Videographers ‘struck gold’ capturing footage of giant Pacific octopus in Nanoose Bay, B.C.

A marine encounter in Nanoose Bay left two B.C. scuba divers speechless.

Two videographers say they were left speechless after an incredible encounter with a giant Pacific octopus on Vancouver Island.

The cinematic moment was captured on camera, when the octopus assumed the role of director.

“It came out and fully took over my camera,” said John Roney, an underwater videographer and documentary film editor.

“It gave us this nice inside view of all of its suckers under its arms, and it was even kind enough to turn it off after three minutes of filming.”

The polite mollusc captivated Roney and videographer Chris Mullen during a diving session Monday in Nanoose Bay.

“We struck gold because we had the best octopus encounter you could hope for” Mullen said.

Roney added how the octopus controlled the encounter as the two divers gave it space to explore.

“It was just touching, feeling, exploring, and was just this really incredible moment. Even with all the dives between us, we’ve had never quite had one like that,” he said.

Once the curious cephalopod tired of the camera equipment, it moved over to Mullen, extending its limbs over his face in what appeared to be an embrace.

“There’s this great moment where it reached out and it was touching his mask,” Roney said.

Daniel Pauly, a professor of Fisheries and Marine Biology at the University of British Columbia, said scientists have only recently accepted how marine life can mimic human behaviours.

“Most animals, especially the complex ones, have something that resembles our sentience, our agency and our will to do things, and to interact with the world,” he said.

Both Mullen and Roney say the experience left them speechless, and in awe of the wildlife that exists in this corner of the province.