You have to really love Bigfoot to stage a three-day film festival and conference dedicated to the big guy. Kai Wada Roath >really< loves him. When we spoke (audio here) on February 8, 2017, what it was about the legendary creature that moved him to create the Bigfoot Bonanza at the Balboa Theater was my first question. Of course.
Kai Wada Roath, San Francisco, CA 2/8/17
For him, it was overhearing a conversation at an early age between two guys in northern California’s Bigfoot country. Our conversation covered that pivotal moment in his life, before moving on to how he moved from skeptic to believer, and what it is about the Big Guy that fascinates so many people.
We went on to talk about why some people choose not to reveal their encounters with Bigfoot; the speakers who will grace the event, including one who learned ninjutsu in order to be prepared in case he meets a Bigfoot up close; and what to make of those tales of Bigfoot’s legendary stench.
We finished up with how Roath became the official ambassador for one of the event’s sponsors, Confusion Hill; the extras that come with the price of admission to the three-day event; what it was like to spend (almost) a month on Easter Island; and where this peripatetic traveler wants to go next.
Roath grew up to work for an adventure travel company, taking him to Angkor Wat and to Easter Island, but he never left his affection for Sasquatch behind. After founding the Super Shangri-La show, a series of cult films that, in his opinion and mine, don’t get enough big screen time, at San Francisco’s historic Balboa Theater, he took the leap into the world of film festivals with the Bigfoot Bonanza Weekend. Three days of classic Bigfoot films, narrative and documentary, from the 1950s through the 1980s, as well as new films from noted Bigfooters Craig Flipy and Seth Breedlove. Not to mention talks by Bigfoot experts, and a chance to purchase your very own plaster cast of a Bigfoot footprint.
The Bigfoot Bonanza at the Balboa happens March 10-12. For the full schedule, click here.
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