In the past, Dave and I tried hard to get people excited about fly fishing. Our goal was to make the audience feel what we feel every time we head out on the flats. The final result was a high action, high intensity, visual montage with hard hitting music to convey the emotion. Needless to say, it got lots of anglers out there fired up, and it was a blast to create! But then there were the nay-Sayers, the grumps that didn’t like what we were doing to their sport, didn’t like the attitude, and called our films porn. Great! Everybody has to start somewhere and lots of folks in Hollywood began in the porn industry. Dave and I didn’t go to school for film, we barely knew how to run a camera when we started, but we were tired of the same old crap that failed to communicate what fishing was really about to us. So, we tried harder than we’ve ever tried at anything to make films that showed how much fun you can have with a fly rod living the life of a saltwater fish bum.
After a while though, we knew we’d have to grow up. If we wanted to be part of the Fly Fishing Film Tour and call ourselves film makers, we’d have to create an actual film with an actual story. So, I began reading Peter Matthiessen’s Shadow Country… the ultimate story about the Everglades to find inspiration. Dave and I wanted to make a story about something meaningful, something bold and powerful, something that really drove to the core of what fly fishing is for us. We wanted to tell a rich and complex story about the everglades history, the indians, the animals that live there, especially the fish, and why we were there. We wanted to talk about Robber Barrons, drug smugglers and fisher folk, the birth of saltwater angling in the Everglades… and we really wanted to make the connection, to equate ourselves and fly fishing with them. We wanted to use words like narrow creek system, jagged branches, nooks and crannies, hidden shadows, gator filled swamps, mosquito infested lagoons, and labyrinth mangrove mazes. We would paint our picture with every detail and ultimately transcend the human drama and reveal the Zen of flyfishing. The Discovery Channel would be envious, and National Geographic would weep, and our critics would be silenced. At the end, we would close with a glorious aerial shot and a narrative that summarized 1,000 years of history, the deepest meaning of fishing and the symbolism behind our adventure deep into the soul of the Shadow Country.
Problem was, we were two dudes and a laptop, and neither one of us could even come close to saying all that, much less shoot it, edit it and deliver it in one month. I wasn’t Peter Matthiessen, and Dave wasn’t Spielburg. We didn’t have Pixar or Industrial Light and Magic to digitally enhance our snook. Really, all we had was 2 broken cameras, a skiff that Hell’s Bay lent to us, a couple of Loop fly rods, and a bunch of our best friends that were always down for an adventure. But, off we went… a procession of flats boats headed south into the Everglades to camp and fish for a week, and with any luck, make movie magic on the sands of Turkey Key.
Fast forward two weeks, Dave and I are in the editing Studio we call the Rat-hole, looking over our masterpiece…Every film maker has at one point had to come to terms with seeing themselves on camera for the first time and it is a very, very painful process. So there we were, realizing for the first time, that we completely and utterly sucked! Everything we said was basically garbage! But… therein lies the truth, and once you come to realize it, it’s hysterical. You’ve never laughed so hard, cried at yourself with the understanding that nothing that you want to say is good, and that nobody cares. Really, the only thing that is of real importance is that we like to fish, that fishing is exciting, and that we just want to do more!
Suddenly we had it. There is was right in front of us. What we were trying to get at is that we love to fish, we get our stoke from fishing and that everyone else has there own reason . That’s the story. Fishing is what gives us that rush, that high, if you will, and for whatever reason, it’s what we’ve devoted our lives to doing. Now, maybe the critics won’t agree, but, I bet, for those that fish, they’ll get it. With that…WorldANGLING and fliesandfins give you High In The Lowlands!
Our Fly Fishing Film Tour project is coming down to the wire. We have just shy of 6 weeks left to turn it in, and are getting ready for quite possibly the best two weeks of our lives. Will, the Bear, and a few others are on there way to Everglades City as I type this, to hook up with Jeff and I for our last main shoot of the year. Our plan (what there is of one) is to head out into the everglades and explore deeper than any of us have ever been before. We have a boat for just about every situation we will encounter, and aren’t afraid to use them… If you see a caravan of Hell’s BayWhiprays or a tiny boat that you don’t recognize (Skate) in the park over the next couple weeks, it’s probably us. Feel free to stop by and see whats going on.
