YES! Filmmaker(s) Attending for Q&A
Sat Feb 26, 2022 – 2:30 pm | Downtown Beloit Association
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Gregory Michael Stahl
Directed by Ron Johnson
Documentary Short
USA | 23 min | 2021
Fisherman, Blues Guitarist, Photographer – Gregory Michael Stahl lives in Northern Illinois. He enjoys fishing, playing his guitar and taking beautiful pictures of wildlife, fauna and landscapes along the Sugar River near Rockton. Watch this engaging documentary of a man who lives his dreams.
Director Statement
The short film, “Gregory Michael Stahl”, is about an easy going man who enjoys fishing, playing and inventing blues music on his guitar and photography. He’s an easy going man with the determination to just let things happen – and that is exactly what he does.
But one thing was missing. Greg wanted to relate his blues music on his guitar with the wildlife and nature around him while he was fishing. He found a way to capture this environment while fishing along the Sugar River with his camera cell phone. Not only is his camera a very good device for taking excellent pictures, Greg is also very adept at capturing wild animals which live near all of us, but we often fail to notice them.
However, something was still missing. He wanted his friends to experience some of the wildlife beauty he captured with his camera. He discovered that he can make YouTube video programs with his pictures and music.
“Gregory Michael Stahl” is a short documentary which captures Greg’s goal of communicating his love for nature, his blues music and his fishing through his photography.
Ron Johnson
Director
I am a retired high school social science teacher. In the decade of the 1970’s, I taught film study, filmmaking and mass communications at Rolling Meadows High School in Rolling Meadows, Illinois. Later, I taught US history until I retired in 1997.
I have a Master’s degree in Film Education from Columbia College in Chicago (1972) and a BS degree in Social Science from Portland State University in Portland, Oregon (1969).
I co-authored: “Understanding the Film”, published in 1975 and every five years through 1995 by the National Textbook Co. The book is now owned by McGraw Hill.
On a whim, I registered to take a couple of video production courses at Rock Valley College in Rockford, Illinois in 2014 and ended up taking more than eight classes in three years.
Wow! The memories, from over 40 years ago came flowing back of using a 16mm Bolex camera to film scenes, then running the developed 16mm film back and forth through a Moviola, editing and glueing scenes together so I could make a film, made me even more determined than ever to create films. But now my dreams of making films were a real possibility because of the digital revolution making the filmmaking process less expensive and easier to use. Thanks to the media production program at my local community college which allowed me to learn how to use digital technology to create films.
I also love watching films. I have led a film discussion class for a local senior citizens organization for 18 years.
I hope to be able to continue to make films of distinction and virtuosity.
I’m married for over 50 years and have four children, seven grandchildren and two great grandchildren. Besides making films, I enjoy model railroading, genealogy and photography.
