7 Beats per Minute
Jessea Lu can stay underwater for eight minutes—without taking a single breath. This extraordinary ability has vaulted her onto the main stage of freediving in no time: the Vertical Blue Competition in the Bahamas, where the crème de la crème of freediving gathers annually. Here, Dean’s Blue Hole, plunging 200 meters deep, offers exceptional conditions for record-breaking performances. Jessea, still a newcomer to the sport, wants to prove herself and test her body’s limits.
But at these depths, the line between life and death is thin, and the competition becomes the greatest stress test of her life. In 7 Beats per Minute, we dive deep—into the ocean, into the strange world of competitive freediving, and into the psyche of Jessea Lu.
Apnea is a game that is decided primarily in the mind – a constant dance between willpower, inner calm, and awareness of one's physical limits.
Film Facts
| Length: | 40 min (OCEAN TOUR edit) |
|---|---|
| Direction: | Yuqi Kang |
| With: | Jessea Wenjie Lu |
| Production: | 2024, Canada, National Film Board of Canada, Intuitive Pictures II Inc. |
| Photo credits: | Image from film | Courtesy of Intuitive Pictures and the National Film Board of Canada |
