Becoming Cousteau examines the epic life of Jacques Yves Cousteau, the ocean explorer who spanned the globe with a misfit crew of divers and filmmakers, under the lifelong creed, “Il faut aller voir” -- “We must go and see for ourselves”. The Frenchman who first sounded the alarm to save the oceans was born with a dream to fly, but a car accident grounded his aviation career, and he found rehabilitation and inspiration through free-diving in the South of France. His desire to go deeper and further led him to inventions that would forever change the way we see and know the undersea world, co-inventing the “aqualung” and revolutionizing underwater cinematography. At the start, a burgeoning oil industry backed his explorations paving the way for ocean exploitation. Then, the television industry made him an international star. His trailblazing underwater cinematography and high sea adventures aboard the Calypso introduced generations around the world to the wonders of the seas, but when Cousteau started to see with his own eyes the destruction and degradation of the oceans, he sounded the alarm. But was it too late?

About the Director:

Two-time Academy Award®-Nominee, two-time Emmy Winner, Peabody Winner, Grammy Nominee, DGA Nominee, and BAFTA-nominated director Liz Garbus is one of America’s most celebrated filmmakers, renowned for her documentary work and also for her breakthrough scripted debut. Her work has been featured in film festivals from Sundance to Telluride to Toronto and the New York Film festival and has appeared in theatres and across streaming platforms as well as premium cable television, and she is known for her propulsive, socially incisive storytelling across genres. From The Farm: Angola USA to What Happened, Miss Simone? to I'll Be Gone in the Dark, Garbus has created some of the most important documentaries of our time.

Her series I'll Be Gone in the Dark premiered on HBO in June 2020 and a Special Episode of I’ll Be Gone In The Dark, debuted on HBO in June 2021. Garbus’ recent film, All In: The Fight for Democracy, premiered at the New York Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, drive-in screenings, in theaters and digitally on Amazon Prime Video in September 2020. Her narrative feature debut, Lost Girls, premiered at Sundance Film Festival in 2020 and was released on Netflix and in theaters in March 2020. The Fourth Estate, for Showtime, was nominated for a 2018 Emmy for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series. Her 2015 feature, Sundance opener, What Happened, Miss Simone?, a Netflix original, was nominated for a 2016 Oscar for Best Documentary Feature and took home the Emmy Award for Best Documentary or Nonfiction Special.  

Other credits include: The Innocence Files (Netflix, 2020), Who Killed Garrett Phillips? (HBO, 2019), There's Something Wrong with Aunt Diane (HBO, 2011), The Farm: Angola, USA (AA nominee, 1998) and many others.

Becoming Cousteau is Sponsored by Dr. Andy Higgins.

The Tower Theatre is Sponsored by Brooks Resources

Regal Old Mill is Sponsored by The Starview Foundation