A documentary about acclaimed marine conservationist and artist Guy Harvey will have a special screening at the Camana Bay Cinema on Friday, 17 April.
Guy Harvey: The Documentary, directed by 24 Emmy Award-winning director and producer Nick Nanton, premiered in February to a sold-out audience at the 40th annual Fort Lauderdale Film Festival.
Filmed over 18 months, it explores Harvey’s journey from artist to scientist and conservationist, during which he transformed his artistic talent into a movement for ocean awareness.
Harvey, whose paintings of marlin, sharks and other marine wildlife feature on his popular self-branded shirts, shorts and hats, in 2008 launched the Guy Harvey Foundation, running conservation awareness and education programmes in the US and throughout the Caribbean.
Money from Harvey’s artwork and apparel sales goes back into his foundation, which funds projects across Central America, the Galapagos and the Caribbean, including in Cayman. The Guy Harvey Foundation also runs a marine education initiative teaching schoolchildren and teachers about the value of marine life, “so that people can become better conservationists, better stewards of the marine environment”, Harvey said.
Harvey, who has a PhD in marine biology, grew up in Jamaica, where he developed a love of deep-sea fishing, and he recalls taking part in fishing tournaments in Cayman in the 1980s. His love of the sea led him to develop an interest in marine biology, which he studied in college and in which he has a doctorate.
He and his family moved to Grand Cayman in 1999.
The Guy Harvey Foundation and his art business is a family affair. His son Alex runs his gallery in George Town, as well as the company’s marketing, while daughter Jessica is the CEO of the foundation.
Harvey says the foundation also leans on state, NGO and private donations, and has an annual budget of $4-5 million.
Explaining to Compass TV how the film came about, Harvey said he was approached by Nanton about the possibility of making a documentary about his career.
“[Nanton] runs a very successful business in doing biographical documentaries,” Harvey said. “He’s been known as America’s best storyteller, best biographer.”
A contract was signed, and over a year and a half, they shot footage in five or six different countries, including Cayman. Harvey’s own library of historical photographs, as well as some footage from the early days in Jamaica were also in the mix.
Nanton came with Harvey and his crew to experience some of the fishing, the research work and teaching in action, as well as Harvey painting his iconic and instantly recognisable artwork.
“He’d come to my studio down in South Sound and sit with me and paint,” he said.
“So it was a thorough coverage of just about everything we’d done. I have to say, to take 40 years of … some pretty exciting life and events and cram it into one hour, it takes a special person to be able to do that, and tell the story concisely and truthfully and honestly.”
Tickets for the documentary showing, at $25, are available for purchase the Guy Harvey Gallery and Shoppe on Seafarers Way, George Town. All proceeds will benefit ocean conservation education and research through the Guy Harvey Foundation.
The film will show at 7pm, followed by a Q&A with Harvey at the Camana Bay Cinema.
To watch the trailer, click here.
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