''Solo'' (also known as ''Solo: Lost at Sea'' and ''Solitary Endeavour on the Southern Ocean'') is a 2008

documentary film A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

directed by David Michod and Jennifer Peedom. It narrates the story of

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

n adventurer Andrew McAuley who attempted a solo kayak crossing from

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

. After a month at sea, his mission ended in tragedy. His body was never recovered but his kayak was, as were video tapes documenting his journey. These tapes, together with footage of McAuley's preparation and interviews with his support crew including wife Vicki, form the basis of this documentary.

Synopsis

In January 2007, thirty years after the first man-powered crossing of the Tasman Sea by row boat, Andrew McAuley set out on his quest to become the first person to

kayak ] A kayak is a small, narrow human-powered watercraft typically propelled by means of a long, double-bladed paddle. The word ''kayak'' originates from the Inuktitut word '' qajaq'' (). In British English, the kayak is also considered to be ...

from Australia to New Zealand to cross 1600 km of one of the most dangerous oceans on Earth - the

Southern Ocean The Southern Ocean, also known as the Antarctic Ocean, comprises the southernmost waters of the world ocean, generally taken to be south of 60th parallel south, 60° S latitude and encircling Antarctica. With a size of , it is the seco ...

stretch of the Tasman Sea. After a month at sea, Andrew had endured all the difficulties and a three-day Category 9 storm. On 9 February, New Zealand maritime authorities received his distress call but they could not save his life. His body has never been recovered. Solo is a psychological portrait of McAuley's determination to claim a first and conquer the unknown - something that ultimately cost him his life.

Production

Production of the documentary began in 2008, a year after McAuley's death. The film was to be based on his journey, and also utilise his recovered video tapes. Director Jennifer Peedom said about the subject of the film that "There's a very fine line between making it and not making it, and he didn’t make it. And it's only then that people turn around and say, "Well, you know, what are you doing it in the first place for?," you know. So, it is an interesting kind of area, and I think there is no black and white." David Michod the co-director on the film said that "That footage was so compelling. Just so powerful. I came into this thing just wanting to know what might lead someone to attempt something that would have such a powerful and emotional effect on him." He further added, "What I started to see really quickly was that the Andrew who existed on land in preparing for his trip or talking about how his first attempt hadn't worked out, was a very different character to the one out at sea. The one out at sea seemed somehow alive."

Release and reception

The film premiered on 15 September 2008 on

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly ''The National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as ''Nat Geo'') is an American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. The magazine was founded in 1888 as a scholarly journal, nine ...

and then screened at the

Sheffield International Documentary Festival Sheffield DocFest (formerly styled Sheffield Doc/Fest; abbr.Sheffield International Documentary Festival or SIDF) is an international documentary festival and industry marketplace held annually in Sheffield, England. The festival revolves aro ...

on 8 November 2008. After that it screened at a number of film festivals. On 16 April 2009 it was broadcast on

ABC1 ABC TV, formerly known as ABC1, is an Australian national public television network. It is owned and operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and is the flagship (broadcasting), flagship ABC Television (Australian TV network), A ...

. The film earned mostly positive reviews. Rod Yates of

Empire Online ''Empire'' is a British film magazine published monthly by Bauer Media Group. The first issue was published in May 1989. History David Hepworth of Emap, the publisher of British music magazines ''Q magazine, Q'' and ''Smash Hits'', proposed t ...

gave the film five stars and said "As a tribute to a man – and man’s – insatiable search for adventure, it’s unforgettable." Paul Kalina of ''

The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...

'' also praised the film by saying "The film is harrowing and poetic, and provokes difficult ethical questions about those who practise - and film - acts of extreme peril." The film DVD was released on 19 March 2009.

Awards and official selections

* Official Selection -

International Film Festival of India The International Film Festival of India (IFFI), founded in 1952, is an annual film festival currently held in Goa, on the western coast of India. The festival aims at providing a common platform for the cinemas of the world to project the excel ...

(IFFI) * Official Selection -

* Official Selection -

International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam The International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) is the world's largest documentary film festival held annually since 1988 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Description IDFA is an independent, international meeting place for audiences ...

(IDFA) * Official Selection - Adelaide International Film Festival * Official Selection - St Tropez-based Festival des Antipodes * Official Selection - Mountain Film, Telluride USA

References

External links