B.C. family recalls 'amazing' experience working on new Avatar movie
A new film that is being promoted as "a movie event of a generation" holds special meaning for two generations of a Campbell River, B.C., family.
Father and daughter Kirk and Kaila Krack worked on the new movie Avatar: The Way of Water, and attended the cast premier in Los Angeles on Dec. 12.
"It was amazing. It's not a red carpet, it's a blue carpet because it's oceans," says Kirk, who worked as a free-diving coach on the production. "It was quite the spectacle."
Through his company Performance Freediving Academy, Kirk instructed the movie's cast on diving techniques, including being able to hold their breath for extended periods.
"Sigourney Weaver, Kate Winslet, Zoe Saldana. We had six kids from age six to 16 that I had to train, as well" he said.
Kirk says he considers the film, which opens in theatres Friday, to not only be the world's biggest diving movie but also an advocacy film for ocean and marine environments.
"It's really about free-divers on another planet and the pressure that the oceans of Pandora are under and all the strife that happens there," he said. "There's a parallel to here."
The older Krack also saw his daughter Kaila work on the production, doubling for the young actress Trinity Bliss in underwater work.
She says the opportunity to be involved in the film came about unexpectedly.
“I just happened to be in L.A. visiting my dad and they called and wanted me and I was super excited to be able to go in," Kaila said.
"I had already been swimming in the tank and I really wanted to do a little bit in Avatar so it was really a great honour to be chosen to help,” she said.
Kaila says she was equipped with motion-capture gear while in the tank. “I was decked out in the whole suit with the little balls and everything,” she said.
The younger Krack didn't need much training from her father though. He says she has practised free-diving since she was four years old and he was "super proud" to have her in the production.
"I mean, Avatar is about family. It's about being in the water and breath-hold diving and that's what we are," he said.
The pair hope the film will help educate audiences about protecting the oceans.
“I’m really passionate with the ocean and trying to keep it alive because it is our life source," Kaila said. "The ocean keeps everything alive."
“One out of every two breaths we take we owe to the top five metres of the oceans," Kirk said.
"They’re so important and water has all these amazing and unique properties, yet we really don’t give it the respect that it deserves."
Members of the mid-island diving community and the Exploration Diving Society of British Columbia are planning to attend a screening of the movie Friday.
"We’ve all decided we’re going to go and celebrate," Kirk said. "Celebrate the biggest diving movie ever and the kind of local successes that are brought to it, so it’ll be fun."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
B.C. seeks ban on using drugs in 'all public spaces,' shifting approach to decriminalization
The B.C. government is moving to have drug use banned in 'all public spaces,' marking a major shift in the province's approach to decriminalization.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
Trump's lawyers try to discredit testimony of prosecution's first witness in hush money trial
Donald Trump's defence team attacked the credibility Friday of the prosecution's first witness in his hush money case, seeking to discredit testimony detailing a scheme between Trump and a tabloid to bury negative stories to protect the Republican's 2016 presidential campaign.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Air traveller complaints to Canadian Transportation Agency hit new high
The Canadian Transportation Agency has hit a record high of more than 71,000 complaints in a backlog. The quasi-judicial regulator and tribunal tasked with settling disputes between customers and the airlines says the backlog is growing because the number of incoming complaints keeps increasing.
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid says he has Bell's palsy
Philadelphia 76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid has been diagnosed with Bell’s palsy, a form of facial paralysis he says has affected him since before the play-in tournament.
U.S. flight attendant indicted in attempt to record teen girl in airplane bathroom
An American Airlines flight attendant was indicted Thursday after authorities said he tried to secretly record video of a 14-year-old girl using an airplane bathroom last September.