MISSISSIPPI
Tales of the Last River Rat
AGB Films for BBC NHU/BBC Worldwide/Discovery Channel
An intimate and poetic portrait of wildlife along the Upper Mississippi River, seen through the eyes of Kenny Salwey; a beguiling backwoodsman, storyteller and philosopher, who has lived his life in a log cabin, a stone's throw from the water's edge.
This multi-award winning film is a sumptuous evocation of the outstanding natural beauty of one of America's most iconic rivers. A story that focuses on the plants and animals closest to the narrator's heart. Country blues combined with wild tracks recorded on location, add an authentic atmosphere to the story of Kenny Salwey's deep spiritual connection to the mighty Mississippi.
AWARDS
WINNER: GRIERSON BRITISH DOCUMENTARY AWARD: Science and Natural History
WINNER: EMMY AWARD: Lighting Photography
WINNER: ROYAL TELEVISION SOCIETY AWARD: Lighting Photography
WINNER: KODAK CINEMATOGRAPHY AWARD: Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival
WINNER BEST TELEVISION PROGRAMME AWARD: International Wildlife Film Festival WINNER BEST MUSIC: Wildscreen (Green Oscar)
WINNER: BEST MUSIC AWARD: Wildscreen (‘Green Oscar’)
EMMY NOMINATION: Music and Sound
KODAK CINEMATOGRAPHY AWARD NOMINATION: Wildscreen
“GRAND PRIX” and PUBLIC PRIZE: International Wildlife Film Festival
SHOWREEL
REVIEWS
NANCY BANKS-SMITH
THE GUARDIAN
Kenny himself is one of those flowers who are born to bloom unseen unless they are spotted by a sympathetic producer and poetic photographer. (I had never noticed before how water behaves on a duck's back. It rolls around like mercury.) As the producer's name, Andrew Graham-Brown, suggests, this is a British production.
THE OBSERVER
In terms of natural history film making this is an outstanding programme.
THE GUARDIAN
…an exquisitely filmed documentary.
ROYAL TELEVISION SOCIETY
Stunningly beautiful and poetic photography… Sensuous and languid, the remarkable footage captured all the moods of the river at all times of day and year. Often complex filming techniques never got in the way of the subject or mood of the piece. This was a near-perfect piece of natural history filming.
RADIO TIMES
...it's probably the most languorously beautiful film you've seen for sometime. There's a poetic quality about Andrew Graham-Brown's film.
JUDY ADAMSON SYDNEY MORNING HERALD
If it were possible to give two upward thumbs, this documentary would easily earn the extra kudos.... Before long you're completely drawn in to his world and you feel a real pull of regret when the program ends and you have to leave.
CREDITS
Producer/Director: Andrew Graham-Brown
Photographer: Neil Rettig
Film Editor: Nigel Buck
Series Editor: Mike Gunton