Power of the River movie

Film Synopsis

An all-Bhutanese river crew guides a first-ever flyfishing descent of a “top-10 wild and untouched river” (International Rafting Federation). Cultural encounters across this tiny Buddhist kingdom lead to exhilarating cinematography from prayer-flag mountain passes to rafts and kayaks navigating uncharted Class IV+ whitewater. The visiting international expedition team encounters a country at a crossroads: hailed for conservation even as it faces pressure to dam every river.

Pursuing an endangered “fish of kings,” the anglers and their guides must strike a balance between bringing attention to the wildness of our planet—and “loving it to death” as angler Dave McCoy says. The film is one of the first feature documentaries to embody cutting edge #keepfishwet principles as it gives voice to the perspectives of Bhutan’s own hearts and minds, including Dasho Benji, the country’s “godfather of conservation.”

Grammy-winning music from Béla Fleck and Abigail Washburn and an original score by Stefan Smulovitz lend fitting musical magic to the journey of a lifetime.