News
The British Film Institute have announced that the World Première of the feature-length documentary “Endurance” takes place on 12 October at The Royal Festival Hall in London as part of the London Film Festival.
From National Geographic Documentary Films and directed by Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin and Natalie Hewit, “Endurance” tells the stories of two landmark expeditions. The first was Sir Ernest Shackleton’s Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition on which his ship, Endurance, became trapped in the ice of the Weddell Sea in Antarctica and sank on 21 November 2015. The second was the expedition – Endurance22 – organised and funded by the Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust (FMHT) that discovered the wreck of Endurance on 5 March 2022 at a depth of 3008 metres under the ice. Mensun Bound, a Trustee of the FMHT, was Director of that expedition, which was led by Dr John Shears, with Nico Vincent as subsea manager. Historian and broadcaster Dan Snow was a member of the expedition team, bringing the story to a global audience through his podcasts and social media.
Shackleton avoided the Falkland Islands at the beginning of his expedition, concerned that, with World War I under way, he might become embroiled in that conflict. And indeed, as he entered the Weddell Sea, the Battle of the Falkland Islands took place off the Islands on 8 December 1914. In 2019 Mensun Bound led an expedition that located SMS Scharnhorst, sunk in that battle: a documentary “Lost Ships – The Search for the Kaiser’s Superfleet” tells the story of that search. And Shackleton gave his first public account of his epic adventures in Stanley, seeking to organise the rescue of the members of the expedition awaiting their fate on Elephant Island. The name of Shackleton is thus intimately linked with the maritime history of the Islands.
FMHT Chairman Donald Lamont says: “The release of the National Geographic documentary is a milestone for the Trust. As well as locating, surveying and filming the wreck, our aim was to bring the stories of Shackleton and of his ship to new generations. They are stories of grit and determination that we hope will inspire people across the globe with the qualities of leadership and perseverance in the face of adversity. The stories of both expeditions are set in the hostile environment of Antarctica, a continent whose changing features affect us all. Natalie Hewit, one of the Directors of the documentary was, with her media team, a member of the expedition, capturing and sharing the spirit of teamwork that was vital to its success. We are pleased that the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) and the US-based non-profit Reach the World, both partners of the Trust, will be able to take advantage of the release of the documentary to promote the materials they have developed to engage with teachers and students across the world.”
The documentary will be screened in selected cinemas across the UK from 14 October (details at https://releasing.dogwoof.com) prior to streaming.