(2014 ARCHIVED) Dream - USA

DREAM from NRS Films. Nominee for 'Media Ambassador'

This film is unique among its kind. Directed by Skip Armstrong, it has attracted over 100,000 views and 600 likes on Vimeo. If anyone watching doesn’t already know how cool kayaking is, they will soon find out.

Extreme kayaker Ben Marr is featured, taking on the character of an older man; an amateur at white water kayaking. After the arduous process of driving his boat to the river and getting his deck on, the old-timer sees Rush Sturges and friends frolicking in the waves, and begins to dream…

He dreams of running rapids and hucking drops to the sound of grooving beats. On the bank, a panda and something that might be a bear, dance and cheer in support.

This is where things start to get weird.

The bear throws a backflip as the dreamer glides over the edge of a waterfall– only to be struck by lightning thrown by his cheer squad. The viewer is treated to dreamlike shots of paddling in the moonlight. A boat lit from beneath with a gentle glow soars through the rapids as the bear and the panda dance with sparklers, and fireworks explode. A wild party ensues, and while everything else in this dream seems beyond reality, the paddling party stays true to life.

We dream of being great, friendships and ecstatic parties, but most of all this video is a celebration of the extraordinary sensations experienced when kayaking. It combines skillful cinematography, paddling and glorious ideas into a kooky reminder of how sweet it is to dream.

This is a 2014 archived nominee. For the 2015 nominees click on the button below.