Summers have never been quite the same since June 20, 1975, and it's all thanks to a "mindless eating machine" that terrorized moviegoers and beachgoers alike. That was the day Jaws hit theatres, ushering in the era of the summer blockbuster and becoming a pop culture phenomenon that still resonates 50 years later.

As the blockbuster film "Jaws" turns 50, recent shark attacks are making headlines as experts share that increased sightings reflect better technology and more people in water, not more sharks.

When I was eight years old, on a Saturday night before surf lifesaving training, my dad put on the film Jaws and it changed my life forever. Unlike the generations of filmgoers who were afraid of sharks and going into the water during its initial release in 1975,