“WATER IS LIFE”
(Nibi aawan bimaadziwin in Anishinaabemowin)
Here is a brief summation of the film and we have tiled it, "Water Is Life". It is a 15-minute synopsize of the longer documentary still in production. It covers each issue in brief yet explains how people around the Great Lakes are doing something when it comes to the challenges they face. "Water Is Life" calls viewers to follow their lead and become involved, and it ends with his faith that the youth of today are as willing and able to work tirelessly for the health and sustainability of our environment.
Line 5 Flotilla Protest September 1, 2018
On September 1st of this year the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians coordinated a protest against Line 5—the only oil pipeline beneath the Great Lakes—at the Straits of Mackinac. The pipeline was built in 1953 with an expected lifetime of 50 years. The installation is in poor repair and needs to be shut down before it ruptures.
Ludington State Park, Michigan
We stopped at Michigan’s Ludington State Park to film for THE SWEETWATER SEAS this fall. The dunes are exquisite and provide a wide area to roam in forests, dunes or along the water's edge.
Nutrient runoff is a problem in all five of the Great Lakes, while Lake Erie is the one everyone thinks of when it is discussed. It causes the algae blooms which turn the water green and undrinkable. This short shows what farmers are trying to do to reduce their phosphorous and nutrient runoff under a program sponsored by the Department of Agriculture and the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative.
Last summer I headed to Lake Superior and Pancake Bay Provincial parks to shoot some of the scenic footage we need for THE SWEETWATER SEAS. Here is a selection from that trip.
Saving the Piping Plover
Wildlife preservation is a large part of what we cover in our documentary on the Great Lakes. The Sweetwater Seas - North America's Great Lakes delves into programs about conservation of the wetlands, forests, and of course wildlife. This short concentrates on the Piping Plover which was down to around 10 pairs and has been brought back to close to 70 pairs around the Great Lakes.
Filmed in 2014 as part of THE SWEETWATER SEAS, this shows Niagara Falls frozen over in one of the coldest winters in years. The flow of water creates wonderful sculptures in the ice and snow. We shot for three days in many kinds of weather. Enjoy!
Lake Superior - Two Winters
Two winters, drastically different weather. In March, 2013 on Lake Superior, it was below 0°F. The lake was shrouded in ice and snow. During the same week in 2016, the ice had all but left the lake, and little snow remained in the forests. Here's a look at some of the same locations at the same time in two different years.
Grosse Pointe Lighthouse
Grosse Pointe Lighthouse on Lake Michigan, shot in conjunction with THE SWEETWATER SEAS. Grosse Point Lighthouse stands tall on a bluff along Lake Michigan's western shore and was a major entrance light to the port of Chicago in the late 1800s. It was built in 1873 for roughly $32,000 and located in Evanston, Illinois, a recently incorporated town north of Chicago. The light and frenal lens were the most powerful on the Great Lakes as Grosse Pointe was deemed to be the most important lighthouse on Lake Michigan at the time. The beam could be seen 21 miles across the water on a good day. It was decommissioned in 1934 following the installation of an electronic mechanism to turn the light on and off. It still shines today, but it is no longer used for navigation.
America's Cup on Fresh Water
After 165 years the America's Cup finally came to race on fresh water. Lake Michigan and Chicago formed a great backdrop for the weekend of races. While the weather didn’t cooperate every day, it still provided yet another way for people to enjoy the Great Lakes as history was made.