

Breathing Underwater
2016-09-29 · 77 min · ★ 7.0
In Jeju Province, located off the southern coast of Korea, are the women of the sea, those who hold breath for life. These women still exist and they still dive the old way, without tanks. They go into the waters of 10- to 20-meter depth to harvest seaweed and shellfish to make a living. They make a living in the same sea, but each haenyeo’s sea of life is different. The community is divided into three tiers- Group A, B and C, based on skills and capabilities. One’s rank is determined by sum or breath. Sum, is pre-determined at birth. Therefore, sum is desired. However, the ocean is harsh. May you desire! But seek what is not yours, the ocean will devour you. Life, for these women of the sea, is about holding one’s breath, and containing and controlling one’s desire. The film is a six year record of the lives of the haenyeos in Udo, an islet in the province of Jeju, known to be the birthplace of haenyeo. It is a close look into the lives that stand on the boundary of life and death.
Trailers are previews, not full movies.
No authorized playback source configured. Use the legal watch options below.
Production details
- Directors
- Koh Hee-young
- Production companies
- Jinjin Pictures
- Countries
- South Korea, France
- Status
- Released
Top Cast
Koh Hee-youngNarratorTitle information and images are supplied by TMDb. Explore our discovery guide for advice on comparing metadata and legal viewing options.
Where to watch
Availability provided by JustWatch via TMDb. Offers can change. Provider links are listed on TMDb; full playback requires a separately authorized source.
Seasons & episodes
Recommendations

Join the likes of Jeremy Renner, Hailee Steinfeld, Florence Pugh, and Vincent D’Onofrio as they reveal how Marvel Studios’ “Hawkeye” was conceived and created. Witness firsthand what it took to pull off the show’s pulse-pounding action set pieces, and discover how iconic characters from the pages of Marvel Comics such as Kate Bishop were adapted and brought to life for the six-episode series.

Imagine a world of incredible color and beauty. Of crabs wearing jellyfish for hats. Of fish disguised as frogs, stones and shag carpets. Of a kaleidoscope of life dancing and weaving, floating and darting in an underwater wonderland. Now, go explore it! Howard Hall and his filmmaking team, who brought you Deep Sea and Into the Deep, take you into tropical waters alive with adventure: the Great Barrier Reef and other South Pacific realms. Narrated by Jim Carrey and featuring astonishing camerawork, this amazing film brings you face to fin with Nature's marvels, from the terrible grandeur (and terrible teeth) of a Great White to the comic antics of a lovestruck cuttlefish. Excitement and fun run deep Under the Sea!

Described as being a film about determination, danger and the ocean’s greatest depths, James Cameron's "Deepsea Challenge 3D" tells the story of Cameron’s journey to fulfill his boyhood dream of becoming an explorer. The movie offers a unique insight into Cameron's world as he makes that dream reality – and makes history – by becoming the first person to travel solo to the deepest point on the planet.

Burn the Stage: the Movie is the first movie from BTS, going behind-the-scenes of the BTS WINGS TOUR to reveal the full story of the band’s meteoric rise to fame. This unmissable film provides an intimate look at what happens when the most successful global boy band of all time breaks down barriers and invades the mainstream music scene. Exclusive tour footage and brand-new one-on-one interviews with BTS members give fans an unprecedented glimpse into their lives and an opportunity for everyone to celebrate together worldwide.

A glimpse into K-pop group BTS’ world away from the stage, featuring intimate group discussions alongside spectacular concert performances from their world tour.

Shot at the Olympic Stadium in Seoul during the BTS World Tour ‘Love Yourself’ to celebrate the seven members of the global boyband and their unprecedented international phenomenon.

Bonded by their love of freediving, a record-setting champion and a heroic safety diver try to make history with a remarkable feat, ready to risk it all.

The life and career of an actor, artist, and icon. His own journey through his own camera.

The Captains is a feature-length documentary film written and directed by William Shatner. The film follows Shatner as he interviews the other actors who have portrayed starship captains in the Star Trek franchise.

Sea life in a whole new way. Deep Sea 3D, an underwater adventure from the filmmakers behind the successful IMAX® 3D film Into the Deep, transports audiences deep below the ocean surface. Through the magic of IMAX®; and IMAX 3D, moviegoers will swim with some of the planets most unique, dangerous and colorful creatures, and understand this inspiring underworld.

A documentary about ten very different lives connected by having appeared onscreen wearing masks or helmets in Star Wars.

Deep Blue is a major documentary feature film shot by the BBC Natural History Unit. An epic cinematic rollercoaster ride for all ages, Deep Blue uses amazing footage to tell us the story of our oceans and the life they support.

Using the book 'Fragments', which collects Marilyn Monroe's poems, notes and letters, and with participation from the Arthur Miller and Truman Capote estates who have contributed more material, each of the actresses will embody the legend at various stages in her life.

An astonishing journey revealing the awesome power of the natural world. Over the course of one single day, we track the sun from the highest mountains to the remotest islands to exotic jungles.

Various MGM stars from yesterday present their favorite musical moments from the studio's 50 year history.

An exploration of technologically developing nations and the effect the transition to Western-style modernization has had on them.

An epic story of adventure, starring some of the most magnificent and courageous creatures alive, awaits you in EARTH. Disneynature brings you a remarkable story of three animal families on a journey across our planet – polar bears, elephants and humpback whales.

