Five Questions for Filmmakers: Deep Look

We reached out to our festival filmmakers to ask them five questions about the experience of making their films.​​​​

Deep Look- Finalist Trailer from Jackson Hole WILD on Vimeo.

What inspired this story?

Elliott Kennerson, Producer of Deep Look's Caddisfly episode: A scientist from UC Berkeley approached us with the idea when we were doing a screening at the university. Little did we know that these caddisflies were such prominent locals! They are everywhere in Northern California’s rivers and streams just after the snowmelt.

Describe some of the challenges faced while making this film.

EK: We brought specimens into our studio and tried to replicate natural conditions to induce the behavior. The biggest challenge was keeping those conditions up…especially the clean, cold, turbulent water. Without these conditions the caddisflies weren’t likely to build their little houses at all. It was a nail-biter for a good 24 hours as we watched them doing very little!

Still courtesy of Deep Look

How do you approach storytelling?

EK: Since our show is poetic in nature, I try, frankly, to imagine what it would be like to be the animals that we film and see the world through their eyes. What would it be like to live at the bottom of a turbulent stream? How would I survive? 

Anything else you would like people to know?

EK: We edit in Premiere and finish in After Effects. I was very proud to be the one to do the full AE phase on this episode myself. I may have earned my After Effects badge here!  

What next?

EK: The series continues! Next I’m tacking bats, black widow spiders, and cactus spines.

Still courtesy of Deep Look

Still courtesy of Deep Look