Quiet please, we're filming (and sailing a catamaran)!

It took us a full year to produce this film, based on the book "Handling Your Catamaran". Gathering the crew and the production team was faster. Indeed, how can you refuse eight days of cruising in a dream setting, aboard a brand new and perfectly equipped catamaran? Our three novice crew members, as well as the members of the production team, have been able to discover sailing in the Strait of Bonifacio. They were not disappointed…

Day 1: Mayday, Mayday, Mayday

From the very first day, the whole team was immersed in the great outdoors. Starting with 70 knots of north-westerly wind in the port of Bonifacio. A watch was kept, and the lines doubled up for our Lagoon, which was well positioned at the inner end of the harbor. It was the Harbormaster's office that sounded the alarm. Another 46-foot catamaran broke her lines and drifted into the middle of the marina, left to her own devices. Nathalie, our skipper, and I went off aboard the harbor launch. The catamaran didn’t go very far; she impaled herself on a sailboat moored to a floating dock. It was only then that the delivery crew, overwhelmed by the turn of events, showed their faces! On the orders of Michel Mallaroni, the Harbormaster, Nathalie took command of the catamaran while I was preparing in a hurry for tying up alongside. Fortunately, the multihull was solid, and the damage seemed minor. The next morning, the catamaran disappeared, bound for an unknown destination. This mysterious vessel bore no registration, no name, no flag... Jean Marc, our chief camera operator, captured this rescue, which can now be seen on social media and video platforms (Rescue Catamaran Bonifacio - May 2019). We’re off to a good start!

Day 2: Maneuvering

After all the excitement, the crew are finding their way around the boat. They are surprised by the amount of space on offer: "The owner's cabin is bigger than my apartment!" chokes Karine, a novice crewmember but an experienced free-diver. "If I had a kitchen as well-equipped as this galley, I'd spend all my time there! " says Alexandra, our local on board. Time for port maneuvers and filming. Time that is running out. The weather is milder, and the crew's briefings will follow one another, punctuated by docking forwards, then stern to the dock, alongside, and then with simulated engine failure. Not to mention the art of the lazy line, so typical of Mediterranean ports. Nathalie manages her crew excellently while Christine, our director, alternates wide shots, tight shots and drone shots with her team to give substance to this first chapter. Lauren, our scriptwriter, ensures the smooth running of the shooting and the sequence of shots. Between marine terminology, techniques and safety rules to respect, our three crew members try to memorize everything. But there’s only one solution: do it again and again until all the gestures become automatic. The Kissing Pig, a restaurant on the marina, quickly became our canteen.

Day 3: Out into the ...