BASS pros make big-screen debut

The premiere of Bass: The Movie, billed as “a road trip through California in search of fishing secrets and a world record,” will take place Oct. 17 at Pacific Design Center in Hollywood, Calif.

The film features conventional-tackle anglers and fly anglers fishing out of the same boat, sharing approaches and cultures. It opens with interviews with Bassmaster Elite Series pros Kevin VanDam, Mike Iaconelli and Kelly Jordon, and then follows (by air, land and sea) California Delta legend and guide Bobby Barrack, California fly rod pro and Delta guide Kevin Doran, line class world record holder Raymond Easley, fly rod world record holder Larry Kurosaki, bass pro and guide Marc Mitrany and fly rod pro John Sherman.

California Elite Series pros Skeet Reese and Ish Monroe make cameo appearances. The California Delta is a focal point of Bass: The Movie.

The film’s initial revelation is that California is a haven for the world’s biggest bass, with numerous fisheries unlike any other: The endless maze and tidal waters of the California Delta’s levee system contrast with the clear waters of southern California reservoirs. Another revelation is the backdrop of the Delta being listed by American Rivers as 2009’s most endangered river system in North America. (A portion of the proceeds from the film will go to the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance.)

Modern bass fishing has grown into a multibillion dollar industry from its simple roots, and the chase for George Perry’s 77-year-old world record (22 pounds, 4 ounces) has helped stoke that fire. It’s a record anyone with a fishing rod is eligible to match, and California is considered one of the most likely places to find it. The film is not solely concerned with besting it, but rather exploring the ways the men who have made bass their life go about their hunt in search of “the big one.”

Producer and director Jamie Howard’s past fishing film credits include Chasing Silver (about tarpon in the Florida Keys) and In Search of a Rising Tide (about bonefishing in the Bahamas).

The movie will be released to the public on a two-disc DVD set Oct. 31. It includes a retrospective interview with bass fishing legend Bill Dance.

To see a trailer for the movie or to pre-order the DVD, go to the HowardFilms Web site.

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