding a way to take quite complex research and turn it into something people could follow, understand and, hopefully, care about.
