“The Search for Safe Passage,” a short film produced by Wildlands Network and National Parks Conservation Association, is set to make its big screen debut at the Boone Docs Film Festival, held in Boone, North Carolina, on Saturday, Feb. 25. The film, which features interviews with Safe Passage Fund Coalition members Dr. Liz Hillard of Wildlands Network and Jeff Hunter of NCPA, highlights the organizations’ work and research in the Pigeon River Gorge over the last several years.
Organized by the Appalachian Theatre of the High Country, Boone Docs showcases short-form documentary films that celebrate life in and around Appalachia. Each of the selected documentaries range from four to 24 minutes in duration, with “The Search for Safe Passage” coming in at 8 minutes in length.
A synopsis for “The Search for Safe Passage” describes the highway through the Pigeon River Gorge as “treacherous” for those “on four wheels or four legs” alike. “Here, Interstate 40 winds through the steep, forested terrain of the Great Smoky Mountains, allowing cars to drive east to west but preventing wildlife from moving north to south,” the description continues.
The film’s screening at the festival will be followed by a short Q&A session with Hunter, the Southern Appalachian director of National Parks Conservation Association, and Hillard, senior wildlife biologist at Wildlands Network.
Boone Docs Film Festival will be held from 2-6 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 25 at the Appalachian Theatre of the High Country, 559 West King St., Boone, North Carolina.
To watch “The Search for Safe Passage,” click here.