Event Detail

International Wildlife Film Festival KICKOFF EVENT @ The Roxy Theater

Mandela van Eeden, host of "THE TRAIL LESS TRAVELED" presents:

THE KINGDOM OF BIRDS -- A New Zealand Sea Kayaking and rainforest trekking mixed media adventure lecture. Screening of Ata Whenua (The Land of Shadows) & preview of IWFF films. Bird photography by Thomas Kallmeyer & keep talking at the KettleHouse on Myrtle Street.

$10 suggested donation
Co-hosted by the UM Outdoor Program
A portion of proceeds will be donated to Wild Skies Raptor Center


"The Trail Less Traveled" is The Trail 103.3's locally harvested adventure radio series dedicated to collecting stories and sounds from the most remote locations around the world. The show airs Sundays @ 6:00pm. In 2017, the show was recorded on location in New Zealand as Mandela worked as a expedition sea kayak/bush guide in Fiordland National Park.
Official website: www.traillesstraveled.net

More information on the film, Ata Whenua...

‘Ata Whenua’ means ‘Shadowland’ or Fiordland in the native Maori language, Te Reo. Fiordland National Park is located on New Zealand's South Island's remote west coast. Fiordland is vast: 1.2 million hectares / over 3 million acres - larger than Yellowstone & Yosemite national parks combined.

Local helicopter pilot, Kim Hollows has been flying around Fiordland since the early 1980s. He loves the aerial view of Fiordland, and it became his dream to make a film about what’s out there so that everyone can get to enjoy it. Kim teamed up with the late Dave Coma, part of the crew for the Lord or the Rings & Hobbit trilogies. In those movies he was the guy responsible for finding those beautiful scenic shots of New Zealand.

The two of them (along with other crew) spent approximately 2 years, using 2 helicopters, flying around Fiordland National Park with the aim of capturing the essence of what makes Fiordland so beautiful, and so unique, and so diverse and so truly dramatic.
So they flew through the different seasons, from the tops of the highest mountains right down to the sea, capturing the landscape in the snow, the sunshine and the rain. They also spent some time on the ground filming native wildlife.

When they were finished, they had 32 minutes of footage, and they put a powerful soundtrack to it – so you there’s no dialogue or subtitles throughout this – it’s not a documentary-style piece. It’s a beautiful cinematic experience, allowing you to just relax and take in the beauty that’s out there.