The Deepest Breath

Italian Alessia Zecchini is one of the best freedivers in the world, engaging in a breathtaking and perilous sport in which incredible athletes dive without the aid of breathing apparatuses. Laura McGann’s immersive documentary profiles Zecchini, who was drawn to freediving from a very young age, alongside Stephen Keenan, a wandering soul who eventually becomes a safety diver, offering first aid to freedivers like Alessia. Over the course of the film, friends, family members, and experts on the sport all comment on the adventurous spirits of the pair while hypnotic footage of Zecchini’s dives submerges the viewer in a sensorial underworld that demonstrates the allure of such an extreme endeavor.