#prestigediversions | JULY 2019 PRESTIGE 129
What can the 15 watch owners expect at the
freediving experience with you in September?
It’s going to be in French Polynesia, which is my second
home. I really want to show them the magic of this
underwater world right in the middle of the Pacifi c and
let them feel the strong connection with the ocean that’s
present in Polynesian culture. I also want them to see
the importance of reconnecting with ourselves, which
is something freediving helps with a lot. Finally, French
Polynesia is a world of wonder, and I hope I can show them
the whales, manta rays, and incredible corals and fi shes
because the marine life there is incredible.
Your freediving activities also extend to underwater
fi lm-making. How did you get into it?
Freediving is beautiful to watch, and I actually started
freediving after watching an engrossing documentary about a
freediver. I think seeing humans moving in the water like that
evokes deep emotional responses. What will save humanity is
love and art, and with freediving fi lms, we have the chance
to bring to people the love of nature and the ocean. I will try
to touch people with freediving however I can, whether it’s
through fi lms, photographs or books.
What are the challenges of underwater fi lm-making?
I try to be as innovative as possible and that’s not easy.
The last fi lm I released with my wife, One Breath Around
the World, was a project we worked on for several years. I
wanted to create a fi lm about freediving in diff erent places
that is not a documentary but more of an experience. And
it’s challenging because today, everybody can buy GoPros
and do incredible things. So my approach was to focus on
quality, not quantity, for my fi lms.
Another challenge is spreading awareness about
the ocean environment through the fi lm. Where I live,
by Mediterranean Sea, I see more and more plastic.
This is obvious and it is a disaster. There are also fewer
big fi shes because of overfi shing and I see the eff ects of
global warming on the corals, which are really in danger.
People can watch the movie and say the ocean is beautiful,
but then they will use a lot of plastic without realising that
they’re killing what they love. So the big challenge is helping
people make the connection.
How will you help people make that connection?
The next book I’m writing, which will be out next year, is about
that and I will fi nd a way to spread the message through my
next fi lm as well. I’m lucky because I have a big community
following my adventures, so I try to share the message with
them. I’ve also changed my lifestyle because you cannot ask
people to change if you don’t do so yourself. I’ve stopped
eating fi sh and most meats like beef and pork because it’s very
bad for the environment. I’ve also reduced the travelling I’m
doing. When I’m in Europe, I try not to fl y; instead, I take the
train. Changing isn’t easy, but we don’t have any other choice.Tell me more about your upcoming book.
It’s called Reconnection, and it’s about my experiences
underwater and how I found happiness through reconnecting
with what’s really important. We live in a world where
everybody thinks they’re connected because they have
smartphones and Internet access. But we’re losing the real
connections. I’m trying to use my experiences to invite
people to reconnect with diff erent things, such as their
bodies and minds, nature, even the universe itself, and
just take the time to understand the world around us and
how lucky we are to live on this planet.Panerai Submersible Chrono
Guillaume Néry Edition“I WILL TRY TO TOUCH PEOPLE WITH FREEDIVING
HOWEVER I CAN, WHETHER IT’S THROUGH
FILMS, PHOTOGRAPHS OR BOOKS”— GUILLAUME NÉRY