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A still image from archival 1970s and \u201980s footage shows Terry Kennedy riding a manta ray near Isla San Benedicto. (Joyce Clinton)<\/p>\nAn extraordinary bond between an aging Navy veteran and a wild manta ray is at the heart of \u201cThe Last Dive,\u201d an award-winning documentary from filmmaker Cody Sheehy that will screen this month at San Diego\u2019s Balboa Theatre and Encinitas\u2019 La Paloma Theatre.<\/p>\n
Since premiering at the 2025 Tribeca Film Festival, where it won Best Cinematography in a Documentary Feature, \u201cThe Last Dive\u201d has screened at about 50 film festivals worldwide, according to Sheehy. Blending stunning underwater cinematography with a deeply personal story, the film explores redemption and marine conservation in the waters off Baja California.<\/p>\n
The documentary follows Terry Kennedy, an 83-year-old Navy veteran who served in Vietnam. During thousands of dives off Baja California in the 1970s and \u201980s, he forged an unlikely friendship with a 22-foot giant manta ray he named Willy. The film also traces Kennedy\u2019s redemption from a troubled past that included the Hells Angels and time in prison, while highlighting the growing threats facing manta rays and the urgency of protecting them.<\/p>\n
In November 2023, Kennedy, then 80, Sheehy and an eight-person crew embarked on a 10-day expedition to Isla San Benedicto, off the coast of Baja California, to see whether Kennedy could reunite with Willy after not seeing the manta ray for a decade. The search became the emotional backbone of the film.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe has not seen Willy in 10 years. The concept of putting together an expedition and taking him back to Isla Benedicto to see if we could reunite him one last time, that was something that just captured my imagination and felt like it would be really strong narrative thread for the film,\u201d said Sheehy.<\/p>\n
The expedition grew out of a friendship Sheehy and Kennedy built over years of diving together. Sheehy, who holds a master\u2019s degree in ecology and previously produced science programming for PBS, met Kennedy while sailing with his family off the Baja coast. The two became annual dive buddies in the Sea of Cortez, where Kennedy often shared stories of a giant manta ray. Those stories took on new significance when Kennedy pulled out decades-old videotapes documenting their encounters.<\/p>\n
A still image from archival 1970s and \u201980s footage shows Terry Kennedy riding a manta ray near Isla San Benedicto. (Joyce Clinton)<\/p>\n
\u201cWe started watching hours and hours of footage, and all the stories he told me were true,\u201d Sheehy said. \u201cThat\u2019s really where the idea of the documentary was born.\u201d<\/p>\n
Along the way, Sheehy realized the documentary was about far more than an extraordinary animal encounter.<\/p>\n
\u201cI recognized Terry was totally transformed,\u201d Sheehy said. \u201cHe was some guy who was a veteran and a Hells Angel, always trying to shoot the biggest fish. Suddenly he was given this purpose in life to do something different. He\u2019s the most unlikely conservationist.\u201d<\/p>\n
Perspectives from Joyce Clinton, Kennedy\u2019s former girlfriend during his encounters with Willy in the 1970s and 1980s, and conservationist Robert Rubin, director of the Pacific Manta Research Group, added depth to the story.<\/p>\n
Filming in the remote Pacific Ocean surrounding Isla San Benedicto presented its own challenges, from strong currents and unpredictable weather to directing a camera crew underwater. Yet Sheehy said one of the most surprising moments came simply from spending time with the manta rays themselves.<\/p>\n
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Members of \u201cThe Last Dive\u201d film crew capture footage underwater alongside giant manta rays. (Johnny Friday)<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve never had that experience with any other animal,\u201d Sheehy said. \u201cYou can just feel this connection that they\u2019re trying to develop.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sheehy said he hopes audiences connect first with Kennedy\u2019s personal journey, believing that emotional connection can inspire people to care more deeply about the ocean and its inhabitants.<\/p>\n
\u201cI told him one time that if the audience can connect emotionally with you, then they\u2019re going to be open to learning more about the mantas,\u201d Sheehy said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Last Dive\u201d will begin its nationwide theater tour in San Diego County, where screenings at the Balboa Theatre in San Diego\u2019s Gaslamp Quarter and the La Paloma Theatre in Encinitas. They will be followed by Q&A sessions with Sheehy and Kennedy. The Balboa Theatre event will also include a red carpet experience and an audience healing session led by Dr. Brian Alman, inspired by San Diego\u2019s veteran community, before the documentary continues to theaters across the country.<\/p>\n
\u2018The Last Dive\u2019 screenings<\/p>\n
When:\u00a07 p.m. Aug. 19<\/p>\n
Where: Balboa Theatre, 868 Fourth Ave., San Diego<\/p>\n
Tickets: $32.90-$38<\/p>\n