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What follows is the penultamate blog of my time on Koh tao but yet there is still so much in the next 9 days to talk about.
Following my return from Koh Samui after the amazing care of Bangkok Hospital(in Koh Samui) i was ''greeted'' in my room by the company of a pair of Lizzards that had occupied my room at Asia divers for the week. Although there wasn't really much exchanged in words it was time to get back into the swing of things and ones' place to be known.
In the week that followed i had a week of no soberity and meds with no direct contact with water which marked a change from my lifestyle. very soon at the end of the week my foot recovered and the cuts were gone but leaving pink spots on my skin(guess versatility extends to even skin colour in other colours)
I was put back onto shadowing and spent a few days getting back to the routine of 5-5.30 am wake ups to venture down the the dive shops(due in part to not aquireing a moped which is a miracle to have survived so long without) spending 6-7 getting B-rol and establishing shows and liasion with the videographer i would shadow. and by 7 out on the water and on the dive boat filming the journey to the dive site and the open water students. filming the entire dive for 30-40 minute with a balence of footage of the sealife, dive site and the divers themselves. then an hour interval to rid outrelves of nitrogen narcosis and film breifings over the next dive site. then the procedure returns to filming divers doing jumps off the boat for edited intro shots.
then we film the next diver site and the open water skills such as removing the mask and clearing it of water and of bouyancy skills. following this shorter and shallower dive we head back to the mainaland by 11ish and return to the Ace marine office. then we cleanse the equiptment of salt water and edit the footage on Adobe premiere and render/burn the footage onto discs and head down the bar of the dive shop and present and sell the footage.
I have merely been shadowing the people that do this for over a week but i have in my spare time produced my own edited short films as souveniers and for my developeing portfolio and been filming many of the dives. Andy(the ehad of Ace) is on a visa run/holiday(as u do) in Malaysia leaving two of his highly skilled videographer to send me out sdhadowing every day almost alongside two other south african interns at alternative dates and dive shops. the conclusion has been made that due to the limited time span and various delays i will not quite get the paid work the internship suggested but what matters is that in the end i will walk away with tons of fooatge for a portfolio and the best experiences ever that i have had on Koh tao as a temporary home. currently i have two short underwater films completed in digital form and a 25 minute cut completed of one and a half an hour one still in post production.
In pre production the coral reef ten minute film is awaiting the go ahead. the project has been greenlit and was due to start filming back in april until production was delayed by my hospital stay and Christhe former head) haviong to return breifly to the uk for family matters. in the next few days until Andy and chris return i will continue to edit and film as much as possible for more films and apply what i've learnt to get the most footage. i've logged over 55 dives and my certification for the internship in on it's way. although i won't walk away in cash i will walk away with the best memories of my first ever internship. everything i have learnt has made hme put in the time to consider this skillset as a deifnet carrer possibility. atm i have possible job placem,ents with my skill set across the globe in the Malaysia, the gulf of Thaialnd or even the Caribbean so time will tell but for now what lies ahead is more travels and university.
The reason in part to saying no to paid work is due to time constraints and the decision to prioritse the coral reef film for my portfolio and to have the time to edit footage in the afternoons and early mornings when i'm not shadowing as the internship to me in the end will be about the experience and achievement in light of my time out of the water due to medical reasons.
Alongside work/shadowing ive had a sunday roast(the first and only on the island) which brings nostalgia out over western food from the Uk i have to say.
I have had a Thai massage, watched a Muay Thai boxing match(a remarkable event that i hope to see again), done a second UV(florescent) Night dive(best night dive ever!). had a few nights out with the videographers and taken part in a farewell drinks night for the previous intern Martin(a norweign yet american spoken uni grauate with ambitions to head for film school following filming work in Mozambique over the summer). It is sad to say faewell to a fellow videographer like saying good bye to a brother for a while. he left a week ago and i leave in just over a week and then another videographer leaves the day after me after many years of work for another company in Eygpt. another one is out for a month of no diving due to sinus/ear probelsm. another has left due to financial reasons but remains on the island. as the passage of time progresses things have changed over the last two and a half months and Koh Tao is a place where paradise becomes a possibility for a diver like myslef to dive for free and make films and meet new people and learn new things. I am dreading the end of my time and predict withdrawl sympotoms and wtaching my underwater work and photographs many times. but the reality of a possible return one day after more work and experience is a cherish thought i will keep in mind.
atm I am still shadowing and eidting fooatge and the company has an old and regular collegeue, Lizzie, who has returned for a 6 month placement following a drop out from second year of geography. The two other south African interns are being prepared for paid work with an equal amount of time of shadowing to fill in the shoes(one of which was due to leave after me but has following a visa run extended her time for more work)
things haven't panned out the way they expeceted but i have made the most of the situation and time and i am happy to still say i've loved every minute on the course and island and have learned so much wisdom from the videographers and the job itself about film making underwater and of life in paraside. once again the thought of pressing on for more travels is one i dread but look forward to. following this experience. theis experience has at times caused conflict over value of going to uni following insight to this job, work in kuwait , and prepping a novel for kindle. but deep down inside i want to go and have sorted very last bit of accomodation and preperation for uni as even though a gap year is life altering and changeing and i admit iv'e changed form eveyrthing ive done(and continue to) the knowledge of 3 years in university is something ive wanted since year 12 and one which will be beneficial to my ambitions in film making and more memorable experiences.
Until my last blog on Koh Tao i will continue to film/shadow and cherish the moments on the course and island. According to Andy at the farewell drinks i am now officially a local of Koh tao as either or both a hospital stay and/or tattoo make you one of the island. An excellent privellidge to have achive in my time from the hospital i have to say. whilst koh tao is the beginning of many places beyond with diving possibilities and employment I've had the most practical and hands on film making experience possible in an environment blessed with perfect humid weather, near perfect vissability, and experienced and wise videographer and divers.
Look out for the next one, the clock is ticking and the countdown has just begun!
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