Pearls of the Adriatic Sea – underwater documentary films

Trailer

Story

The underwater world is very mysterious. We know less about life in the depths of the seas and oceans than about distant galaxies in space. The sea also partially flooded some karst caves, which are never illuminated by the sun’s rays.

Various types of fish are the most common inhabitants along the
underwater walls as well as on the sandy bottom. Seahorses are
definitely among the most unusual fish. Because they are poor
swimmers, they spend most of their time on the seabed,
hidden from larger predators.

Most fish swim in smaller or larger schools all the time. But there are also those that prefer to rest on the seabed. These are rare moments that, with a bit of luck, can only be captured if you are in the right place at the right time.

At night, most fish find a safe shelter and go to rest for the night. Others revive and go hunting. Some fish are very unusually shaped and prefer to walk around on the sandy bottom. They swim rapidly only when they are threatened and escape from larger predators.

Most crabs are nocturnal predators. During the day, they hide in rock crevices and smaller holes in underwater walls. At night, they go hunting. Most crabs feed on dead organisms. They have adapted to this because the fish are much faster than them and can easily escape them.

When during night diving we illuminate certain organisms with a special blue or ultraviolet light and when using appropriate filters on the camera, marine organisms are presented in completely different colors.

About me

I have been diving for more than thirty years and have been taking underwater photography for the same amount of time. The underwater camera has accompanied me since the first dives. I actually started diving because I wanted to take pictures underwater. In the last few years, however, the underwater video camera replaced the underwater photo camera that added a new dimension – time. Instead of capturing moments in the lens, I started looking for the stories of the inhabitants below the surface of the sea. The latter became a new big challenge.

As an underwater photographer, I mainly looked for subjects in tropical seas. I dived in the Adriatic Sea much less than I could have otherwise. With the video recording, however, that also changed. A few years ago I decided to start systematically exploring the Adriatic Sea. So I finally reached the more distant islands of the Adriatic Sea. So I devoted all my attention to the Adriatic Sea, especially when I realized that there probably has not been a documentary film made about this beautiful sea that cuts deep into the heart of Europe, which would fully present this wonderful ambient. I am also aware that I have far from recorded everything. In fact, there is much more that still remains hidden from our eyes. Nevertheless, over time, stories began to accumulate in my archive, which I connected into a complete story. This is how a series of four underwater documentaries about the Adriatic Sea was created. The first film from this series is Pearls of the Adriatic Sea – North Region.

Next steps

the entire material for the documentary has already been recorded
rough editing and post-production of the film has already been done
I did the post-production done so far myself, as well as all the
recording and other costs incurred so far I financed
it exclusively myself
at this point the project has to enter a new phase and from here on
I need your help and support so that the project
can include the team who will take care of further post-production
and the final image of the film (musical background,
preparation and reading of the text in several languages, sound
dubbing, film promotion, …)
the length of the film is 52 minutes, 1080/25 fps, languages:
Slovenian, Croatian, English; in case the collected funds are
higher than anticipated, depending on the possibilities,
the film will also be translated into German and Italian language
I will be extremely grateful for your support and I have prepared some awards for each of you in the packages presented below

Crowd funding

How you can support project?

visit web page https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/north-adriatic-sea#/
click button “Pick your perk“, to open sliding window with available packages
select the appropriate package by clicking button “Get this perk“ at choosen package
click button “Proceed to checkout“ to open new subpage where you can enter your data in appropriate fields (family name and surname, e-mail, country (usualy preselected according to your location), postal address, city, zip code, phone number, payment method – in case of payment with credit card enter the data as on your credit card)
note – login is not necessary, you can support as a guest
check both fields on the right side above the button “Submit payment”
check the amount – the amount may be a few € higher due to the amount in the Indiegogo tip field > select Other and enter 0 in this field
click button “Submit payment” to proceed and finish the checkout

Estimated deliveries

photos, e-book and calendar: 2025 – 01
documentary film Kingdome of Groupers: 2025 – 03
documentary film Pearls of the Adriatic Sea – North region: 2025 – 06

SHARE THIS PROJECT WITH RELATIVES, FRIENDS AND ALL WHO LIKE THE UNDERWATER WORLD !

Many thanks in advance to all who want to support this documentary film!

What you get?

52 min, English language
The film presents the world beneath the sea surface of the Northern Adriatic in the Gulf of Trieste (Slovenian sea) and in the Croatian sea along the coasts of the Istrian peninsula, in the Kvarner Gulf and around the islands of Cres, Rab, Grgur and Goli otok both during the day and at night.

18 min, English language
Film about my amazing encounters with groupers on Lavezzi island near Corsica in Mediterranean sea. Diving with them is without any doubt the peak of all my underwater experiences. I am not sure but most probably I could be the first diver who took selfies with any fish.

10 selected digital photos,
size 4500 x 3000 pixels, format jpg.

You can print the photos and

arrange a gallery of underwater images

at home or in the office.

The e-book presents my journey under the sea around the globe through photographs taken in the nearby as well as the far distant seas of our blue planet with many stories about how the photographs were taken;

550 photographs, 345 pages, English language, pdf format;

preview e-book at the link http://www.oceanus.si/en/ebooks/

Additional 10 selected digital photos,
size 4500 x 3000 pixels, format jpg.

You can print the photos and

arrange a gallery of underwater images

at home or in the office.

Calendar ABSTRACT PAINTINGS
Photos were published in National Geographic magazine, Slovenian issue
and the article was awarded as “Best Edit” by the

National Geographic board in Washington,

size 48 x 43cm.

Package	Value	Personal thanks	Film 1	Film 2	Photos 10x	E-book	Photos 30x	Calendar 2025	Personal credits
		(1)	(2)	(3)	(4)	(5)	(6)	(7)	(8)
Bronze backer	25€	✔	✔	✔
Silver backer	50€	✔	✔	✔	✔
Gold backer	100€	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
Platinum backer	250€	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
Pearl backer	500€	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
Diamond backer	1000€+	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