A new perspective on Taiwan’s beauty
“There are two interesting aspects to shipwrecks: One is the history behind them and the other is their rich ecologies.” Lee previously produced the series Fun Taiwan on the travel and lifestyle channel TLC, and has also explored undersea scenery in places such as Taiwan, the Philippines, and Palau with his series 30 Meters Underwater. He says with a laugh, “If this time round we still filmed nothing but coral reefs, I fear everyone would change channels as soon as the program started.”
Lee often says: “If you had a house in the wilderness, would you want to live out in the open? Or would you rather live in the house, which could keep out the elements and protect you from attack?” Like us, he says, fish choose safety. Wrecks are often located on wide open stretches of sand, and because they provide a place where fish can shelter from predators, they become home to shoals of fish. If there are no fish living around a sunken ship, this may reveal that the surrounding waters have been overfished, and in this way wrecks can serve as ecological indicators.
Lee, respectfully known as “Uncle Bai,” selected 15 shipwrecks out of a total of more than 400 recorded by the Fisheries Agency to play starring roles in his documentary. He also asked well-known Taiwanese composer Lee Che-yi and the OneSong Orchestra to create a dedicated soundtrack for Shipwrecks Taiwan.
During filming, Lee was lucky enough to find very accommodating fish on several occasions. He says that at the stern of the wreck of ROCS Wan An (AP-523) off Yilan in Northeast Taiwan, the number of chicken grunt fish far exceeded his expectations, as did the density of black coral. Wan An was the first decommissioned naval ship to be used by the Fisheries Agency to create an artificial reef for fish.
Similarly, ROCN Zhong Rong (LST-210, also spelled Chung Yung), a tank landing ship that saw meritorious action during the Battle of Guningtou, was scuttled by the Fisheries Agency off Pingtung’s Checheng Township. Lee says: “The visit to the Zhong Rong was our deepest dive for this docuseries. The size of the fish surpassed my expectations: There were two-meter-long grouper as well as schools of jackfish.” There were also stalactites, a very unusual sight, which formed because the dust that had originally been on the ship’s deck had not been disturbed by the ocean water for a very long time.
Vast numbers of chicken grunt fish swarm around the sunken ROCS Wan An (AP-523) off the Yilan County section of Taiwan’s Northeast Coast.
Producer Tim Lee wants to use his documentary on shipwrecks to tell the world that Taiwan has not only seafood culture, but also marine culture. (photo by Lin Min-hsuan)