FISHO attended the Rise Fly Fishing Film Festival in Sydney last week to check out some of the world’s best fly fishing films on the big screen.
Solid crowds gathered to watch four films including the main feature, Leviathan. The three other short films included Jungle Fish, Only the River Knows, and Blackwater.
Each one of these films really push the limit in terms of production quality and entertainment value.
Leviathan is Film Festival organiser Nick Reygaert’s eight film and the third in a trilogy which also includes Predator and Hatch.
Leviathan is about catching the world’s biggest and toughest fish on fly, and for me, this is my favourite of the trilogy. Leviathan kicks off with some amazing footage from New Zealand, catching enormous brown trout in skinny crystal clear water. The fishing continues with more hot action from South America’s Jurassic Lake, giant bonefish on a south Pacific atoll, and big GTs in the Coral Sea. Any film that gets the heart pumping like this is a winner for me!
Another highlight for me was Jungle Fish. Fishing sunglasses brand Costa Del Mar produced this “documentary” style film about the establishment of a sustainable sports fishery deep in the jungles of Guyana, a small country in South America. This film conveys a positive environmental message about protecting precious resources while showing that smart environmental practices and thriving sport fisheries can go hand-in-hand. But it’s the arapaima fishing that really makes this film a must-watch. Any fish that lives in pristine jungle streams, grows to 500lbs, and takes flies is a recipe for some unforgettable footage. The sheer power of these exotic beasts taking a fly is truly awesome!
If you’re interested in checking out these films, the tour continues around Australia over the next couple of weeks.
Check out the screening dates at www.gin-clear.com/filmfest and visit the shop to purchase some of these films on DVD.
