2/2/08

Fly Fishing Films

This past Thursday night, I showed The Hatch to the local branch of  Trout Unlimited.  

The Hatch is a film by Ben Knight and Travis Rummel of Felt Soul Media, a new video production company. The Hatch along with The Trout Bum Diaries, by AEG Entertainment, started a new type of entertainment in fly fishing.  Previous films mostly showed old men teaching people how to fish in boring detail with classic music playing in the background.  These new films remind me of the "new school" skiing films by Matchstick Productions, TGR, and Poor Boys.  The Hatch tries to capture the excitement of a salmon fly hatch on the Gunnison River in Colorado.  Knight and Rummell also interview several of the people fighting to protect the river's water supply from thirsty farms and booming suburbs.  The focus is on the environment and the fishing with first rate cinematography.  Though only 20 odd minutes, the film is highly engaging and worth watching on a big TV or projector. 

When the movie started, I wondered if the other members of Trout Unlimited would enjoy it. As a friend pointed out, I am about half their age.  It was a big success.  They all loved it despite the colorful language in the film from a Gunnison Guide.  Roger, a TU member, used the opportunity to show the group some pictures  from his trip to Colorado.  These new films have the potential to do to fly-fishing what the new skiing films did to skiing; attract younger people to the sport and push it into new paths.  The films by Felt Soul Media add another dimension, however, using fishing and beautiful images to protect areas from the destruction.  Their new film, Red Gold, comes out in May 2008 and explores a proposed mining project in Alaska's Bristol Bay.  

3 comments:

Nat said...

Adam,

I enjoyed the Hatch very much - does show nicely the excitement of fishing a hatch on a beautiful, wild river.

I hope your fishing improves with warmer weather and getting into a storm cycle. A return to the Green River this summer will be great.

Great Blog, love the Thomas Jefferson quote.

Nat

Terry Wolvert said...

We will be in 70 venues in 2008 with exciting new films. AEG just returned from Mongolia and the start of the 2008 Fly Fishing Film tour at Patagonia was sold out. See http://www.flyfishingfilmtour.com/Schedule.asp for tour locations near you or http://www.flyfishingfilmtour.com/ScreenRoom.asp for a quick trailer.

Adam said...

I am excited about the new films and look forward to seeing whether they live up to the first set. Terry- you all should come to Charlottesville.