The River Why Theatrical Premiere

Red Carpet Success! More than 440 people attended a sold out screening of the Theatrical Premiere of The River Why in Portland, OR on September 9, 2011. William Hurt (H2O), Zach Gilford (Gus) and Alex Hurt (Young H2O) attended and stayed for an inspirational Q&A after the film.

A benefit for River Network, the evening raised more than $7,000 for the protection and restoration of our precious water resources.

If you're having trouble viewing the video to the right, you can watch the Q&A video here on YouTube.

Set on the banks of a wild river, The River Why is the story of 20 year old Gus Orviston, the Mozart of flyfishing, who leaves his big city home in rebellion from his family to live in a secluded cabin. Instead of finding fishing bliss, his desolation drives him on a reluctant quest for self-discovery - which was only possible because he had access to a healthy river!

Visit The River Why website to see where it will be shown next.

Special thanks to our Event Sponsors:

Patagonia
Oregon Film
Northwest Flyfishing Outfitters

Governor John Kitzhaber, M.D.
Callaghan Publishing - Dan Callahan's North Umpqua
City of Portland - Office of Healthy Rivers
Todd Ambs
Maree Healy
Suzanne Healy

Matt Burke & Jill Fuglister
Columbia Riverkeeper
Don Elder
Katherine Luscher
Kevin Kasowski
Gayle Killam & Scott McEwen
Ken Margolis
Willamette Riverkeper

Thank you to the following for donating raffle packages

Osprey Packs
Patagonia
Keen
Rio
Innate Gear
ClifBar
Sage
A to Z Wineworks - Rex Hill
LOOPTWORKS

The evening also served as the official kick-off leading up to the thirteenth annual National River Rally, which River Network and Waterkeeper Alliance will bring to Portland, OR for the first time May 4-7, 2012. River Rally is the largest gathering of river and watershed conservation leaders in the nation; Bobby Kennedy, Jr. and Alexandra Cousteau are confirmed Keynote speakers. More information at riverrally.org

In addition, The River Why is a part of the Active Cinema movement, inspiring audiences to get involved and take care of the rivers and lands the film so beautifully highlights. In conjunction with this screening, more than 400 people participated in the Clackamas River Cleanup.

Extra special thanks to Kristi Denton Cohen, the film's producer, and Peloton Productions, for bringing the film to Portland and helping to make the evening a great success.