For more than a decade, documentary filmmaker Shane Anderson’s stories have captured the most critical issues facing wild, anadromous fish while shining a light on the people working to protect them. His first major film, “Wild Reverence,” brought attention to the decline of the Olympic Peninsula’s wild steelhead populations. More recently, “The Lost Salmon” chronicled the history of the most revered salmon, Spring Chinook, and the narrow opportunity to save the species. Despite crossing multiple watersheds and species, Shane’s stories resonate deeply within the angling community and have served as a spark for change.
“Education, inspiration and action are the three words I use to vet myself,” Shane says, “because I’m not just making a movie. I want the movie to influence some kind of policy change or perceptions that people may have.”
In recent years, Shane has devoted his time to documenting the fight to reconnect the Klamath River. His recent short film, Undammed: Amy Bowers Cordalis and the Fight to Free the Klamath, captures what is possible when dams are breached and celebrates a critical example of Indigenous-led conservation.
Shane’s work is supported by several organizations, including California Trout, which works to ensure healthy waters and wild fish in California and has long pushed to breach the Klamath dams.
Photo: It never gets old. Filmmaker Shane Anderson releases another beauty. JASON HARTWICK