London, United Kingdom –10th October 2024
On August 1, 1914, British explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton and his crew sailed from England, set on making history as the first to cross Antarctica, however the ship never returned. On November 22, 1915, the ship named Endurance disappeared, crushed by ice in the Weddell Sea. Today, Shackleton’s survival story is legendary and the rescue of all twenty-seven crew members. Yet Endurance was thought lost forever, impossible to find because of her remote location in Antarctica – until March 5, 2022.
The feature film Endurance directed and produced by Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin and Natalie Hewit will have its world premiere screening on 12 October during the BFI London Film Festival (whatson.bfi.org.uk) at Royal Festival Hall, London, UK.
ENDURANCE: The Discovery of Shackleton’s Legendary Ship takes us inside the Endurance22 mission to locate, film, and survey the wreck of Shackleton’s lost ship—culminating with its boastful success. The documentary reveals the story of the expedition led by Dr. John Shears (Shears Polar Ltd), the accomplished polar geographer and Nicolas Vincent, who served as its deputy leader and subsea manager from Deep Ocean Search (DOS), the worldwide leader for solutions in ultra-deep-water activities. Nico Vincent is a subsea engineer, surveyor and commercial diver, he co-founded and managed the COMEX Marine Operations Department in the 1990s which he managed for over 15 years. With his 25 years experienced as a rigorous manager, Nicolas manages all of DOS’s technical needs, both actual and future, as well as the personnel and operations at sea.
He and his team hold four world records, including the recovery of the world’s deepest cargo of silver coins on behalf of the U.K government, they supported the location of the fighter plane of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry; and working with explorer Victor Vescovo, discovered the world’ deepest wreck: the USS Samuel B. Roberts, a world War II destroyer escort found 22, 621 feet (6,895 m) deep in the Philippine sea. They have also helped investigate air accidents, including Air France AF447 in 2009, Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370 in 2014, and EgyptAir Flight MS804 in 2022.
Dr John Shears is a polar geographer and expedition leader with more than 30 years of experience in both Antarctica and the Arctic. A long-standing Fellow and Chartered Geographer of the Royal Geographical Society, he is also a leading expert on the Antarctic Treaty system, serving as a senior policy adviser on treaty matters to the British government for more than 20 years. In 2019, he was awarded the Polar Medal by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in recognition of his “outstanding achievement and service to the United Kingdom in the field of polar research.” Currently a visiting professor in the School of Geography and Environmental Science at the University of Southampton, he manages his polar consultancy business, Shears Polar Ltd.
DOS supplied a large set of people to the subsea team led by the Offshore Manager Jean-Christophe Caillens that was dedicated to locating endurance 24/7 over on worst polar conditions that may be expected offshore. The same team produced the post processing as well allowing the digital model of the Endurance. DOS engineer Pierre Le Gall worked over weeks with Voyis Imaging to generate the final facsimile of Sir Ernest Shackleton vessel.
The documentary will reveal how DOS operates at extreme depths on a daily basis and has been doing so for the past 10 years. The company was created in 2010 to fulfill a wide range of survey and subsea operations in water depths of up to six thousand meters using adapted survey vessels and robotic systems.
Nicolas Vincent commented on this world premiere screening of Endurance: “ We are very proud and happy to be part of this adventure and share our journey with the public. Our mission to find the wreck of Shackleton’s lost ship was an amazing and challenging experience that put to a test our technical expertise and know-how. The documentary is a vibrant legacy of our adventure and the determination of our team at large.”
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Notes to Editors
Key Dates:
Endurance will be available worldwide on National Geographic by Disney+ from November 2, 2024.
In addition to the documentary, a limited edition of the Endurance story will be published and available in all good bookstores from November 5, 2024
About Deep Ocean Search
Deep Ocean Search is an innovative and inventive company providing worldwide solutions in ultra-deep-water activities.
DOS operates at extreme depths on a daily basis and has been doing so for more than 10 years. The company was created in 2010 to fulfill a wide range of survey and subsea operations in water depths of up to six thousand meters. Specially adapted survey vessels and robotic systems were brought together with a highly experienced team. DOS’s unique capabilities are made available to other organizations that want to operate in ultra-deep water. DOS operates at extreme depths on a daily basis, 24 hours a day, offering advanced subsea services worldwide from shallow to ultra-deep areas. Find out more at deepoceansearch.com
Press Contacts
Please contact Weber Shandwick for interview time or exclusive comment from Deep Ocean Seach.
Weber Shandwick London
Katie Hordern, Associate Director
KHordern@webershandwick.co
Weber Shandwick France
Eloi Asseline, CEO Weber Shandwick France
Axel Patinet, Associate Director
