Continuing its exploration of the fascinating relationship between society and the ocean, the CO>SEA research group has premiered the new short documentary entitled The Sense of Place: Documenting Ocean Relationships on 14 May during the event La Notte delle Idee – Mari e Oceani: Verso nuove rotte, organised by the French Embassy in Italy and the Institut Français at Palazzo Farnese, Rome.
Before the screening, the project PartArt4OW. Participatory Art For Society Engagement with Ocean and Water was presented by Chiara Certomà (MEMOTEF Department, Sapienza University of Rome) and Federico Fornaro (Raw-News Visual Production Agency), as part of the CO>SEA Collaboratorium for the Socio-Environmental Analysis of the Ocean.
About the Documentary
Building on CO>SEA’s theoretical and methodological framework outlined in the earlier video-reportage Blue Kinship, The Sense of Place represents an experimental application of Marine Social Geography explorations on some of the key geographical concepts (such as “sense of place”, “borders”, “belongingness”, “territory”, “environment” and “community”) to unveil how these apply to oceanic spaces and throught the experience of seagoing people.
Directed by Federico Fornaro and filmed by Fornaro and Giuseppe Lupinacci (Raw-News), featuring Giorgio De Franceschi, the documentary presents an investigation into ocean-society interconnections.
Focusing particularly on the perspectives of seagoing individuals—especially surfers—the video-doc kick-off the investigation of how an affective connection with the ocean is formed and expressed, by adopting emotional communication approach around the concept and lived experience of “sense of place”.
Acknowledging the growing recognition by international institutions of the importance of ocean literacy, the film underscores the need to cultivate care-based relationships with the ocean fostering a sense of responsibility. We care for what we understand, feel bonded with, and ultimately love—not merely for the services it provides.
The Sense of Place demonstrates how visual storytelling can deepen understanding of emotional attachment to the ocean. Through a seamless collaboration between researchers and media professionals, the documentary exemplifies the power of visual documentation in marine social geography and in catalysing engaged, transformative, and participatory research related to the ocean.
La Nuit des Idées
La Nuit des Idées provided an opportunity to bring the extraordinary historical and artistic heritage of Palazzo Farnese into dialogue with one of the most pressing issues of our time. The event was an evening of beauty, exchange, discussion, and discovery—an opening to the ocean we share, and a reflection on new trajectories. The full program of the event is available here.
The Night of Ideas will give a voice to oceanographers, sailors, scientists, writers, artists, and representatives of the fishing world to reflect on these questions. Through politics, geopolitics, environmental and international law, we will explore complex ecosystems, spaces of interconnection, and sources of inspiration for poets and creatives. An ocean to be heard through the sounds of marine forests, to be navigated through the small islands of the Mediterranean, to be sensed through the richness of its biodiversity. The ocean is at the center of humanity. It is—or should be—a fundamental commitment of civil societies. Through performances and artistic installations, literary encounters, roundtables, and film screenings, this special evening will address topics such as goods and data trafficking, migration, fishing, biodiversity, underwater archaeology, seafloor geology, and even space exploration. The Night of Ideas will bring into dialogue the extraordinary historical and artistic heritage of Palazzo Farnese with one of the most crucial themes of the contemporary world. An evening of beauty and sharing, of discussion and discovery, an opening to the ocean we share in order to look “toward new routes.”
Credits and Accessibility
The Sense of Place: Documenting Ocean Relationships was produced by Raw-News Visual Production Agency as part of the European Horizon project PartArt4OW and the Sapienza Third Mission pilot initiative CoSea_Lab. The projects are coordinated by Chiara Certomà and are recognised as official activities of the United Nations Ocean Decade. Filming was supported by research funds from the University of Turin (ESOMAS Department).
The production also benefitted from the collaboration of CO>SEA team at Sapienza: Caterina Pozzobon, Luca Bertocci, Chiara Salari.
Access the news on Raw-News website and report of the evening by Institut Francais
The Sense of Place: Documenting Ocean Relationships is accessible via YouTube https://youtu.be/zMfMW9pPv_k and Zenodo https://zenodo.org/records/15407782 .
Special thanks go to Giorgio De Franceschi featuring in the video-doc, and are extended to the surfing community of Anzio and Nettuno, where the documentary was shot, the community of sea workers and seagoing people in Anzio and the Anzio City Administration.
For more details, interviews, or press inquiries, please contact
Chiara Certomà – chiara.certoma@uniroma1.it; Federico Fornaro – federico.fornaro@raw-news.net
Chiara Certomà 
Leave a comment