Just in time for World Oceans Day on June 7, artist/conservationist Joshua Sam Miller is showing his new 25-minute film “Sounds of the Ocean.” To raise awareness about ocean issues, Miller has offered planetariums around the world a one-week free license to show his film during June. Some of the planetariums taking him up on his offer include Juneau, Alaska’s Marie Drake Planetarium and Uruguay’s Planetario de Montevideo. Check out this list of all the planetariums showing Miller’s film, and learn more about it below.
“Sounds of the Ocean” combines original music, whale and dolphin sounds, art, and ocean imagery to take viewers on an underwater journey. The filmmakers want to demonstrate that oceans are worth protecting.
“Believing in the power of peaceful activism, the project’s intention is to inspire ocean action to protect life underwater, while also helping to reduce stress in our modern society,” an official statement about the film explains.
Miller, the film’s director, grew up surfing and scuba diving. He founded Embodied Sounds, which offers several different types of immersive experiences. These experiences include live music shows, multimedia performances featuring dance, art, and marine life sounds, and, trippiest of all, an underwater music experience offered in heated pools at some spas. Miller’s work has been featured everywhere, from an installation at Burning Man to a presentation during the 26th United Nations Climate Conference.
U.N. World Oceans Day traces its history back to 1992, when Oceans Day was first declared at the Global Forum in Rio de Janeiro. The United Nations officially designated World Oceans Day in 2008. It’s grown since and is usually celebrated around the world on June 8. However, this year, the date is June 7. This 2024 theme is “Awaken New Depths.”
As it says in the 2024 World Oceans Day trailer, “As humans, we depend on the ocean for survival. But compared to what it gives us, we invest little in return.” Instead of continuing to make shallow, short-sighted decisions, World Oceans Day urges humans to conserve the ocean before it’s too late. On June 7, you can join virtually from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. EDT as global policymakers, scientists, activists, and artists discuss how humans can better protect oceans. And look for Sounds of the Ocean coming to a planetarium near you.