Kiwi skipper dives in at the Depp end

A Kiwi is sailing the high seas with film superstar Johnny Depp, as skipper on his luxury yacht.

Former Southland man Graeme Brown, 31, has landed the job of of steering Depp's 47.5m vessel Vajoliroja.

Brown has been working in the marine industry for 12 years and before captaining Depp's vessel spent two years with his English partner Kirsty Smith on Nicolas Cage's motor yacht, Sarita Si.

Disney chartered the Sarita Si for Depp to live on while filming the second and third instalments of the blockbuster Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy.

Brown went on to the job as captain on Vajoliroja, with Smith as his first mate.

He was reluctant this week to talk about his travels with Depp: "Privacy is very important to my boss. I am not at liberty to discuss my job," he said. "Maybe one day when I retire from this line of work and confidentiality agreements have expired."

His brother Fraser said Brown had been reluctant to talk about any of his employers. "His job might be exciting for some. He gets to crew people and work in the sun but the people he is working with are pretty demanding."

Fraser said his brother was not fazed by Hollywood celebrities. "He's a pretty relaxed fellow. He doesn't look up to them at all. He works for them but hasn't got them way up above everyone else. He treats everyone the same, he's not a sucky-up type of fellow."

Brown featured in a story in this month's Vanity Fair on Depp, his yacht and his 18ha private island in the Bahamas.

The Vajoliroja, a steam-powered motor yacht, was built in 2001 and boasts a formal dining room, master suite and four guest cabins. The eight-strong crew, including Brown and Smith, has quarters below deck.

While Brown's jobs have taken him around the world, he spent his early years on the family farm in Scotts Gap, 62km northwest of Invercargill. Fraser Brown said his brother attended Otautau Primary and Central Southland College in Winton.

He studied tourism at polytech and worked his way into the marine industry. "We weren't brought up with boats but Graeme just seemed to have it in him," Fraser said.

Brown worked for a travel company in Milford Sound and then as a steward on boats.

"He got keen on driving them and got his skipper's ticket to drive on lakes.

"He had enough of that after a while and decided to be a seagoing captain so he went to the UK to do his captaincy so he could go on the sorts of boats he's on now."