Andrei Benedict N.

Mendiola
12 - Biology

DOCUMENTARY ANALYSIS
The Philippine Seas
By: Atom Araullo
Brief Summary:

In the stunning documentary, Philippine Seas, the handsome and charismatic Atom
Araullo and his crew embark on a ten-day quest around the three islands of the Philippines in
order to gauge the condition of our country’s seas, complete with beautiful panoramic shots
and up-close footage of exotic sea creatures.

The documentary begins at the Tanon Strait in Visayas, a large marine protected area
where there are dolphins as far as the eye can see! These smart and playful critters bring in a
lot of income to the area’s industry through dolphin watching – in fact, they bring in about 1.5
million pesos! While the dolphins around the area are protected, the same cannot be said
about tresher sharks around the Manjuyod sandbar, or what they like to call, “the Maldives of
the Philippines”. These sharks were killed by poachers as shark fins are being used in the
Chinese delicacy, shark fin soup.

Not far from the strait is Moalboal, Cebu, which is popular for its sardine run, the
phenomenon wherein a bevy sardines swim as a group to form one huge school of fish, shining
and glistening in the sun as if it were one big sea creature. This is also contributing to the
tourism around the area, and while it is good economically-speaking, it is detrimental to the sea
as the more tourists there are, the more trash is going to be left in the seas for animals to
accidentally eat, furthering the need for sustainable tourism in order to not leave the health of
the environment in a compromise.

But of course, tourism isn’t the only benefit that the sea gives us; another benefit is that
it gives us our beloved seafood! Atom also went to the fish port of General Santos City, the tuna
capital of the Philippines! There is a high demand for tuna all around the world, and as such,
there are also a lot of fishermen hoping to catch some as tuna can sell for very high prices. In
Kiamba, Sarangani, we see how the process of fishing works. The fishermen travel for six hours
to reach Sarangani Bay, the fishing ground, and once they get there, they need to wait again to
catch tuna. Sometimes, they can be lucky and have a catch in a matter of hours, but sometimes,
they can also wait for four or more days. The tuna themselves aren’t going to go without a
fight, and the fishermen must tame the tuna that they catch first. It is a long and tiresome
process, but the fishermen do not give up.
Andrei Benedict N. Mendiola
12 - Biology

This drive to catch fish can lead to misfortune though, as seen in the case of Samuel and
his men, who accidentally made it to the seas of Indonesia, and were arrested in the country.
Fishermen go through all of this work (in fact, their sector is considered one of the hardest) just
to get through life and support their families, what is most unfortunate is that those who catch
the food are those who don’t have food in the first place.

Aside from contributing to tourism and to our food supply, the sea also captures our
imagination. Palawan is considered as one of our last ecological frontiers and hosts a lot of
wonderful and exciting creatures; an example would be the dugong in Calauit. The dugong is
also called The Lady of The Sea, and like a mythical creature, the dugong is a rare sight to see.
Dugongs used to be killed but are now protected by the local tribe. The green sea turtles can
also be found in Palawan. Unfortunately, these slow and gentle creatures are targeted by
poachers for their shells. In 2014, an illegal Chinese vessel was found to have 380 dead turtles.
From 2010-2017, at least 21,000 specimens are recorded to have been obtained by poachers.
Poaching remains a problem as we do not have enough boats for surveillance.

But of course, foreigners can’t be solely blamed for the state of our seas and biodiversity
as we, the Filipino people, play a role in that, too. The Philippines is the 3 rd largest plastic
polluter in oceans, and these plastics can be mistaken by animals as food, leading to their
deaths. A few years from now, it is said that there could be more trash than animals in our
waters. Dynamite fishing is also a problem, as this bleaches our reefs. Fortunately, some
fishermen do learn, and after losing some limbs, they decided to practice responsible fishing.
The wounds from the past, however, do not heal. Forty percent of the country’s reefs are in
poor condition, and three years from now, the number is predicted to be fifty percent. Only a
measly 1% of the reefs are in excellent condition.

The documentary also highlighted the newly discovered Benham Rise, now known as
the Philippine Rise. The rise’s bank was discovered to have coral reefs in excellent condition and
was even found to have blue-finned tuna, one of the most expensive in the world. The Benham
Rise could contribute greatly to the food security of the country, should the government
consider protecting it, with some areas being no-take zones.

