I n 2018, Jeff Boedeker, ’04, was underwater, filming a sunken aircraft carrier in the Gulf of Mexico when he spotted several lionfish inside the shipwreck.

“They’re beautiful and I had no idea what lionfish were,” he said. “After filming, I spoke to other divers on the shoot who told me how they are invasive and weren't there 20 or 30 years ago. And, it got me, thinking.” 

Boedeker didn't do anything about it right then, because he was producing a film. But a few years later, he recalled the masses of lionfish—from Maine to Brazil and throughout the Caribbean—that are destroying ocean ecosystems with their massive appetite.

In some places, lionfish make up nearly 40% of the Atlantic Ocean’s predators, killing off 80% of young fish.

He wondered how that happened and what mechanisms allowed them to flourish.

“It’s remarkable when you open that door and wonder what’s going on here,” Boedeker said. “You have a fish that went from zero to a multi-continent population explosion within 30 years. How does that happen?” 

“Most of time when species enter a new habitat they don't necessarily belong in, they just die,” he said. “But every once in a while, you get something like the lionfish, which has all the perfect characteristics and really get lucky.”

He wondered why the lionfish are so successful. Without natural predators in the Atlantic Ocean, the species quickly became invasive. They aren’t “bad” fish on their own. They’re bad because of where they’re now located.

“When you think deeply about that, it can be startling,” Boedeker said, “because we’re now able to do these unprecedented things with nature.”

People caused this problem, when setting their exotic pets free into the wild. This transports species into ecosystems where they didn’t evolve.

“Breaking down the science of what’s happening is interesting,” he said. “When we introduce species from halfway around the world into new environments, we’re short-circuiting evolution.”

Boedeker was so captivated by this idea, that he wanted to create a film that explored the enormity of the problem and deconstruct how a species becomes invasive. So, his team created a TV treatment and distributed it to different networks. NOVA picked up the story. 

“It’s a story that hasn’t been told on TV,” Boedeker said. “We thought the treatment was strong enough from a science standpoint where NOVA would be a great national platform for our film.”

Boedeker uses his English and creative writing skills he developed from Georgia College & State University (GCSU) to create TV documentaries and series. His education helps him in most everything he does—from story concepts to running a production company. It also helped him in graduate school and afterward, when working as series producer at National Geographic.

Biology Professor Emerita Dr. Harriett Whipple made a remarkable impact on Boedeker, who started at GCSU as a biology major. She asked him to broaden his perspective and understand how different disciplines interconnect. Whipple’s advice set him on the right career path.

“My experience at GCSU has had a direct influence on where I am right now with my career,” Boedeker said. “Dr. Whipple told me there's so much storytelling that happens within the sciences, like how to communicate different processes. She was a proponent of creative thinking no matter the department. She influenced me so much.”

When Boedeker shifted his major to English and creative writing, Professor Emeritus Dr. Eustace Palmer taught him the structure of writing and shared his deep, intellectual understanding of literature with students.

“He created a class environment where everybody felt comfortable and could speak freely,” Boedeker said “I learned how to interpret stories in a completely new way.”

He wants English majors to realize there are many different platforms to tell a story, and there are many stories to tell. Storytelling got him into filmmaking. It includes all kinds of aspects: visual, sound, narration and interviews. When producing a nonfiction film, Boedeker said that there’s a lot of writing involved.

In “Ocean Invaders,” Boedeker scripted the guide’s narration, as well as directed the scenes to achieve the appropriate mixture of being authentic and getting the content necessary to piece the story together.

The lionfish episode took a year to complete, including pre-production, shooting in different locations in the U.S. and abroad, as well as post-production.

Boedeker directs both above and below water, diving down with the underwater film unit to depths of around 130 feet. 

“We follow scientists to the bottom of the ocean, discovering new fish in deep reef environments,” Boedeker said. “There’s a great action sequence in a submarine, their work is intense.”

He hopes biology, as well as English and creative writing students understand their area of study can take them into many interesting fields.

Boedeker is constantly amazed by the immensity of the ocean and the interconnectedness of sea life. He especially enjoys producing underwater films and embraces every opportunity to scuba dive and reveal more about the ocean’s mysteries.

“I knew biodiversity in the ocean is important,” Boedeker said. “But I didn't realize how much of an indicator it is for how healthy our ecosystems are.”

“It's just such a magical world,” he said. “Anytime I'm given the opportunity to produce any underwater related content, I don't take it for granted. We know so little about the ocean, and it's really difficult to know what's happening with every species down there and the impact that we're having on them.”

Watch “Ocean invaders” on PBS’ NOVA Oct. 26, 2022, at 9 p.m. Eastern time. Catch a glimpse of Boedeker’s show.