According to the Fraser Coast Chronicle, a psychological thriller, entitled "The Reef," will begin filming in Hervey Bay. The plot of the film is centered around a group of friends, who are "stalked by a relentless 15-foot great white shark" after their boat capsizes while sailing at The Great Barrier Reef. The film will feature actual great white shark footage shot off the coast of South Australia.

The movie is reportedly "based on a true story" which doesn’t really mean much, when it comes to the horror genre. Other horror/thriller pictures such as The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Strangers, and the upcoming The Fourth Kind have made the "based on a true story" claim without really having much of their story-lines based in reality, in the least.

Based on the teaser trailer and the fact that the film is being marketed as a thriller, with a "relentless" white shark, it’s probably safe to assume that the movie won’t be helping the image of the often misrepresented shark species, although I don’t expect that this film will get the kind of exposure that a film like Jaws does. In the end, it’s just a movie, and those who are able to tell the difference between fact and fiction probably won’t be swayed by it, either way.