Our Philippine Seas are not in the best condition; they are polluted, corals are bleached,
and fishes are depleted, all because of us. Fortunately, we can also reverse our negative
impacts and restore the condition of our seas. It will not be easy, and will perhaps even be a
global effort, but is our duty as human beings to be the stewards of our Earth.
Andrei Benedict N. Mendiola
12 - Biology

Guide Questions

1. The seas captured my imagination and amazement, and all throughout the
documentary I was so affixed. All I could feel after watching the documentary was awe; in
awe of the stunning, panoramic shots of our seas, in awe of our sparkling and vibrant coral
reefs, in awe of Atom Araullo’s pulchritude and rippling biceps, in awe of the sight of all of
these exotic creatures just relaxing and swimming in their natural habitats, without a
zookeeper or an aquarium in sight, in awe of the mountains fishermen climb just to give us
our beloved tuna, in awe of the bustling fishing port of General Santos, in awe of the
contribution of the seas to not just our economy, but to our everyday lives. At the same
time, I also found myself in awe of our negligence, in awe of how devastating the effects of
this negligence are, in awe of our ignorance to just how much the sea does for us, in awe of
our lack of effort to change for the better, and just overall in awe of how we treat the seas
after all of the good things that they do and contribute to our lives – it was highly
frustrating. There was also a bit of anger involved, especially after seeing how easy
foreigners can get out of trouble in our country; six months or 1.2 million pesos is too, too
low, especially considering how our people get treated in other countries. It left a bitter
taste in my mouth. These foreigners are destroying our biodiversity and they get let off the
hook so easily?

I would say that the scenes involving the fishermen were the ones most impactful to me
as they were so well-done, it was like I could actually feel the rollercoaster ride of emotions
the fishermen were going through. There would be times of thrill and excitement, like when
they journey off to far away waters just to catch some fish. I would feel victorious and
ecstatic whenever they would catch a fish. I could also feel the terror during the storm,
terrified of all that uncertainty around me. I could feel the exhaustion they felt after doing
their jobs. I also found the part involving the Filipino fishermen imprisoned in Indonesia so
poignant simply because of how strong the fishermen seemed. They were not sad nor
angry; they weren’t crying a bucket of tears nor going on harangues about the injustices
they experienced. They seemed so strong, so calm and collected, that I could not help but
shed a tear.

The animal lover in me also really loved the amazing shots of the sea animals. I loved
seeing the dolphins having fun, the sardine run shining and glistening under the morning
sun. The turtles and the dugong were too adorable! The coral reefs looked amazing too; the
filmmakers really made the good parts of our seas look like the hottest tourist spots, and I
would love to see them in person one day.

Finally, any scene with the walking ball of sunshine and sex appeal, Atom Araullo was
memorable.
Andrei Benedict N. Mendiola
12 - Biology

2. Food security is defined as the measure of the availability of food and the ability of
individuals to access it. In the documentary, we could see that it was those who caught the
food that didn’t have access to purchase and eat it. The fishermen spend so much time and
effort, even risking their lives to catch tuna, but never get to have the smallest bite as the
tuna are sold off to those who can afford them, those from the middle to the upper-class,
those who have the money to buy expensive fish from the markets or perhaps from a fancy,
expensive restaurant.

Through this example, we can really observe the privilege, socio-economic, and cultural
dimensions of food security. It is more likely that those who are born from richer families,
or those with the privilege to have access to proper education and subsequently a proper
paying job, have more access to food than people from poorer families, or those who did
not have the privilege to have a proper education, leaving them with lower-paying jobs that
provide them with a meager amount of money, barely enough to get them through the day
– like the fishermen. Also, what I noticed was that most of the fishermen came from the
more rural areas of the country. Perhaps this is also an indication of privilege. It is not
counterintuitive to assume that those living in highly – urbanized areas have more access to
food than those living in rural areas.

Overall, the documentary, although not explicitly stating it, hinted at the sad reality; life
isn’t won by those who work the hardest, it’s won by those who have the privilege to not
work hard at all. The fishermen get up at the wee hours of the night, wait for hours, even
days, just to catch fish, but never get the chance to eat what they catch. Instead, it is those
with the money and privilege that get to enjoy the taste of tuna. It’s a sad reality that isn’t
going away anytime soon. The disparity between the rich and the poor is saddening, and it
is frustrating that this disparity also includes the access to food. I feel like all sectors of
society should have the access to food, so this is very unfortunate.

