One of the richest underwater photography shoot-outs in the world takes place from 1-3 April 2018 in Manado, Bangka and Lembeh, with prizes totaling over $35,000 value in both novice and open categories. The overall winner will be named ‘Master of the Competition’ with a cash bounty of around USD 5,000. The cash prize for each category winner is around USD 2,000. The competition finale and awards will take place in Singapore on 7 April 2018.

Dr. Sylvia Earle, ‘Her Deepness’, is heading to Manado for the ‘Celebrate the Sea’ Festival from 30 March to 5 April 2018. The first 100 attendees (reserving with Ocean Geographic using the Quick Booking tab at https://goo.gl/9ur2kY) will receive a Van Gogh Ocean edition print “Heart of the Reef” personally signed by Dr. Earle and specially created for the festival by Michael AW. Festival packages start from $130 and all-inclusive participating resort packages, including dives, start from around $500.

The mission of the 13^th ‘Celebrate the Sea’ Festival is to inspire the ban of both single-use plastic and shark fin soup in Manado. By attending the festival, participants effectively become part of the solution, contributing to the preservation of our ocean environment. The festival in Manado will celebrate the splendor and richness of the marine bio-diversity of the Bunaken National Marine Park, Bangka Island and the Lembeh Strait. The underlying objective of the festival is to spotlight threats from climate change and pollution in this remote, coral triangle region.

As with previous ‘Celebrate the Sea’ Festivals, the lineup of ocean luminaries for 2018 is impressive including ‘Her Deepness’ Dr. Sylvia Earle, Craig Leeson, producer of a Plastic Ocean; Kristin Hoffman, composer and singer of ‘Song for the Ocean’, National Geographic photographers David Doubilet & Jennifer Hayes; Ocean Geographic science editor Alex Rose; feature editor Gill McDonald and chief editor Evonne Ong. Together with a host of our honorary associates, including Howard Shaw, Doug Perrine and Matthew Smith, there will be an impressive array of scientists, artists, innovators, photographers and passionate marine advocates.

A major festival highlight is the International Underwater Photography Shoot-Out Competition from 1-3 April 2018, one of the richest shoot-outs in the world with prizes totaling over $35,000 in value in both novice and open categories. Many resorts in the area are supporting the competition in order to draw attention to this beautiful, rich and diverse diving location.

The overall winner will be named ‘Master of the Competition’ with a cash bounty of around USD 5,000. The cash prize for each category winner is around USD 2,000. The 2018 festival will take place alongside the 5th annual ‘Ocean Geographic Pictures of the Year’ competition. A regular feature is also the children’s art competition, aimed at inspiring the energy, enthusiasm and curiosity of the future ambassadors of our planet.

During the festival, Kristin Hoffman will be shooting a new music video for ‘Song for the Ocean’ – https://goo.gl/MVYdPV. All participants are invited to play a part in this production – this is your chance to help inspire a greater love for our ocean. Find out more at https://goo.gl/wWZ38A

The festival opens at 13:30 on 31 March 2018 in the central Manado Megamall Auditorium. There is a packed schedule of keynote speakers and presentations up to the opening ceremony at 18:30. The opening ceremony is also in the Megamall complex and hosted by the Provincial Government of North Sulawesi. The International Underwater Photography Shoot-Out Competition then takes place at local participating resorts from 1-3 April.

On 4 April the participants relocate to the modern 4* Mercure Tateli Beach Resort which has spectacular views over the Celebes sea and classic volcano-shape of Manado Tua in Bunaken National Marine Park. Lunch is followed by another round of absorbing presentations by keynote speakers and a display of the finalists in the ‘Ocean Geographic Pictures of the Year’ competition.

The Manado festival culminates in the closing ceremony and dinner at 18:30, once again hosted by the Provincial Government of North Sulawesi. The exciting finale of the 2018 Celebrate the Sea festival will be in Singapore on Saturday, 7 April from 18:00 at a celebration party and presentation evening involving most of the notable speakers and personalities from Manado.

The winners of the International Underwater Photography Shoot-Out Competition and OG Pictures of the Year competitions will be announced and showcased, and the ‘Master of the Competition’ will be named and crowned.

For more information please visit the website.