The film that Holsten (his husband is Inquirer arts writer Peter Dobrin) made with producer Chayne Gregg and the creatives at Fresh Fly, Gregg’s multimedia production company, is streaming online and will have a New York theatrical release starting Nov. As a Navy rescue swimmer, he said, pulling dead bodies from the water was not uncommon - but more often, no rescues or recovery of bodies were possible. That was the goal,” said Grieger, 29, whose description of his attempt at death by suicide is one of the film’s most powerful moments. “If we were going to make something to reach veterans, it would have to be no-holds-barred. Said Grieger, sharing the stage with Holsten, O’Shea, and executive producer Robert Irvine: “My biggest thing for this film … and Stephen and I talked about it a lot … was being real. “Your courage and your passion and your commitment have brought out the best in everyone,” the director Glenn Holsten told Grieger and O’Shea during a screening event at the Kimmel Center on Veterans Day. O’Shea, a far more accomplished writer than sailor, were prepared to document their journey of 10,000 nautical miles with digital cameras, drones, and an Instagram account cheekily named They intended to inspire veterans struggling with PTSD, help prevent suicides among them, and increase awareness of these issues.īut Grieger and O’Shea weren’t prepared for the capricious weather, mechanical breakdowns, emotional storms - including a drunken fistfight - or money woes that together came close to scuttling both their sloop, named “The Ole Lady,” and their mission.Īnd neither of the young Texans could have foreseen that a director, producer, editor, and other Philadelphia film professionals would help them complete the journey and showcase their story in a stirring new documentary, Hell or High Seas. The captain and his first mate, Stephen J.

Navy veteran Taylor Grieger set sail from Pensacola, Fla., for Cape Horn in September 2017 on a 36-foot sloop he bought for $20,000 and fixed up by following video tutorials on YouTube.

Patagonia come hell or high water movie