Big Fur

Directed by Dan Wayne
Documentary featuring: Ken Walker, Amy Carter and Antonio Alfero
Running time: 1 hour and 16 minutes

by Rosalie Kicks, Old Sport

Before Big Fur, the extent of my taxidermy knowledge started and stopped with the illustrious character from Psycho, Norman Bates. 

In essence, I knew a stereotype. This issue is even raised within the documentary. My idea for a taxidermist, like many, is that the fondness of stuffing dead creatures equates to the likelihood of them being a serial killer. Even after viewing the film, much like Marion Crane, I still find the hobby to be a bit curious but I now also find it fascinating. In a mere seventy six minutes, I not only became a believer in taxidermy as an art and but now also consider that Bigfoot isn’t just some tall tale.

When I first learned of this documentary I was intrigued to learn more about the process of taxidermy. Obviously, I went into Big Fur expecting the subject of the film to be eccentric. However, I never thought I’d meet a character like Ken Walker. It is rather easy to see the interest the filmmaker had in this guy. Simply put, he is a damn character. Not only is he a world champion within the field of taxidermy, but he is also a Roy Orbison tribute artist. Ken specializes in the art of re-creations. Director Dan Wayne explains, “This is a specialized niche within the field. He (Ken) makes endangered or extinct animals out of other animal’s hides.”

If that isn’t wild enough, Ken decided to engineer a female Sasquatch like in the one in the well known Patterson-Gimlin film. Despite some of his colleagues thinking he lost his damn mind, Ken clearly was not bothered. In watching the film, I got the sense that he not only enjoyed a challenge but he thrived on it. Watching the process of him creating Big Foot to the final unveiling was somewhat magical, as he managed to bring a mythical creature to life.

What I liked most about his film was witnessing the process of how one of these creations is made. The care, research and time dedicated to a single project is truly impressive. I now have a sense of respect for the craft and see beyond the Norman Bates caricature. No longer do I see taxidermists as takers of life, but more as giving the creature a new beginning.

Am I gonna mount a deer head over my mantel? Nah. However, everyone is allowed their opinion of charming home decor. Overall, I found this film to be quite enjoyable but wish it stuck to the subject matter and didn’t have a scandalous love story diversion, which I won’t even get into. Although, like in most documentaries, sometimes the story you intended to tell ends up a tad different on the cutting floor. This film made its premiere at the Slamdance film festival Friday and will be showing again on Monday. I had the opportunity to send the director Dan Wayne some questions which I have included below. Hopefully his film will be available to watch for everyone soon.

How did you meet Ken Walker?

I was following several taxidermists who I thought would make a good subject for a character-driven doc about taxidermy. Ken was one of them, since he’s one of the best in the world and had a big personality. He was also featured in a great book I read by Melissa Milgrom, called Still Life, Adventures in Taxidermy. Ken’s known for his re-creations. This is a specialized niche within the field. He makes endangered or extinct animals out of other animal’s hides. It requires a lot of research, creativity and skill. His Irish elk, saber-toothed tiger and giant panda were big hits at the World taxidermy Championships and allowed people to see these fabled creatures up close. When I approached Ken about my plans, he was very receptive and when he told me he was going to build a Bigfoot, I knew I’d found my movie.

Did you have an interest in the subject of taxidermy?

I had been interested in it for several years. I’m not a hunter, but I like the weirdness of having a mounted animal in my home. It’s very anachronistic. I’m intrigued by the marriage of craft, art and science and felt it was an underappreciated art form. I found a great forum called taxidermy.net, where there were tutorials and you could ask questions – many of the best taxidermists in the world are on there. Once I started learning how to do it myself, I became more interested in the characters that were doing it and my story-telling instincts took over.

Did you previously have an interest in BigFoot?

I had never thought twice about Bigfoot before I met Ken. Now, I’m practically an expert!

Are you a believer?

I’m not a big fan of that term, because I think it implies faith and I’m more scientific. I think there is a lot of compelling evidence, the wilderness is a vast place and no one really knows what goes on in the deep woods. I love the idea that it’s possible they exist and certainly would be excited if proof ever came to light. The long process of making Big Fur has led me to think of Bigfoot in a more mythical, symbolic way. To me, Bigfoot represents what is truly wild – and, unfortunately, there aren’t many untamed, wild places left. So, I suppose yeah, I think their existence is very possible, but I can imagine a time in the near future – within our lifetimes – when there is no more wilderness left and then it would be nearly impossible for them to exist. And at that point, very doubtful.

This was your first time directing a picture - do you see more projects in your future? Documentary or narrative?

I’ve got a couple possible doc projects in development, but I’m also developing an episodic TV series based on a soon-to-be published epic novel by my associate producer, Mark Gardiner. It’s the authorized biography of the last Sasquatch, and uses the iconic pop culture figure to address some serious societal and environmental themes. It’s a brilliant story!

What was the biggest challenge in making Big Fur?

Getting it finished was tough. I've had some experience with production and I love that challenge, but the last steps of post-production took much longer and were more involved and more expensive than I expected.

What was the most shocking thing you learned in making BIG FUR?

I’ve always been an outdoorsman, but when I went with Ken to a Bigfoot habituation area in the Canadian Rockies, I was blown away by all of the resource extraction going on. Logging and oil and gas industries had a major disruptive effect on the wildlife there – Bigfoot, if they exist, but also all the other animals that share that same habitat. That led me to do a lot of research and I ended up talking with a lot of wildlife biologists and was surprised to learn how little we know about animal behavior and how to protect them. It’s an intricate, interconnected system and habitat fragmentation is the achilles heal of wildlife conservation.

Anything else you would like to add…

In interviews, I tend to lean heavily on the wilderness aspect of Big Fur. While it does have an environmental theme, it’s really a fun movie about love, loss and taxidermy. There’s a little something in there for everyone and my main goal is, ultimately, to entertain people.