Announcing... This Land Is Part Of Us

I am so very proud to announce a new short film that I have been working on with my colleague Darrin Gunkel for nearly a year…This Land Is Part Of Us

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A short film produced by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and Conservation Northwest.

The shrubsteppe of central Washington’s Columbia Basin is a land of rich biodiversity, vibrant communities, and poignant beauty. It is a place both iconic and increasingly at-risk. Here, at the northern extent of the great “Sagebrush Sea” that once sprawled across much of the American West, growing collaboration between agencies, Native American tribes, conservation organizations, local landowners, and other partners seeks to preserve and restore shrubsteppe ecosystems while supporting cultural and economic values. Despite impacts from severe wildfires and habitat fragmentation, recovery programs are underway for species such as the Greater sage-grouse, pygmy rabbits, sharp-tailed grouse, and pronghorn antelope, while efforts including the Arid Lands Initiative and Conservation Reserve Program foster constructive partnership for the future of Washington’s shrubsteppe. For wildlife lovers, hunters and anglers, Indigenous peoples, farmers and ranchers, outdoor recreationists and so many others, this land is no desert devoid of life, This Land is Part of Us.

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Heartfelt thanks to our producers at Washington Dept. of Fish and WIldlife: Scott Downes, Elizabeth Torrey and Mark Teske, and my frequent producer Chase Gunnell at Conservation Northwest.

Audio contributions to Crosscut Escapes podcast on the shrubsteppe "Beige Blur"

This week Crosscut published an episode of the podcast series Crosscut Escapes that focused on the shrubsteppe ecosystem of central and eastern Washington State. The shrubsteppe is all the sageland country between the Cascade Mountains and the Rocky Mountain foothills in the eastern part of the state, and is actually just the northern tip of the “Sageland Sea” that runs north-south across the inland western part of the US. While many people see it as a ‘beige blur’ as they drive past on the interstate, it is actually an incredibly rich and diverse ecosystem that is often overlooked—and is imperiled and in need of protection from wildfires, encroaching development etc.

I was thrilled to be able to provide ambient audio sound effects from that special landscape, which is filled with the sounds of songbirds, coyotes, crickets and breezes rustling through the sage and grasses. The podcast also serves as the soft launch for the new film that I’ve been working feverishly on with my colleague Darrin Gunkel for the partnership of Washington Department of Fish & WIldlife and Conservation Northwest. The film is linked to at the bottom of the podcast web page. The big launch and promotion of the film will begin next week!

Thank you to Ted Alvarez and his team for creating an entertaining and informative introduction to the shrubsteppe!

2020: A Year for Conservation Projects

In years to come, there’s no doubt that most people will not look back at 2020 with fondness. But despite all the challenges I was able to help several organizations with getting the word out about their conservation efforts and communications: Kittitas Conservation Trust’s Gold Creek Pond Restoration effort, Conservation Northwest’s Cascade to Rockies Connection initiative, Forterra’s Morse Wildlife Preserve and Chehalis River Basin collaboration, a virtual legislative tour in support of Douglas County farmers and ranchers for Conservation Northwest and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, the Safe Passages 97 project, and lots of time and effort in creation of a new film for WDFW and CNW…coming soon!

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I-90 Wildlife Passages project now complete--for now

When Cascade Crossroads was finished, the actual wildlife overpass was not completely built, and WSDOT, USFS and others still had plenty to do to finish that and other aspects of this phase of the I-90 Snoqualmie Pass East project. While the overpass infrastructure was completed in 2018, work such as adding all the dirt for the natural landscaping and hardscaping wasn’t finished until 2019. Finally, in summer and fall of 2020, the last of the planting of natives plants was completed! Under the supervision of USFS biologist Kelly Evans and Patty Garvey-Darda, native planting was done by Wildlands, a company out of Richland, WA. Wildlife have already begun to use all the passages, including lots of elk, deer, coyotes, bobcats, fishers, and even the first cougar. Follow WSDOT’s social media pages to see amazing remote camera footage of the wildlife in action. Thank you to Kelly Evans, Mark Norman, Patty Garvey-Darda, Brian White and everyone at Wildlands for your hospitality in letting me finish documenting these final processes! Hopefully all the native plants will survive the winter, and the elk looking for snacks as they cross. WSDOT is in the design stage of the next phase of the I-90 SPE, which will include more wildlife underpassages and at least one more overpass closer to Easton.

Flight Simulator / Bing Maps video

This was a fun project to edit: with the release of the new Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020, this video shows how all the mapping detail was generated by the Bing Maps team.

Columbia Bank: Giving back to the community

It’s been both an honor and an adventure—as well as humbling—to work with Columbia Bank to craft videos around their recent grants to charitable organizations in Pacific Northwest communities. The 25th Anniversary grants, in honor of Columbia Bank’s 25th anniversary, granted $25,000 each to four organizations taking care of children and families in need, while the Warm Hearts/Warm Homes grants gave $50,000 each to four organizations who have innovative programs addressing homelessness.

Look for the finished videos to be posted soon.

Selected for International Kuala Lumpur Eco Film Festival

Cascade Crossroads has been accepted by the 11th International Kuala Lumpur Eco Film Festival in October, 2018, in Malaysia!  This marks our third film festival and our first international selection.

Invitation to join the Telly Awards Judging Council

Very pleased to receive an invitation to the Telly Awards Judging Council.  It's an honor to be asked to join an industry body of over 200 leading experts including advertising agencies, production companies, and major television networks. I look forward to seeing all the new fantastic work for the 2019 awards consideration.

Cascade Crossroads wins two Telly Awards for 2018: Gold and Bronze

I'm very proud to announce that Cascade Crossroads is a 2018 Telly Award winner!  We won a Gold in the Non-Profit Category and a Bronze in the Nature/Wildlife Category.  It's particularly fantastic as this is the first year the Tellys have awarded Gold, and we won in both categories that we submitted to.  The Telly Awards are one of the highest honors in the broadcast and video industry. All of us who worked on the documentary are thrilled.

See all the winners here

Recent projects: 2018

Marysville Fire Dept for Rhizome Design

Columbia Bank's Ballard NeighborHub

The first half of 2018 has kept me moving non-stop, thanks to my fantastic customers.  New projects have included filming the Marysville, WA, Fire Department for Rhizome Design as they produce a series of videos for the Washington State Fire FIghters Council. I also produced a series of internal videos for Columbia Bank as they launched their cutting edge NeighborHub in Seattle's Ballard neighborhood.  Microsoft also kept me very busy with several internal videos as well.

I'm eternally grateful to such amazing clients who have been great friends and allow me to work with them time and time again.  Thank you!