Bequia Blue Blood

In western philosophy, the expression "blue blood" refers to a person (or family) of nobility, as contrasted with the common folk. In some East-Asian countries like Taiwan, the Chinese philosophy of 鴻海藍海 (red blood blue blood) presents the dueling concepts of competition versus collaboration.

Caught between these concepts, the whalers on the tiny Caribbean island of Bequia enjoy a sort of local status as royalty, where whaling runs in their veins as brave souls, who wrestle the forces of nature to provide for themselves (and the island’s) nutritional sustenance, economic sustainability, and at times international notoriety.

Against the beautiful backdrop of the picture-perfect Caribbean sea, their tourism-dependent way of life and blue waters intersect with the bloody discharge of an oft-misunderstood practice that is frowned upon by opponents many miles removed from local realities, where whaling has been a tradition for over a century.

Blue Blood is a two and a half minute short that authentically depicts (from first-hand experience) the somewhat controversial and conflicting balance between tranquillity and tradition, and the contrasting juxtaposition of beauty and brutality.