Captain Paul Watson of Sunken Anti-Whaling Vessel Subject of Documentary About Heroic Efforts to Save Marine Life From Illegal Slaughter

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- The world's attention was drawn this week to the shocking action of a Japanese whaling vessel, which rammed the Ady Gil, a sleek and speedy trimaran owned and operated by the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, putting its crew members in danger of drowning and ultimately causing the craft to sink. The incident, which occurred January 5th in the Antarctic Marine Whale Sanctuary, brought up the subject of international agreements to limit the slaughter of marine life, which have been widely ignored by whalers and other large scale fishing operations.

One of the heroes in the fight against these illegal operations is Captain Paul Watson, founder of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, whose life and work has been brilliantly captured and recorded in the riveting documentary, "Pirate for the Sea." The film has been shown and has won awards at film festivals around the world since premiering at the Telluride Film Festival in 2008. Producer/writer/director Ron Colby calls Watson "the most daring, effective, and controversial marine environmental activist ever." A worthy subject for his film!

Despite its timeliness, "Pirate for the Sea" has not been shown theatrically outside of film festivals. A public increasingly aware of the dire conditions of the world's oceans, however, would undoubtedly consider it a "must see," just as they did Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth" a few years ago. Meanwhile, there is a good deal of information about Watson's Sea Shepherd Conservation Society on the web, where his efforts and accomplishments can be admired and applauded.

For film-goers within driving range of Sonoma or Nevada City, "Pirate for the Sea" will be showing at film festivals in both those locations later this month. For more information about "Pirate for the Sea" email co-producer Patricia van Ryker at [email protected] or log on to http://www.pirateforthesea.com/.

SOURCE Patricia van Ryker