2021 Update: Full Speed Ahead

Self-portrait at Satsop River for Forterra

On set at Columbia Bank

CNW staff and volunteers

Justin Catanoso interviews Dominick DellaSalla

Scott Peck interviewed with a western screech owl

Feeding an orphaned baby squirrel

Kris Browne, Brian White of WSDOT and myself

Radio-tracking a western toad

View of the wildlife overcrossing from the north

Interviewing Patty Garvey-Darda of USFS

While in many ways 2021 has been a continuation of the roller coaster ride that was 2020, I have taken on and completed some fantastic projects. Longtime-collaborator Kris Browne and I were commissioned by Washington State Department of Transportation to create a follow-up to our film with Sandy Asher, Cascade Crossroads, now that the first phases of wildlife crossing structures on I-90 at Snoqualmie Pass have been finished, the surrounding areas restored to natural habitat, and research by Central Washington University researchers into wildlife usage has continued. Several internal editing projects for Microsoft, including their Inspire and Ignite virtual conferences and the Microsoft Research Summit, kept my very busy for a while. I filmed a project for Mongabay on the importance of old-growth trees for carbon sequestration. It was great to reconnect post-pandemic with Columbia Bank again. Darrin Gunkel and I began work on a project for West Sound Wildlife Shelter that details the amazing work they do rehabilitating and releasing injured wildlife. I’m working with Conservation Northwest on a deep dive into their Cascades to Olympics wildlife corridors program with Brian Stewart. And Jillian Brown of Forterra and I have been collaborating on several projects, including the third year of partnering with Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife promoting the Aquatic Species Restoration Plan in the Chehalis River Basin. Here are some photos from some of the projects for your entertainment!

We won the Gold! The Gold Telly Award for the People's Telly category

This Land Is Part Of Us won a Telly Award! The Gold in the People's Telly category, voted for by viewers including many of you--THANK YOU! So proud that this is getting the recognition that it has, and grateful to Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife and Conservation Northwest for the opportunity to make the film. Thanks and cheers to everyone on our production team and our interviewees, including Darrin Gunkel, Chase Gunnell, Scott Downes, Elizabeth Torrey, Mark Teske, Emily Washines, Molly Linville, Jay Kehne, Michael Schroeder, Jon Gallie, Rachel Blomker, Ferdi Businger, Matt Johnson, and as always Dave Gross!

This Land Is Part Of Us on Outside Magazine Online

It hasn’t even been a full month yet and This Land Is Part Of Us has already received a stellar reception, out-performing Washington Dept. of Fish and Wildlife’s typical video performance, positive articles in The Spokesman-Review, the national publication of The Wildlife Society, and today by Outside Magazine! Really proud of our video team.

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.