Rain City Cinema announced today that its film, "Ride The Sky", about pioneering skydiver Joan Carson, is an official selection at Rendezvous Film Festival in Amelia Island, Florida - where in June it will make its Florida premiere. The film, directed by Paul Gorman, is coming off appearances at Trenton Film Festival, Flathead Lake International CinemaFest in Montana, Ellensburg Film Festival in Washington and Laughlin Film Festival in Nevada.As Gorman sees it, "Ride the Sky" is more or less a female version of "Into The Wild" set in the 1970s.
With wanderlust in her blood and skydiving the love of her life, Joan Carson pursued her passion at dropzones across three western states. She finally settled in Kalispell, Montana and was one of the founders of Lost Prairie Skydive Center - now home to one of the top 5 skydiving boogies in the world.
Tragically, Carson passed away there in a skydiving mishap shortly after it opened. She was 30 years old at the time. The cause of her double malfunction remains a mystery.
"Ride The Sky" captures the culture of skydiving in the 70's as it retraces Joan's skydiving footsteps, beginning in Montana, and works its way backward, digging into her past and the events that motivated her," said Gorman.
The film is structured in the same order in which it was shot. "We wanted to keep it that way so audiences could experience Joan's story the way we did," said Gorman. "She kept a lot of things bottled up and her story unfolded along the way. There are definitely some answers, and then some new questions. The cause of her double malfunction remains a mystery."
Gorman, who knew Carson in high school spent time with her while she was living in San Francisco. While there, he dreamt that she had a fatal skydiving mishap. He was deeply affected years later at the news of her passing. "Her fatality shocked me. She was one of my first classmates to depart, and it was one of those events that stays with you the rest of your life," said Gorman.
Gorman wanted to understand the meaning of his dream and what drove Carson to continue skydiving after suffering two serious accidents. "I was curious as to the reason she took the risks she did and why she would continue doing something that caused her so much pain," said Gorman.
It was after learning that while in her 20's, Carson and several of her skydiving friends had built their own airfield, hangar, and skydive center in the Montana wilderness, that Gorman was hooked.
"I was impressed with her accomplishments and adventurous spirit. The fact that Joan would follow her passion from the safety of the suburbs of Redmond, WA, to the sophistication of San Francisco, and then to the wilderness in Montana - where she built her own airport and skydive center - convinced me that her story was bigger than my own personal interest and had universal appeal. It was then that I decided to make a film about her," said Gorman.
Gorman says "Ride the Sky" appeals to a broad range of ages and both sexes equally. "It's one of those films that has broad appeal because the story is from Joan, not me," said Gorman. "I merely opened the bottle and her story poured out."
"Ride the Sky" screens at 4:00 PM - June 10 at Studio 209.
The trailer for "Ride the Sky" can be seen by clicking here
www.raincitycinema.com