Much like the legendary St. George charging headlong into the lair of the dragon, local filmmakers Michael Deforest and Robert Morphy have gone to some of the darkest and dangerous corners of the globe in the pursuit of "monsters."
The pair's latest expedition found them trekking in darkness through the 20-mile long alligator infested marsh known as the Honey Island Swamp, located in Pearl River, La.
In the summer of 2002, armed only with a high-powered torchlight and video camera, Morphy and DeForrest went to great lengths to uncover the rich mystery that surrounds the century old beast known as the Honey Island Swamp Monster.
Through interviews with the mayor of Pearl River, ecologist Dr. Paul Wagner, and journalist and author Dana Holyfield, as well as skeptics and believers alike, the filmmakers were able to reveal the essence of this mystery and illustrate a colorful depiction detailing several first hand experiences and countless testimonies bringing validity to the beast's existence.
The legend of this hairy voracious carnivore that stands 7-feet tall and weighs close to 400-pounds began for the people of Louisiana in 1974, but for Morphy, it began after a 1976 airing of the television series "In Search Of," hosted by Leonard Nimoy.
"I was always fascinated with the "In Search of" series. I don't believe in ghosts or UFO#s, but I do believe that new species of animals are being discovered every day; there isn#'t a scientist in the world that can deny that. Cryptozoology, or the search and study of hidden animals, is one of the last great mysteries of our planet," said Morphy.
Following in the footsteps of the short-lived television series that captured the mysteries surrounding the likes of "Big Foot" and "Moth Man," Morphy and DeForrest have begun to unveil what is planned to be the inaugural installment in a documentary series titled "American Monsters." The series, which is being produced under Silent Partner Productions Inc., founded by DeForrest and Morphy along with Shane Heroux, has a wide range of goals, including uncovering famous monsters that allegedly dwell in the continental U.S.
"Our intention with 'American Monsters' was to create a series of documentaries which would serve not only to enlighten the general public regarding the plethora of undiscovered animals, but to both educate and entertain, and maybe even open a few minds to the fact that our world is one of endless possibilities," said Morphy
DeForrest explained that the two intend to have a local premier of the first installment as a means to gain both support and feedback.
"We will definitely do a local premiere, most likely at the college, where we hope to get feedback from students and faculty. We#'re also planning on having a public premiere although a location has not yet been established. We#'ve also discussed airing the pilot on public access through central N.Y., in order to get feedback from a wider audience."
Although Morphy and DeForrest have made invaluable connections through the year and a half time frame it took to complete the first documentary, landing a slot on network television has been a more rigorous task.
"It has been difficult, but we plan to develop a grassroots following, then perhaps people in the networks will take notice that this is really catching on, that people are truly intrigued," said Morphy.
The grassroots following has already been established in the fascinating world of cyptozoology.
A thorough Web site - containing all things monsters, - www.americanmonsters.com, was originally developed as a forum for the documentaries, but has evolved into an entity all of its own. Complete with news bulletins regarding new sightings and discoveries, as well as countless articles on various monsters across the globe such as Nessie and Bigfoot, the site has quickly become one of the largest cryptozoology sites on the web, with an average of 700 hits a day and growing.
"We are hoping that we get enough support through this grassroots effort to establish a following strong enough to turn some heads at some of the networks, like the Discovery Channel, TLC or the Sci-Fi network," said Morphy
" Initially our hope for americanmonsters.com was to create an all encompassing reservoir of information regarding every 'unknown animal' which we could research within the confines of the continental U.S., but it soon became apparent that to do justice to any of these bizarre creatures, we would be forced to expand our scope globally," said DeForrest.
What has seemed to have taken DeForrest and Morphy by surprise is the site's message board that was designed as an online gathering place for anyone interested in cryptozoology. Since its inception the site has been visited by people from all over the world including zoology students from North Western University and skeptics from Iraq.
"It#'s been amazing," said Morphy.
"We want this forum to encourage both discourse and open debate, and serve as a watering hole for independent researchers," said Morphy.
Many of you may be thinking to yourselves why monsters? To some, this endeavor that DeForrest and Morphy have embarked upon may seem impractical. To that, Morphy has grounded his defense in the simple truth.
"I tell people who think that - to go and do the research themselves. It is true there are new species of animals being found literally every day. In mid February, a man fishing in Illinois snagged an octopus, which do not inhabit fresh waters. I received that article from the CNN Web site The fact of the matter is no matter how intellectually intriguing the discovery of a new species may be, it is almost always overshadowed by the power of the legends surrounding it. We have decided to embrace in our documentaries not merely the facts surrounding these mysteries, but the fascination that individuals have for the enigma itself. These days we are constantly being bombarded with information about terrorism and global strife. It#'s nice to be able to step back with an almost child-like wonder and not see the globe as an ever shrinking cataclysm waiting to happen, but as a vast landscape chock full of mysteries waiting to be illuminated."
