International adventure film tour, the Reel Paddling Film Festival is on its way to Australian shores with a screening planned for October this year.
Hosted by the North East Canoe Club, the film festival will feature whitewater action, sea kayaking, canoeing, SUP and more from a host of international filmmakers.
Out of the 21 film shortlist for the festival’s world tour, 10 are category winners from the event and include: Martin’s Boat – honoring the legacy of Martin Litton with an expedition in the Grand Canyon; Kayaking the Aleutians – more than 2,500 kilometres and 20 open water crossings across the remote and stormy stretch of islands between Russia and Alaska; Paddle for the North – six mates, three canoes, two dogs, and two months along 1,500 kilometres of remote North American rivers; and The Path of Grey Owl – bushcraft expert Ray Mears reflects on fraudulent conservationist Grey Owl’s message of protecting wilderness areas.
Spokesperson for the North East Canoe Club, Allison Parkinson told Wild that the club was keen to take on the event because they felt “it was an opportunity going begging”.
“The film collection is a great way of exposing the wider community to all the different types of paddling and the benefits paddling can give the individual,” Parkinson says.
While the lineup of films are predominantly North American, the organisers have promised there will also be some Australian content and, with the arrival of the festival tour, there may be even more Australian entrants to the competition in future years.
The North East Canoe Club is working with other local paddling clubs to host a number of paddling events over the same weekend as the film festival screening, eyeing opportunities to paddle the Ovens River at Bright and the King River.
“As this is our first time hosting the event,” Parkinson explains, “we are hoping to have around 150 attendees for the film night, which will also feature trade displays from kayak suppliers and other related businesses.”
The Reel Paddling Film Festival will be screening at the Oxley Shire Hall in northeast Victoria. For more details and to book, visit the North East Canoe Cliub website.