Five minutes with... Andre Rerekura

Based in Western Australia’s Exmouth, Andre Rerekura is a photographer-videographer, freediver, surfer and SunButter ambassador. 

How did you get into what you’re doing? It was a hobby and passion which has slowly turned into my dream job. 

What motivates you? Learning more and more about what you love, it seems to be endless, it keeps me going and pushing harder. There are a lot of inspiring things and people out there.  

Have you ever had a scary experience? I've had a few close calls underwater, I was caught on the bottom surfing once, there was lots of water movement from big swell which made it really hard to reach my leg to release my legrope. It was on the third attempt that I was able to get it off.

What’s your most touching experience? There are thousands of touching moments, most of them lay beneath the ocean. My most recent would be a mother and calf humpback whale encounter. It was a super clear and beautiful day off Exmouth. I noticed the mother pass about 20 metres from me, I was actually talking to her and then they both suddenly turned and swam directly at me, I couldn't do much but lay still so I would pump them with my fins trying to swim out of the road, The mother swam under my belly and the calf moved its pec fin over my head. It made me realise how in touch they are with there surroundings and how much they have such a minimal impact on the planet. 

What’s your daily routine to stay in the zone? I seem to always wake up with the sun, make my bed and then either a run on the beach with Nush and the doggo or a little surf — but that's only when I have a routine in Exmouth. Most the time it's just non-stop and routine is out the window ha ha. 

How do you continue to educate yourself? Working with other people and youtube ha ha throwing yourself in the deep end can make you learn quickly, too. I have been involved in a lot of research film projects where I always learn lots about marine life, the area we are in etc.  

Who in your field inspires you? Nush always inspires me, she is a go-getter, super smart and so creative, she makes things look easy. She never puts here self first and she is so caring. 

Russel Ord has always inspired me, he is so unreal in his field of work and always teaching himself new things and mixing it up. He is great at creating work and projects in a friendly way — he always seems to become good mates with the client and always delivers.

Ryan Chatfield never ceases to amaze me. He is one of the most creative humans i know and his work just gets better and better, I love working with him because I learn so much, he juggles work and family life so well. 

What’s your advice for anyone wanting to get involved? Just chase what you love doing and don't stop, help out whenever you can as you never know where it can take you, never expect anything and life will always have great surprises. 

What’s your message/mission statement? We only have one planet, it's amazing and should be appreciated. It's great to protect what you love.