Man of the reef: Sydneysider’s life-changing job as Sir David’s underwater eyes

Sydney’s Tom Park has achieved his dream — contributing powerful footage to David Attenborough’s Ocean, now one of Australia’s most successful documentaries.

Australian ocean photographer Tom Park has worked on the Ocean documentary with Sir David Attenborough. Picture: Supplied

He spends so much time in the sea, underwater cinematographer Tom Park may as well be a fish.

Life’s going swimmingly for the 30-year-old Sydneysider, who’s achieved what he describes as the “ultimate dream” and highlight of his career by contributing to Ocean with David Attenborough, a documentary that has soared into the top 20 docos of all time at the Australian box office just weeks after its release.

Although Park didn’t get the chance to meet his long-time idol Attenborough, the 14 months he spent documenting the Great Barrier Reef’s recovery after the 2024 global mass bleaching event forms a key part of the film.

“It’s been life-changing,” Park said.

“Almost every month we would go to the reef for about two weeks, and we spent about 300 days in this one spot filming this one very particular reef.

“The scenes on the film of the reef are as white as far as the eye can see. It was heartbreaking to see the damage and this void of life.

“But a few months in, these little beads of colour and baby corals started to emerge … and today they’re genuinely a brand new reef.”

Australian ocean photographer Tom Park has just worked on the Ocean documentary with Sir David Attenborough. Picture: Supplied

Park’s footage includes aerial drone shots and intimate underwater sequences that help tell what he calls “a really strong story of reef recovery and resilience”.

But the process was far from glamorous.

“When I’m running my own shoots, it’s about 10 hours a day underwater,” he said.

“You’re spending an unbelievable amount of time watching an animal and just waiting hours on end, which may take weeks, just to capture a specific behavioural movement.”

Park’s passion for the ocean began early — his first dive at age 12 with his father ignited a family obsession with underwater photography.

But a career in cinematography wasn’t always on the cards.

“I went and studied law and practised for a couple of years,” he said.

“But then this dream underwater job came through where I either had to turn it down or walk away from law. It was a really easy decision. Law was out.”

Sir David Attenborough’s new documentary Ocean highlights the vital, achievable actions the world can take to restore the ocean and stabilise the climate. Picture: Conor McDonnell

He’s now spent the past decade filming underwater stories around the world, but having his footage narrated by Attenborough was a career-defining moment.

“The fact that he’s still out there at age 99 making films … I hope I can do that,” Park said.

“In my local cinema, they’re saying Ocean is their blockbuster. It’s outperforming all the big-budget Hollywood movies. For a documentary to have that sort of pull is truly unbelievable.”

Australian ocean photographer Tom Park has just worked on the Ocean documentary with Sir David Attenborough. Picture: Supplied

Following the release of the documentary and International Ocean Day on Sunday, the UN Ocean Conference will kick off this week in France, where leaders will discuss new marine protections under the High Seas Treaty.

“Three years ago, it became clear that 2025 was going to be the ‘last big chance’ to protect the ocean,” Ocean co-director Kieth Scholey said.

“We agreed that if David Attenborough would join us, we could make a film that could help persuade large audiences that the world’s ocean needs urgent protection.”