THE WILD ORCHID MAN REVIEWS

A Sarasota orchid expert and filmmaker are teaming up for a different kind of nature show.

Creative Loafing: April 13th, 2009 by Cooper Levey-Baker in Arts, Editor's Desk, Film, News, Politics, Sarasota-Manatee

“Plants are not big sellers compared to tigers or whales,” Stig Dalström says with a laugh. The Sweden-born orchid curator at Selby Gardens realizes that while he may love the quiet, contemplative joy of examining flowers, when it comes to nature on-screen, audiences reared on the gonzo routines of Animal Planet hosts have a hard time getting psyched about flora.

That poses a challenge for Dalström and filmmaker Darryl Saffer, who have teamed up to create Wild Orchid Man, an ongoing nature documentary series the two hope to land on the Discovery Channel or even National Geographic. Even the style of the show challenges the standards of the contemporary nature show. While popular programs feature quick-hitting, often staged wildlife encounters chopped into five-second cuts, Wild Orchid Man unspools its story with patience and grace. (Watch a trailer here.)

While Dalström and Saffer haven’t gotten any bites from the cable channels so far, Sarasotans can get a glimpse of the show-in-progress at a pair of free screenings this week, one at Burns Court, the second at Word of Mouth.

The pairing of Dalström and Saffer is a natural one. For years, Dalström has funded private research on orchids by working as a botanical illustrator, while Saffer has worked on any number of local film projects, many of them documenting the natural world. When they began floating ideas for a collaboration, coming up with a winner didn’t take long: They headed to South Florida’s Fakahatchee Strand swamp on a hunt for the ghost orchid, with Dalström playing host and guide. (Ironically, although plants may be a tough sell on TV, you’ve probably heard of the flower via Hollywood: It was the elusive core of the Spike Jonze film Adaptation.) But the ghost orchid is only the starting point for the show. Once in the swamp, the show delves into the world of insects, wildlife and more.

The two have an explicit mission: to educate viewers about the richness of botanical life, to connect us emotionally to the natural world, to get us to rethink what we value. Both want to change our attitude toward our planet. “It has to be a financial [change] but it also has to be an emotional one, but most importantly it has to be a cultural one,” Saffer says.

That explains the long, loving shots of the Fakahatchee wild, the lingering pace of the show, the meandering narrative. There may not be any crocodile hunting going on, but Wild Orchid Man is rapturous entertainment nevertheless.