Director Tasha Van Zandt has made a new documentary, *A Life Illuminated*, chronicling the work of pioneering marine biologist Dr Edie Widder, descending more than 3,000 feet in a submersible to film Widder's research into bioluminescence in the deep ocean. The film highlights how Widder's inventions have reshaped scientific understanding of a part of the ocean once dismissed as a dark, lifeless void, revealing it instead as a world illuminated by glowing marine life.

Widder, who founded the Ocean Research & Conservation Association, developed devices including an "eye-in-the-sea" camera system using far-red light invisible to most deep-sea creatures, and an "electronic jellyfish" lure designed to attract elusive animals. Using the lure, she became the first person to capture footage of a live giant squid in its natural habitat in 2012, a moment Van Zandt says inspired her to make the documentary years later.