Nov 2, 2021
The Rescue explores the story of the dramatic Tham Luang cave rescue in 2018, when twelve boys and their soccer coach were saved from deep inside a flooded cave in northern Thailand. But like all great documentaries, it is about so much more – bravery, cave diving, the human spirit and ultimately, generosity.
The Rescue is the latest masterpiece by the Oscar-winning director Chai Vasrahelyi, which she co-directed and co-produced with her partner in film and life, Jimmy Chin.
Chai joins us to discuss how the filmmakers were able to bring to life one of the most perilous and extraordinary rescues in modern times. She explains the main challenges in the making of the film, why they used re-enactments, and how they obtained access to exclusive interviews and never-before-seen footage from this dramatic event.
The Rescue, produced by National Geographic Documentary Films, had its theatrical release in the US on October 8th and in the UK on October 29th.
“The ordinary people were able to do something so extraordinary.” - Chai Vasarhelyi
Time Stamps:
00:00 - The trailer for
The Rescue.
03:50 - What the
film is about and what drew Chai to this
story.
06:49 - The commonalities between
free climbing and cave diving.
08:14 - Who the rescue team were
and how the boys helped with their own rescue.
11:12 - First clip: how the boys
were rescued.
14:22 - The main challenges of
bringing this story to life.
18:42 - Actual rescue footage and
why re-enactments were used to complete the story.
19:45 - How Chai keeps people
engaged while watching a film.
20:57 - The next project Chai is
working on.
21:55 - Second clip: the moment
when divers reached the boys for the first time.
Resources:
The
Rescue (2021)
Free Solo (2018)
MovieMaker Magazine
Innersound Audio
Alamo Pictures
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