In shark documentary “Near Miss,” Point Reyes Station diver appreciates undersea quiet

It’s meditation—the slowing of time and the absence of sound—that Ron Elliott, a Point Reyes Station resident who has had hundreds of encounters with white sharks while free diving off the Farallon Islands, is seeking. One such encounter is documented in a 12-minute film, “Near Miss,” that debuted last week at the International Ocean Film Festival in San Francisco. Describing his encounters with great whites, Mr. Elliott says, “There’s no sound. It’s silent. There’s a…