The fishing recently has been nothing short of spectacular. With the warmer than usual weather and light winds, we have had no issues finding fish to throw at. The redfish have been where they should be. Snook have started to move into their backcountry haunts. Tarpon have been laying up on the calmest days. And when the tide has been too high to sightfish, the albie (bonito) bite off the beaches has been on fire.
Here we go again. It is that time of the year for us to start readying our piece for the Fly Fishing Film Tour for next year. We’ve decided that this year we are going to showcase one of the most unique fisheries in the world, the Everglades. We have been filming this piece for the last couple years, and are making a hard push to complete it over the next 3 months. The fall/winter fishing in SW Florida is some of the best of the year. There are some big tarpon around still, but that is not our main objective. We are looking to showcase the incredible shallow water sight fishing opportunities that the low fall tides present.
Snook and redfish thrive in the Everglades, and as the weather cools, these fish start to move around and look for shallow pockets of warmer water. This movement gives fly fishermen and those who prefer to sight fish opportunities to have multiple fish days in mere inches of water, and us the opportunity to show the world that our backyard here in the Everglades is worth checking out. If you really like “the hunt” of shallow water fly fishing than you’ll love our next video, as well as the Everglades winter fishery. Keep checking our blog for updates and highlights of our adventure as it unfolds.
NOTE: There are a few partnership opportunities still available. Would your company or organization like representation on the Fly Fishing Film Tour, and exposure in the saltwater market space? If so, contact us to see how we can help.
In case you didn’t already know, saltwater fly fishing here in South Florida is a contact sport! And our latest film, SLAM, will let you feel it about as much as you’d feel a whack in the face! Filmed in our back yards here in Key West, the Everglades and the Bahamas during the 2009 season, SLAM focuses on all the major species we target: Tarpon, Bonefish, Permit, Redfish and Snook. This film portrays the most important aspects of Saltwater fly fishing. Beginning with what it looks like when you first see them coming in, to the adrenaline rush you feel when you hook up, to the heartbreak of watching them get away, and finally, the joy of the releasing them to swim free. There’s no waxing poetic about the meaning of it all, we’ll let you figure that out for yourself, we just bring the goods and showcase the coolest fish in the world. We don’t have a big budget, or even a helicopter, just an incredible natural resource and a passion for what we do. For all of you out there that get it, and want more, WorldANGLING gives you SLAM!
Showing at the Drake Magazine video awards, 8:00PM September 10, 2009 at Cervantes Ballroom, 2637 Welton St. Denver, CO. Admission is free, and so is the beer. If you can’t make it to Denver, check out worldangling.com at 22:00 EST for the web release.
In order to secure a position in your holiday season web browsing schedule we have decided to give out our full version of “Tarpon Season”. Some of this footage has been seen, but this is the first time we have given away the full edit. -Merry Christmas
Want a full resolution copy that you can put on a DVD? Contact us and we will send you a link to the file.
In the past, Dave and I tried hard to get people excited about fly fishing. Our goal was to make the audience feel what we feel every time we head out on the flats. The final result was a high action, high intensity, visual montage with hard hitting music to convey the emotion. Needless to say, it got lots of anglers out there fired up, and it was a blast to create! But then there were the nay-Sayers, the grumps that didn’t like what we were doing to their sport, didn’t like the attitude, and called our films porn. Great! Everybody has to start somewhere and lots of folks in Hollywood began in the porn industry. Dave and I didn’t go to school for film, we barely knew how to run a camera when we started, but we were tired of the same old crap that failed to communicate what fishing was really about to us. So, we tried harder than we’ve ever tried at anything to make films that showed how much fun you can have with a fly rod living the life of a saltwater fish bum.
