Steven Callahan spent 76 days on a raft in the Atlantic Ocean after his ship collided with a whale in 1982. He lived to tell the tale, and on Nov. 9 a documentary about his experience will screen at the Martha’s Vineyard Film Center.

76 Days Adrift is based on Mr. Callahan’s autobiography Adrift: Seventy-six Days Lost at Sea. The film is directed by Joe Wein and executive produced by Robert Sennott.

“There have been some awfully cheesy attempts at doing Steve’s story and I wanted to be really certain that this would be the best way to tell Steve’s story,” said Mr. Sennott, who has known Mr. Callahan since the two attended school together at Dover-Sherborn Regional High School in Dover.

The documentary includes interviews with Mr. Callahan, found footage and reenactment shots filmed in a first-person perspective in St. Croix, about 300 miles from where Mr. Callahan was rescued.

“I’ve actually had one viewer mention to me that during the film he had some balancing problems and he became somewhat concerned because he felt seasick during the movie,” said Mr. Sennott.

Ang Lee served as an executive director for 76 Days Adrift. The award-winning filmmaker had first heard about Mr. Callahan’s ordeal while making Life of Pi, and asked Mr. Callahan to consult on the film, which also dealt with being stranded on the ocean.

Saturday’s screening begins at 7:30 p.m. and will be followed by a Q & A with Mr. Sennott.

“People that sail in any kind of nautical environment...anywhere near water, especially the Atlantic, really like this story,” Mr. Sennott said.

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