Meet Barbie Pig: new documentary reveals the wonders of life on the Pacific seabed

A new documentary, “How Deep Is Your Love,” will be shown in selected cinemas across the UK next month, using a research team from the Natural History Museum in London and an underwater robot called Isis to explore the Pacific seabed. The film follows a 12-day voyage to the Clarion Clipperton Zone, a biodiversity-rich region between Hawaii and Mexico that is also a hotspot for industrial mining. It describes a descent of 3 miles (5 km) taking five hours into near-total darkness, where mineral-rich nodules mark the area. Scientists say only 0.001% of the deep-sea floor has been observed by humans. Director Eleanor Mortimer says species identification and naming can take up to 14 years, and notes the film balances wonder with scrutiny of resource extraction, without mimicking activist documentaries.