This film relates the extraordinary story of Hermann Meuter and his wife Janie. They've set themselves up as whale researchers on Gil Island, an uninhabited island off the north-western coast of Canada. It's a nine-hour boat ride to the next telephone and supermarket. They are realizing a long-held dream to run their own whale research station. With the agreement of the indigenous tribes in the area, they build living and working quarters on the southern tip of the island.
Filmmaker Lisa Glahn visits them during the first year of their stay on this lonely and beautiful island and captures their struggles with powerful images. She conveys the passion with which they pursue their goal in the face of financial uncertainty. Their efforts are rewarded when 20 metre hump-back whales or orca groups appear in the bay. The couple have prepared for the stormy Canadian winter using all of their energy and their talent for improvisation. They've completed the house and they've set up contact to the outside world via the Internet. The dark months on the north coast are a time of isolation. The relationship of Hermann and Janie is tested to the limit.
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In Focus documentaries and reports cover business and science, culture and education, historical and present day events as well as sports and leisure. This wide variety of topics is investigated in depth and presented in an informative format, making for captivating television, courtesy of Germany's Deutsche Welle news network.
