How did two actors cope with being stuck in the water for hours on end filming the shark movie Open Water? Among other amphibious skills, they found that Snickers float and M&Ms don't, reports Charles Hutchinson.

JUST when you thought it was safe to go back in the water, here comes the return of the shark movie. You may not have heard of its stars, Blanchard Ryan and Daniel Travis, or its writer-director, Chris Kentis, but from this weekend you will be aware of Open Water: the sleeper indie hit from the United States that has been dubbed "Blair Witch meets Jaws".

Based on a true story, Open Water charts the increasing desperation of a couple left stranded in the middle of the ocean after a mix-up on their deep-sea diving boat. As night closes in, the worst fears of Susan and boyfriend Daniel begin to be realised.

Blanchard Ryan, with a string of independent movies behind her, jumped at the chance of her biggest movie role to date. So too did Daniel Travis, who makes his feature film debut after a career in theatre.

Both are qualified divers, and the prospect before them was to be in the water for more than 100 hours.

"It was kind of enjoyable actually," says Daniel. "I'm a water person, so that ended up being a nice part of it. It was physically demanding but I wouldn't say it was torturous in any respect at all.

"There are some films that I've seen where I thought 'oh my God I would never have wanted to ever do that in a million years!', but this was right up my alley."

Every precaution was taken for their safety, but was there any risk involved?

"With any of these adventure sports that people do - bungee jumping, skydiving, white water rafting - there are risks," says Blanchard. "Shark diving is something that people do, we're not the first. People go on vacation to do it, and take their families.

"But it is dangerous, something could have gone wrong, but the odds were very good that they wouldn't. I certainly wouldn't have gone in the water if I thought for a minute I wasn't being well looked after."

She does, however, admit to a sense of fear.

"Absolutely. Intellectually I knew I was going to be fine, but there's a primal fear that kicks in, and the adrenaline flows. Those are sharks, with big teeth, they are big, powerful, muscular animals. It is scary."

Scary indeed. What's more, she was bitten by a barracuda and still returned to the water.

"I was disaster-proof," she jokes. "What were the odds I'd get bitten by two different animals? No, I was fine. The odds would be astronomical, so it was good that I got bitten by the barracuda."

Open Water is being tagged a shark movie, but at its core is a love story. Put the two elements together, and the movie's appeal is all the stronger. "That was the whole crux of what was so attractive about the film to both of us," says Blanchard.

"For us as actors it was a movie about our relationship, set against a very extreme set of circumstances. I think Chris Kentis, writer-director and Laura Lau, producer conceived this movie to be about this couple and what they go through.

"These were great parts to play, they had real arcs, and I think there was a real change in where they start and where they finish. It's almost 180 degrees different. It was a pleasure to play that."

On a practical level, how did they cope with such matters as eating lunch in the water?

"Actually there were times it was going so well, you didn't want to stop for lunch," says Blanchard. "We quickly found out what food floated as well. Snickers did because their wrapper was plastic, M&Ms don't because they're paper. These are things you learn."

Travis chips in: "That was a good thing too, we got to eat whatever we wanted because it was such an aerobic workout that we could eat like pigs, and still be fine."

Filming in water provided further challenges: exposure to the sun, hunger, thirst, whatever.

"The guys were so cute, checking if we needed sunscreen or water," says Blanchard.

"We were like porpoises, they'd have to lean over the side to put stuff on us or hand us bottles of water, because it was tiring getting in and out of the boat with all that equipment on. And on a really warm day, if the water was cold you'd get out, warm up and wouldn't want to get back in.

"So it was easier to stay in because you didn't notice the contrast as much. But it's funny when people ask us, because unless you were there it's hard to explain what it was like."

Daniel has been diving again since making the film.

"I would go back any time. I'd dive with sharks again too. The minute I got into the water I instantly felt at home," he says.

By comparison, Blanchard may have coped with sharks and barracuda bites, but she still has fears aplenty to conquer: "In general I'm afraid of everything. I don't like rollercoasters, I hate to fly, I'm a real wimp. I just put up a good front."

With the American success of Open Water, sharks of the Hollywood kind may be circling its stars.

"We say the water ones are innocent, the other ones aren't. They're just being sharks," reckons Blanchard. "Yeah, the ones in the water are much easier to deal with!" agrees Daniel.

Updated: 15:38 Thursday, September 09, 2004