The brief
Canoe North Adventures sends people on about 20 trips a year into the Arctic, and the Keele River is one of their most iconic. Their film of it was 20 years old. It was good for its time, but filmmaking and storytelling have come a long way.
They wanted something new: a story rooted in the people on the trip, so future guests could see themselves in it. After a few years of working together, it was the brand film we'd both been waiting to make. Josh guided canoe trips when he was younger, so this was where his wilderness background and his filmmaking met.
On the ground
We were on the river from the first day to the last: 12 days, about ten people, and a two-person crew paddling as part of the group. Josh paddled stern so there was room up front for the waterproof cases. At every rapid we'd jump out ahead, set up, film the boats coming through, then pack it all away and catch back up. Keeping everything charged in the backcountry was its own job.
Everyone knew a film crew was coming, and we made one thing clear: if you don't want to be in it, you don't have to be. Some guests aren't really in the film, and that's fine. Because we were paddling alongside everyone, trust built over the trip, and the interviews came out of that.
It's a light, run-and-gun film, and it shows what we're good at: adapting to wherever the story is and finding the people in it.
We want to thank Josh for his incredible skill and sensitivity as a videographer in documenting the experience of life on the river and also, while in camp.
What it did
The owners were thrilled, and the film is still working for them today. They use it on social media, on their website, in newsletters, and at the trade shows where they meet future guests.
The guests loved it too. Most people on trips like this never get a film to remember it by. Even as a brand piece, it brings the river back.
