A documentary
The photo that hasn’t been explained.
In 1971, a Costa Rican government survey plane captured something on frame 300 that no one has been able to explain: a saucer hovering over Lake Cote. For the photographer, Sergio Loaiza, it was one encounter among many. Led by Esteban Carranza, The Cote Photo follows Sergio and fellow experiencers Emi and Kelli, whose lives have been shaped by what they’ve witnessed and by the search to understand it. The film also features New York Times best-selling author Leslie Kean, who discusses the phenomenon and disclosure.
Location Lake Cote, Costa Rica
Year 1971
Photographer Sergio Loaiza
Official trailer
It’s time for me to start telling my stories. To start sharing. Because their mission is to now share their stories.
Official government photograph
The Photograph
One frame, an unbroken chain of custody.
Cartographer Sergio Loaiza was mapping the lake for Costa Rica’s national survey. The negative went straight into the government archive, where it has stayed ever since. Researchers have studied it for five decades.
1971Year taken
1Original negative
55+Years in the archive
“The Cote Photo is a breath of fresh air.”Leslie Kean, New York Times bestselling author