Hi! I have lots of questions! How did you two meet?
Denise: Hi! First of all, thanks for your review and for your time. It means a lot.
How did we meet? Hmm, I contacted Lindsey about five years ago? I wanted to work with her to create a story about my job, the Colorado wilderness, something like that. I wasn’t intending for the movie to be what it became.
Actually, a number of the facets of our work at Colorado Parks and Wildlife will change soon. Like the antenna you see on my plane, the VHF (that we use to track animals), is going to be replaced by GPS.
Denise stocking a lake.
Well, I’m glad you two met when you did, because Fight or Flight was a powerful collaboration.
Denise: I am very proud of the images we see in the movie. I don’t share the cockpit during fish stocking, so to see those images on screen, available for other people to see, is beautiful.
The images are beautiful, but so is the story. I imagine it was scary for you, Denise, to air out your laundry (so to speak)?
Denise: Terrifying, yes. There was a lot of fear in being vulnerable and sharing my story, but I realized that’s where the real story is. I wanted to learn what and why fear was there. The process was actively healing for me. Over time Lindsey and I got to know each other, and she created a safe space for me to open up.
I love how the movie starts with Denise the pro, soaring over and dipping into mountains. Then we learn how she preps and how dangerous the job is. And then before we know it we are learning about Denise’s past. Her trauma, motivation, and journey. Pretty seamless.
Lindsey: The structure was very intentional. I wanted to introduce Denise at face value, just like any other time we meet someone for the first time. Isn’t the first question we ask after meeting someone, what do you do?
After that, we peel back bit by bit, as we do in life. It takes time to go a layer deeper.
Moving and empowering stuff. Denise, piloting has given you so much; will you continue with it?
Denise: Long term, I see myself in the aviation industry.
It’s helped you confront your traumas, for example. Have you ever thought about helping others who’ve dealt with trauma?
Denise: People within the aviation industry aren’t comfortable discussing these things openly. I wanted to share my story to start a conversation, to show that healing looks different for everyone. It’s a process. The same tools I used to heal from my past have made me a better pilot. For example, learning how to strengthen and self-regulate your nervous system. It’s about continuous learning, seeking a better way.
I am happy to see, in recent aviation conferences, they are discussing not just the importance of mental health and well-being but the actual tools to build strong foundations for them. I’m curious about starting larger conversations on this with the film, it’s all new to me. Still, nature is incredibly healing for me (and others) so working directly with wildlife and conservation is really important to me too.
How did you capture these stunning images? Cameras in planes? On planes? Drones?
Lindsey: I always forget the details between the different cameras—you’ll have to ask the cinematographer! :) But one of the things we used was a cinema cam on a helicopter: It’s called a SHOTOVER. And we worked with an experienced aerial-cam operator, which was good in part because we needed to be safe when shooting. A lot had to come together, too, because we shot during fire season. So many helicopters were being used to fight fires.
It was a gift to be able to create this movie. Denise is amazing. And then things like, on some days, to get the vantage point, me and the team would hike up the mountain and camp out all night before the next day’s shoot. When do you get to do that?
Denise: I put GoPros inside and outside the aircraft as well. We had five days of shooting, over three occasions, I think, for the whole film.
Denise, you had a great line in the movie, talking about how small houses look from your perspective up in the sky—how each of those houses has their own people, their own photo albums. Kinda like you have your own story, worthy of being told. Maybe others might, too.
Denise: I hadn’t thought about it that way, but I like that metaphor. I am just always struck by how flying gives you so much perspective. The bird’s-eye view you don’t get otherwise.
During my childhood, I felt I had no voice; with flying I found it. Now I’m learning to have a voice with this film . . . and Lindsey has been supporting me with that journey.