Michael Hanrahan, the founder and Executive Producer at Earth Media Labs in Santa Barbara sat down with 805 host Mark Sylvester to talk about how his Blue Horizons course on science-based documentary filmmaking is making a difference globally. His passion for the documentary format and the youthful zeal of young filmmakers combines for a potent collaborative environment at Earth Media Labs.

Michael has been working underwater and around water focusing on telling stories that involve the environment and helping people understand complex issues visually. Michael and Mark met over 20 years ago when he was running Ocean.com and Mark was head of the local non-profit, SCAMP - the South Coast Alliance of Media Professionals.

"Blue Horizons shows students a path they didn't know was possible.”

Topics included;

• What Earth Media Lab is all about and why it's exciting

• The Blue Horizons program at UCSB - using media to communicate vital stories of the ocean

• Science-based filmmaking

• Digital Video Production

• Stories of local interest, including Fishing in Santa Barbara, El Nino, and the NOAA Sanctuary

• Helping scientists become better storytellers

• His book, The Last Extinction