Five years after surviving a life-threatening shark bite at his local beach, Kiama surfer Brett Connellan is making a film about his recovery.
The film Pyrophytic, a reference to nature's powers of recovery after a bushfire, documents not just how the freak attack happened; it also charts Connellan's mental and physical recovery to the point where he is now taking on monumental physical feats.
Connellan explained in a recent interview with Bradley Dryburgh how ironic it was that the attack, in which a great white shark took most of his thigh, should have occurred at his local beach, which had almost no history of previous attacks.
"I had spent a lot of time surfing down in South Australia and other places where people consider it like 'sharkey'. So, for it to happen in Kiama ... I was the first person to be bitten by a shark, I think, in 68 years," he said.
"The chances of it happening there are pretty ridiculous."
Connellan also recalls looking into the sharks eyes as it wrapped it teeth around his leg and admiring its deathly efficiency.
While this might sound somewhat morbid, it shows how the 28-year-old has taught himself to process his experience as part of his recovery, one which includes the making of the film.
Another part of processing the change is to split his life into two parts; before and after the attack.
"It's always funny to hear people talk about the person, or the surfer that I was before," he told ABC Radio.
"For me, it feels like a completely different time and a different period in my life, and that's something that going through the attack and the recovery has taught me a lot.
Life before and after the attack
"Before, I was lucky enough to be surfing and chasing that dream of becoming a professional surfer.
"But when you get something taken away from you and you are told that something as simple as walking again might not be a possibility, it really forces you to look at your entire situation.
"For me it did take a long time to work through that."
And part of that was realising people were there for him and he could go to them for support.
"And I always say that for the physical recovery to happen, I had to look at my mental health first and that was a really big part of that."
Together with friend and videographer Sam Tolhurst, Connellan is still looking for some additional 'epic' surfing sequences, and will next year participate in one of the most gruelling physical feats known to surfers and lifeguards alike.
More challenges ahead
The 52-kilometre Molokai to Oahu paddleboard event takes participants through waters exposed to big swells and heavy currents.
"So, that is kind of the final part of the story," Connellan said.
"As difficult as the surfing side of things can be, it's about introducing these other challenges ... to not only prove to myself what's possible, but also as that ... inspirational thing for other people to look at a story like this and be able to realise that, despite what happens to your situation, you can achieve a lot of things.
The film is scheduled for release late next year.