The next "American Monsters" documentary is set to explore the legendary being, "Champ," which is said to dwell in Lake Champlain.
In the summer of 2002, armed only with a high-powered torchlight and video camera, Morphy and DeForrest went to great lengths to uncover the rich mystery that surrounds the century old beast known as the Honey Island Swamp Monster.
Through interviews with the mayor of Pearl River, ecologist Dr. Paul Wagner, and journalist and author Dana Holyfield, as well as skeptics and believers alike, the filmmakers were able to reveal the essence of this mystery and illustrate a colorful depiction detailing several first hand experiences and countless testimonies bringing validity to the beast's existence.
The legend of this hairy voracious carnivore that stands 7-feet tall and weighs close to 400-pounds began for the people of Louisiana in 1974, but for Morphy, it began after a 1976 airing of the television series "In Search Of," hosted by Leonard Nimoy.
"I was always fascinated with the "In Search of" series. I don't believe in ghosts or UFO#s, but I do believe that new species of animals are being discovered every day; there isn#'t a scientist in the world that can deny that. Cryptozoology, or the search and study of hidden animals, is one of the last great mysteries of our planet," said Morphy.
Following in the footsteps of the short-lived television series that captured the mysteries surrounding the likes of "Big Foot" and "Moth Man," Morphy and DeForrest have begun to unveil what is planned to be the inaugural installment in a documentary series titled "American Monsters." The series, which is being produced under Silent Partner Productions Inc., founded by DeForrest and Morphy along with Shane Heroux, has a wide range of goals, including uncovering famous monsters that allegedly dwell in the continental U.S.
"Our intention with 'American Monsters' was to create a series of documentaries which would serve not only to enlighten the general public regarding the plethora of undiscovered animals, but to both educate and entertain, and maybe even open a few minds to the fact that our world is one of endless possibilities," said Morphy
DeForrest explained that the two intend to have a local premier of the first installment as a means to gain both support and feedback.
"We will definitely do a local premiere, most likely at the college, where we hope to get feedback from students and faculty. We#'re also planning on having a public premiere although a location has not yet been established. We#'ve also discussed airing the pilot on public access through central N.Y., in order to get feedback from a wider audience."
Although Morphy and DeForrest have made invaluable connections through the year and a half time frame it took to complete the first documentary, landing a slot on network television has been a more rigorous task.
"It has been difficult, but we plan to develop a grassroots following, then perhaps people in the networks will take notice that this is really catching on, that people are truly intrigued," said Morphy.
The grassroots following has already been established in the fascinating world of cyptozoology.
A thorough Web site - containing all things monsters, - www.americanmonsters.com, was originally developed as a forum for the documentaries, but has evolved into an entity all of its own. Complete with news bulletins regarding new sightings and discoveries, as well as countless articles on various monsters across the globe such as Nessie and Bigfoot, the site has quickly become one of the largest cryptozoology sites on the web, with an average of 700 hits a day and growing.
"We are hoping that we get enough support through this grassroots effort to establish a following strong enough to turn some heads at some of the networks, like the Discovery Channel, TLC or the Sci-Fi network," said Morphy
" Initially our hope for americanmonsters.com was to create an all encompassing reservoir of information regarding every 'unknown animal' which we could research within the confines of the continental U.S., but it soon became apparent that to do justice to any of these bizarre creatures, we would be forced to expand our scope globally," said DeForrest.
What has seemed to have taken DeForrest and Morphy by surprise is the site's message board that was designed as an online gathering place for anyone interested in cryptozoology. Since its inception the site has been visited by people from all over the world including zoology students from North Western University and skeptics from Iraq.
"It#'s been amazing," said Morphy.
"We want this forum to encourage both discourse and open debate, and serve as a watering hole for independent researchers," said Morphy.
Many of you may be thinking to yourselves why monsters? To some, this endeavor that DeForrest and Morphy have embarked upon may seem impractical. To that, Morphy has grounded his defense in the simple truth.
"I tell people who think that - to go and do the research themselves. It is true there are new species of animals being found literally every day. In mid February, a man fishing in Illinois snagged an octopus, which do not inhabit fresh waters. I received that article from the CNN Web site The fact of the matter is no matter how intellectually intriguing the discovery of a new species may be, it is almost always overshadowed by the power of the legends surrounding it. We have decided to embrace in our documentaries not merely the facts surrounding these mysteries, but the fascination that individuals have for the enigma itself. These days we are constantly being bombarded with information about terrorism and global strife. It#'s nice to be able to step back with an almost child-like wonder and not see the globe as an ever shrinking cataclysm waiting to happen, but as a vast landscape chock full of mysteries waiting to be illuminated."
The next "American Monsters" documentary is set to explore the legendary being, "Champ," which is said to dwell in Lake Champlain.
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Vani P. wrote on Jan 7, 2007 1:49 AM: