www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMWju51dTC0

The Night of the Palolo

by Dan Griffin

If you were a palolo worm burrowed deep into a south pacific reef, you’d be waiting for one special night.  A night that we had traveled to see on Ofu, one of the Manu’a Islands of American Samoa, to shoot video of the palolo’s rock –and-roll interstellar mating launch.

Traditionally, the palolo spawn comes on a waning moon in late October or early November, which is late spring in the South Pacific.  That time coincided with the ongoing research of Stanford’s Steve Palumbi, who planned to also continue his climate change research in Ofu’s unique lagoon.  When we realized that we might be at the right place at the right time for a palolo launch, I emailed Tisa Faamuli, a local naturalist who lives on the main island of Tutuilla.  She wasn’t encouraging.   She said, “The moon face and tides are not compatible this year. The last quarter moon and full moon do not match up to make a good palolo harvest for both October and November according to scientific and traditional knowledge.

Bummer.  Tisa is usually right about anything in the ocean.

Still we were there.  The moon was waning.  So we decided to go palolo hunting.

Describing the worms as they emerge from inside the reef, Palumbi said. “The worms wait for just the right conditions and when its time, the worm breaks it’s body into two parts. One part stays in the reef and the other swims out to spawn”.

It breaks in half? One part swims away?  Which part is that?  That would be the gonads… the sex organs…Think swimming spaghetti.

The alarm went off at 1:00AM and we got up from our pre-dive nap, gathered up the gear and cameras, jumped into the pick-up and headed down to the lagoon.  Already we had the feeling that Tisa was right.  There were no locals out that night.  On a big palolo night, trucks with their high beams glaring would line the shore pointing out to the reef.  That’s right.  On a good night, they would be there to scoop them up, cook them up and have a big south pacific beach party.

Moving out into the lagoon, we were struck by how much wasn’t there --few fish, shrimp or anything on the prowl.  We swam out toward the reef crest where the water began to get shallow, and then the first worm spiraled in like a piece of outer space pasta hurtling toward our light.  This was sheer instinct; wriggling and swimming intent on making the connection that keeps the species alive.

Instead of thousands, there were dozens.  A small event.  We spent a half hour watching the worms…or worm parts, shoot out of the darkness with an urgency and intent.  We did see connections made.  We also saw worms that had used up their energy packet drifting in the current.

There had to be a message in this somewhere.  You could say that the worms were acting just like people.  The call of love has certainly caused many of us to leave our brains behind.

See more films on the ocean at http://Microdocs.org.

Dan Griffin’s work can also be seen at http://ggfilms.com

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZTQwupIUncc

The people of Worcester MA are on the front lines of the taking control of their energy use.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6Tsky2xmW8

A preview of the PowerCentsDC project.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=SDeFNavJug8

Microdoc’s Short Attention Span Science Videos — $24.95 + S/H Order Volume 1 — Get Volume 2 FREE 32 (3-min.) videos

Starred reviews in Library school Journal and Booklist
Meets CA Science Curriculum Standards Hosted by Dr. Steve Palumbi, Director of the Stanford University Hopkins Marine Station

Coral Reefs. What sustains them? How do they get broken? How do they get fixed? Over 30 films shot on location in the tropics! Great for schools and libraries.

Short Attention Span Science Videos — 2 DVD Set

www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-qqR_BjoDU

GG Films  is an accomplished video production company based in Menlo Park, CA. Let us tell your story! Product introductions & demos, marketing communications, sales tools, customer success stories. Distribution to the web and mobile devices. Primed to help your company reveal its super-power!

What happens to the delicate larvae of ocean creatures when they are exposed to increasing acid levels in the ocean?  Stanford University and Bodega Marine Lab scientists conduct an experiment on how acidity levels expected in the next century affect the 28,000 genes of tiny, young sea urchin larvae.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRWMFD1mXac

Short Attention Span Science Videos — 2 DVD Set

www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLzsy1Zjhww

• Stimulate Ideas

• Create Excitement

• Inspire Action

As entrepreneurs, we understand business.
As filmmakers, writers, photographers we create tools that drive business.
We collaborate with clients to design and execute compelling videos.
Our clients know value when they find it. We invest in top-notch creative talent and editing facilities.
On the screen, on the web, on the mobile device -- the messages are clear, the images compelling, and the results undeniable.

Our work has taken us to over 20 countries, we have filmed some of the world’s most notable people and has been used by the world’s most recognized companies.

High-end production for broadcast, corporate, education, mobile

Producer/Director  -- Dan Griffin

Please take a look.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LPHVgQk8AM

More films on The Smart Grid
The Energy Ecosystem

An effective use of highly produced video -- for a unique set of properties.

A Different Kind of Condo

www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wslr-ZRGbs

The Space

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGrvmT3YCm4

Downtown Living

www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbKSp7yJp0s

The Creative Process

www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BCSzbA20OM

Sustainability & Energy Efficiency

www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3LqXXu-nuQ

More films on Real Estate
Skyline Estate

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Flm9azVkTmQ

More films on Real Estate
The Story of a Home