For centuries, sailors have told terrible tales of ferocious underwater monsters. Now, an ultra-modern research crew hopes to catch a glimpse of the ultimate monster: the 12-metre, 200kg giant squid. Lurking some 500 metres below sea level, these real-life krakens are notoriously hard to film – and they have never been shot in their own world. With the team headed by British camera expert and expedition leader Martin Dohrn, the brave souls of the Makaira are hoping to be the first.

Equipped with radical night-vision cameras and a custom-built stealth rig known as ‘the Gupster’, their mission takes them to a giant squid hotspot off the coast of the Azores. With the camera lowered, an astonishing array of curious creatures and super-sized sea serpents loom out of the darkness. Could one of them be the elusive giant squid?