Freediver, Filmmaker & Underwater Choreographer
Julie Gautier is an artist of water and movement. A filmmaker and underwater choreographer, she has spent more than a decade developing a new discipline: aquatic dance — a language of the body beneath the surface, at the intersection of freediving and dance.
Julie grew up in the lagoons of La Réunion, shaped by two powerful influences: her father, a spearfisherman who introduced her to immersion, and her mother, a dancer who awakened her to the emotional power of movement. From this dual heritage — both instinctive and artistic — emerged her unique way of inhabiting the world.
Julie understands that her body speaks where words fall silent. It is her instrument, her strength and the raw material of her art — the means through which she expresses what she feels, shares what she learns and evokes emotion in others.
Years later, she brought into being an art form that did not previously exist. Yet it took eight years before she fully claimed its authorship — eight years after the release of her film AMA, which became both a manifesto and the starting point of a deeply embodied body of work.