Catch of the day: The crew behind “Marlin Fly Project - F3T” Edit works to bring in a catch of the titular fish.[/caption]

The 18th annual Fly Fishing Film Tour (F3T for short) is making its way around the world. With over 300 shows planned in 14 different countries, the tour features nine films selected for the national tour and six additional Official Tour Selections “available for our independent show hosts to screen in local communities,” adding up to fifteen films.

Producer and director Tyler Soares has filmed and fished since childhood. After becoming absorbed in his career, he felt he needed to recapture his love of the outdoors. Finding a Flylords article about Steelhead guide Lael Johnson, he got in contact and asked him to be his guide.

After their first trip together, Soares got to know Johnson over eight months and decided to shoot a film with and about him. Over five days the next year, Soares filmed Johnson in Washington waters, and the resulting footage became “Visibility: A Steelhead Doc.”

He credits his wife and friends for helping during post-production and hopes that those who see the film are inspired by the adventures and story portrayed.

Director Ben Meadows has traveled with a crew for the last fifteen years. By 2021, they had made the film “Just Like Mac” to honor the titular man, the uncle of crewmember Tommy Cooper. Mac served as Cooper’s fly fishing teacher as a kid and had recently passed away due to cancer. They used this film as a springboard to tell stories that excited them, made them laugh, or tugged at their heartstrings.

The film accepted this year, “Triple Trouble,” produced by Dorsal Outdoors, happened after subject Mary Beth Meeks revealed she had never caught a saltwater fish. The crew decided to shoot a film following her and guide Danielle Davidson. The crew is proud of the conservation-centered film for taking a unique perspective on fly fishing (centering on tripletail instead of trout), and they hope the film reveals their passion for the sport and inspires others to fly fish themselves.

Trouble brewing: Mary Beth Meeks prepares herself for her first adventure catching saltwater fish in “Triple Trouble.”[/caption]

Director Rok Rozman has always loved both kayaking and fly fishing. Born in Slovenia, he has found (at least in Europe) that the two professions often conflict and he doesn’t understand why. He and a few filmmakers and kayakers created the production company Leeway Collective in 2015 to film and distribute their adventures, as well as find sponsors for their trips. Their accepted film this year, “Rods, Rolls and Reality on the Soca,” co-directed by Rožle Bregar, focuses on the titular Slovenian river to encourage its conservation.

The filmmakers wanted to involve a younger audience in promoting the conversation of the Soca, and they realized a short film would give them that exposure. Rozman, in particular, hopes that the audience takes away that they don’t necessarily have to invest their lives into wildlife conservation to protect the places they love. He loves that the film is being shown in venues where people can concentrate completely on the footage and its message.

Perrin James hoped early on that if he could film spearfishers, he could encourage them to take him with them on their travels. He has been a full-time underwater photographer and filmmaker for eleven years, even working for National Geographic on and off for various projects, including the Carter Andrews-hosted “Legendary Catch.”

He has a special connection to Magdalena Bay, along the western coast of Mexico’s Baja California Sur, which he’s been diving for many years. He wanted to capture his love of the bay in the film “Marlin Fly Project” (promoted at the festival as the “F3T Edit”). As director and primary camera operator, he worked with an editor and second camera operator, Wiley Watson. He also worked with professionals from the production company Costa Films, along with “leading billfish scientists, conservation organizations, and community partners,” according to the film’s description. James wants to demonstrate how important the bay is to him and everyone working behind the scenes, potentially inspiring others to travel to the bay itself.

The other films in this year’s tour are “Rio De Gigantes,” produced by Helmut Zaderer and made by Vaidas Uselis centering around peacock bass in Brazil; “Transitions - The Bow,” produced by Kate Targett and made by Renaud Furlotte centering around brown trout in Canada; “Only The Salmon Know,” directed by Fred Campbell and made by Hooké following Atlantic salmon in Canada; “A Line In The Sand,” produced by Black Mountain Cinema and made by Harrison Hughes centering around bonefish in the Bahamas; and “What Lies Above,” produced by Fly Fishing Nation Media (FFNM) and made by Simon Kay following permit species in Mexico caught by Chase Looney and guide Raul Sanchez.

Official tour selections include “I’ll Wait Here Forever,” produced by Huckberry and made by RC Cone following Eeland Stribling as he travels to Yucatán, Mexico, to catch permit species; “At The Sand,” made by Jack Beaudoin following fly guide Westley Allen landing brown trout in Michigan; “The Art of Freedom,” produced by Fly Fishing Nation Media and following filmmaker Tobias Park and his girlfriend Sarah Rønholt as they catch Atlantic salmon in Norway; “Pop’s Flies,” a US-centered film produced by Fly Fishing Nation Media and made by Clay Hervey following Ray Cameron’s self-discovery after finding a relic connecting his love of fishing to his history; “Bitter Water,” made by Peter Grigsby, Matthew Williams, and Owen Bettis highlighting the story of the Lucero family’s fly fishing in Baja California Sur, Mexico; and “Cayo Santa Gaspe,” made by Jerome Charest following the comedic story of purist salmon fishing guide Étienne finding himself on an island in Quebec and meeting Andrew, a striped bass flats fishing junky, after a drunken night.

Media manager and road crew member Scott Battista has been a part of the tour for two years, having attended for many years beforehand. The national 2024 tour officially started on January 20, first at the Venue at Coosa Landing in Gadsden, Alabama, then at the Emerson Center for the Arts in Bozeman, Montana. The latter city has been a common starting place since the festival’s early days. After approximately 40 shows on the national tour, the independent/hosted tour started, run by local groups and organizations, conservation groups, and even breweries and (in the case of Nederland) theaters. This run of the tour consists of around 170 annual shows.

Throughout the year-long tour, an international leg called the Rise Fly Fishing Film Festival occurs. The F3T recently meshed with Rise to create an international market with over 100 more shows. The film submission process is open to anyone with access to a camera and fly-fishing equipment, so anyone who can go on an adventure and create a compelling story involving the catches they make (or don’t) is free to go for it. The festival wants to choose films involving a variety of locations and fish species, as well as films that would fit well on the big screen.

Ultimately, they want the audience to laugh, feel moved, and become inspired by the films they accept. Battista loves being a part of the touring process and seeing the audience react when certain exciting parts play on screen, and transitioning from an attendee to an actual part of the festival has been incredibly inspiring for him.

The CEO and founder of F3T is Toby Ryston-Pratt, the VP Global Business Development partner is Charles Werb, the partnership managers are Zac Merrion and Cooper Nash, and the fly fishing film specialist is Nick Reygaert.

Head to https://flyfilmtour.com/home/us/ to learn more about the Backdoor Theater’s showcase of the Fly Fishing Film Tour, find a list of films, and find information about the film tour in general. The showing at the Backdoor Theater, 750 Highway 72 in Nederland, is scheduled from 7 to 9 p.m. on Thursday, May 30, 2024. Tickets are $25 for general admission and $20 for kids 12 and under or seniors 60 and older. Prize drawing is included.