Tela’s dive master Christian Carias channeling Jacques Cousteau. Carias will share his and the story of The Rebel Reef in the documentary.

As a storyteller and science communicator, I am driven by good stories, and the ones from Tela blow my mind. 

#TheRebelReef is special. It is a place where corals thrive in conditions that are considered suboptimal. Nobody knows why because barely anyone even knows this place exists. And, it’s our honor and joy to share the magic and mystery of Tela Bay with the world. 

We’ve won a few storytelling awards and grants that will help us do this! 

First, we have an upcoming expedition that’s part documentary filming, part scientific exploration, and a lot of chaos and fun. We’re leaving on May 19 (eek!) for Roatan, Utila, and finally Tela. In total, we will spend 15 days in Honduras. Tteam members are coming from as far away as Germany and L.A. and we feel so lucky to have assembled such an ace and eclectic team! 

This expedition received kickstart funding from the Hidden Compass Pathfinder Prize that we won in late 2024 (Thanks, Hidden Compass!). We’ll deliver a short documentary, a 360 degree underwater VR experience, and dispatches from the field for Hidden Compass Allies. 

The filming is also supported by an Ocean Culture Life Storytelling Grant, which we were pleased to win in early 2025! This will support an all-Spanish trailer to help with dissemination of the short in Latin America – where it can have the most impact. 

Incredibly, Ocean Culture Life premiered our trailer in the iconic Piccadilly Lights venue in London for Earth Day! We were honored and elated to be among such greats and to have our story of hope shown on the big screen. (Thank you, OCL!).

Finally, as part of our Stanley Creators Fund grant, we’ll be creating a showcase for the 360 degree underwater VR that we’ll be filming. Eventually, we plan to add other VR experiences from Tela’s other incredible ecosystems to give visitors the chance to fully immerse themselves and experience these wonderful places, all from the comfort of their chair at the aquarium. 

It’s been a wild and busy start of the year, and we’re so so grateful for these opportunities and support!