3. I have already touched on this in the previous item, but I’ll reiterate. The main barrier
that prevents the fishermen from accessing food is their privilege, or their lack thereof. The
fishermen simply were not born with the privilege to live lavish and spend four digits on
luxury fish. The privileged would probably say something along the lines that it is not one’s
fault if they were born poor, but their fault if they were to die poor. The less privileged are
fed with the narrative that they should work hard to become successful people, a narrative
used again and again in movies and media – the saccharine Cinderella, rags – to riches story.
Andrei Benedict N. Mendiola
12 - Biology

This narrative is, simply what it is; a narrative. In reality, the less privileged just can’t
work their way up to the top, and this is seen in the documentary. Perhaps if the
aforementioned narrative were true, then all fishermen would be millionaires with a
plethora of different properties, but they are not. The fishermen work so hard, risking their
lives, but you don’t see them rolling in the dough. The documentary features a fisherman
who has been working for 30 years already – again, if the narrative of working hard to
become rich and successful were true, this fisherman wouldn’t even be a fisherman
anymore; perhaps he’d be resting easy in his mansion, or in a more corporate job. The
system puts the fishermen at a disadvantage; the underprivileged are not given the support
they need to rise up the rankings; rather, they are confined to where they are, and fed with
false ideals and narratives to give them the false hope that they can do something about the
life that has been handed to them. It’s another sad reality presented in the documentary so
subtly, but powerfully regardless.

4. After watching the documentary, I was honestly struck with a lot of realizations. The
biggest one to me, would be just how blessed we Filipinos are to have such an amazing sea
teeming with biodiversity. The mixture of numbers and statistics with actual footage of the
sea really shows the magnificence of it all, and it just continually inspires me more and more
to do all that I can for the conservation and protection of our seas. I am honestly not sure
about what career path I’ll be taking in the future, but I know very well that I would spend
some time in raising awareness on our Philippine seas, whether it be through my
hypothetical work as a conservationist, or an inspired fashion collection when I make it big
as a fashion designer. Our seas are so important, not just because they provide us with food
and contribute greatly to the economy in sectors such as aquaculture and tourism as well as
offering jobs to different people, but also because they house so many different creatures
that you just can’t find anywhere else in the world. The documentary really reaffirmed to
me just how much I want to work towards the protection of our Philippine seas, and I’m
thankful for that.

Another realization was that we human beings truly are responsible for the state of our
environment. Yes, we have contributed to its ruin; we have bleached our corals, polluted
our seas, and depleted fish populations. But we also have the power to reverse that all, to
implement policies towards the restoration of the environment, and it is so nice to see that
there is indeed fruit in trying. I think that was such a nice point in the documentary – that all
hope is not lost yet, and that we human beings can still turn things around for the better;
it’s only a matter of whether or not we are willing to take the steps. Luckily, there are
people who are in the form of non-profit organizations, and I admire them so much.

A final realization would be that of how much dust we pay to our fishermen. We, the
privileged, tend to look down upon fishermen, reducing them to uneducated, illiterate men;
Andrei Benedict N. Mendiola
12 - Biology

we make them cautionary tales to tell children – we tell them to study hard so that they do
not end up like those poor fishermen. Well if we do not want our children to become
patient, hardworking, persevering, and steadfastly strong individuals, what do we want
them to be? We really need to change this stigma that surrounds them; these fishermen
deserve just as much respect than the scientist, or the businessman, or the cashier, or the
teacher. They even deserve the same, if not more, pay, for all of the hard work that they do
just to give us our beloved fish meals.

5. As a youth, I definitely think that the best way to get involved in this current problem
in our seas is to use our voice to spread awareness. We live in a society dominated by social
media, where we can broadcast our thoughts and opinions to reach a global audience with
a simple tap and click. I think it would be great if we could use this power of social media to
raise awareness on the current condition of our seas, and on the different ways that people
could pitch in and help.

I also believe that we should practice what we preach and actually do things around the
community; these could be something as simple as coastal-cleanups or tree-planting
activities. It is these little steps that have great impact on the environment.