Video Interview: Filmmaker Renan Ozturk on Traversing the Arctic

In 1845, Sir John Franklin and a crew of over 120 men set sail from England to travel the unnavigated sections of the Northwest Passage in the Arctic. All of them disappeared without a trace when their ships became trapped in ice and abandoned. While the wrecks have been located and a couple bodies have been found on several islands over the last 175 years since the disappearance, Franklin’s grave remains elusive.

In Explorer: Lost in the Arctic, National Geographic photographer and filmmaker Renan Ozturk and explorer Mark Synnott set sail from Maine to Greenland to trace the Franklin expedition’s path and search for Franklin’s final resting place. Ozturk, who has often captured mountain expeditions on camera, talks to TV Real Weekly about what it was like filming at sea and the steps taken to ensure safety when embarking on such a harrowing journey.

The documentary will debut on August 24 on National Geographic and begin streaming on Disney+ and Hulu in the U.S. on August 25.