Stories from a Changing Sea: Oyster Project

Presented by City of Adelaide, ART POD, Nature Festival and Closer Productions

DATE: Sunday 11th October, 2026

TIME: 3pm

LOCATION: Town Hall Meeting Room

Sunday afternoon session where filmmaker Sophie Hyde is joined by marine ecologist Stefan Andrews (Marine Biologist & Filmmaker, Great Southern Reef Foundation), Dr Dominic McAfee (Marine Ecologist & Future Making Fellow, Adelaide University and 25 Reefs project), Manny Katz (Marine Restoration Practitioner & Director, Eyrelab) and First Nations Wildlife Conservation Biologist Tiahni Adamson to discuss the current state of South Australian marine environments, recording the effects of the harmful algal bloom, building regenerative oyster reefs, balancing grief and hope, and how they will work together to make a film that uses these real-world events in a fictional context.

Image: Liam Sommerville

Sophie's previous films include: 52 Tuesdays, shot (and set) every Tuesday for one-year following a transgender parent and their child & Good Luck to You Leo Grande which explored a relationship between an older woman, played by Emma Thompson, and a sex worker over a series of meetings. Her latest, Jimpa, starring Olivia Colman and John Lithgow, is an intergenerational conversation about identity and parenting which was released in cinemas earlier this year.

Sophie says, “I want to understand how we treat each other and ask how we might choose to do it better and allow a conversation to happen around that. This new project expands this into a conversation about how we treat the world and live in relation to it (and each other) as we face ecological disaster."

Sophie is joined by several people working on the frontline in response to the harmful algal bloom event that has devastated our oceans over the last 18 months. Together they will consider how we face this moment, what's happening to help rebuild and heal and how this might make its way into cinema.

Image: Stefan Andrews courtesy of Great Southern Reef Foundation

Check out the exhibition at ART POD:

This talk on the final day of The Nature Festival builds on the ongoing research taking place at ART POD supported by City of Adelaide and Nature Festival.

The residency aims to celebrate community, local ecosystem concepts, and evolutionary creativity.

Viewable 24/7 : September 25th - October 11th

As part of the development for a new film project, acclaimed director Sophie Hyde (Good Luck to you Leo Grande, Jimpa) is exploring the work of local scientists and underwater cinematographers who are recording the impacts of the algal bloom on the South Australian coastline and working to build new oyster reefs that will support the recovery of affected areas.

Part of this research is testing ways of presenting the underwater experience visually and aurally, helping audiences connect with the beauty, complexity and devastation beneath the surface.

Check out more about the installation here: https://www.naturefestival.org.au/event/sophie-hyde-oyster

Image: Liam Sommerville

Contact the host of Stories from a Changing Sea: Sophie Hyde's Oyster Project