Documentary on the legendary martial artist Bruce Lee, with a focus on the production of his unfinished film Game of Death. Using interviews and behind-the-scenes footage, Lee aficionado John Little paints a portrait of the world's most famous action hero, concluding with a new cut of Game of Death's action finale, reconstructed from Lee's notes and recently-recovered footage.

An unprecedented and intimate look at the life, work and enduring legacy of British actress Audrey Hepburn (1929-1993).

Echo is a youngster who can't quite decide if it's time to grow up and take on new responsibilities-or give in to her silly side and just have fun. Dolphin society is tricky, and the coral reef that Echo and his family call home depends on all of its inhabitants to keep it healthy. But Echo has a tough time resisting the many adventures the ocean has to offer.
Similar titles

On the shores of Jeju Island, a fierce group of South Korean divers fight to save their vanishing culture from looming threats.
Following water's flow through the volcanic body of Jeju Island, the film traces resilience across geological, historical, and mythical time. A lone visitor enters a cave where submerged memories—of militarization and exploitation—surface through sound.

In an abandoned resort on the South Korean island of Jeju, a group of people perform a symbolic funeral ritual to end a world built on hierarchies, division and destruction.

The story of the ancient and sacred Gureombi Rock. The story of the people of Gangjeong Village who rise up against the construction of a US/Korea Naval base on their holy and precious land. The winds of peace, like the winds of Jeju Island, are blowing.

The film shows demonstrations against building the second airport in Jeju Island the performances of environmentalists very closely and in detail, by which it develops a desperate love story.

Jeju-do is the largest of Korean islands and lies between Korea and Japan. There, for hundreds of years, women dive without breathing apparatus, to the ocean floor and collect shellfish, octopus, and urchins that they sell. The divers are in their sixties and seventies and their daughters do not want to inherit their work, lifestyle, and health problems that go with diving. As a filmmaker I was privileged to meet many of these women and dive with them. Their stories of hardship and pride confirmed my desire to record this unique and ancient tradition.

How did South Korea, after liberation in 1945 defend liberal democracy against leftist and communist forces? The door to that secret is now revealed.
Immediately after liberation, an incident called 'Jeju Uprising' took place on Jeju Island, the Hawaii of Korea, under the control of the US military government. As a result, about one-tenth of the total population of the island at that time was sacrificed. The children who survived the massacre record the memories of that day in an animated film 70 years later.

Focusing on Mrs. Kang Sang-hee’s life, she lost her husband in the Jeju Uprising (March 3rd, 1948). The film views the dark-side of Jeju Island, a huge grave, which is completely opposite of the other side of the island, the famous tourist attraction. It says that the tragedy has been going on about the recent Gang-jeong village situation.


Battling deep depression, Jaeyoun returns to her roots on the island of Marano, South Korea, to visit her family of female free fivers known as haenyeo. To her surprise, she finds a connection to nature and her ancestors that literally saves her life.
Mother to daughter. Generation after generation. For over 2000 years, the women of Jeju Island dove deep into the ocean - the refuge that has given them life, shielded them from war and allowed them to educate their daughters. Now they want the tradition to stop. These are The Last Mermaids.

Gangjeong Village, located at the southernmost part of Jeju Island's Seogwipo City, is in the true sense a 'breathtaking land of water.' In this film, eight directors independently yet collaboratively orchestrate a clever and humorous "mission" at this place where the groundwork for building a naval military base is in progress.

If you look into the entrance of one of the huge caves on the Korean island of Jeju, it looks like a camera lens. If you walk into the cave, it looks like a screen, a rectangle showing clouds and white light, just like a film. Director Kim Minjung delves into the bloody history of Jeju, where tens of thousands were killed in a massacre in 1948. The camera follows the traces in the landscape, sometimes transformed by a strident, distance-creating red light, accompanied by a commentary by avant-garde filmmaker Hollis Frampton. Film as a means to address history and its taboos.

Jeju authorities felled about 900 cedar trees on Bijarim-ro for a road expansion project. Citizens exposed the project's flawed environmental impact assessment, leading to its suspension. They continued efforts to protect Seongsan, slated for the second airport, and Bijarim-ro. This documentary follows the journeys of five women involved in this movement.

Documentary about the struggle of the people of Jeju Island, South Korea. Set in the context of the U.S. presence in Korea after World War II, the film reveals horrible atrocities at the hands of the U.S. Military Government of Korea.
![Yeoyu and Seolbin - [Comedy]](https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w342/54eOGR6nQtTKl9rGLTMMGsSd4FE.jpg)
The folk duo 'Yeoyu and Seolbin' completed their third album, 「Comedy」, while living in Jeju. The record swept the Folk category at the Korean Music Awards and was praised as "a single album that has it all—regret and sympathy, rage and sorrow, and hope." Exploring what it means to be alive in the face of life's tragedies, the duo weaves a subtle yet powerful narrative through Jeju's landscapes: an old house and its yard, a Chinese restaurant where they once worked, and the recording studio.

In the summer of 2021, film students shot a short film titled ‘In the Dry Stream’ on Jeju Island. This film reconstructs the filmmaking process from pre-production through production, utilizing outtakes from the short film, various production materials, and behind-the-scenes footage captured by the crew.