Wild Caught – Aquarium Fish Trade of the Amazon – Documentary

Wild Caught: Aquarium Fish Trade of the Amazon is the first ever full length 90 minute
documentary to be produced about the wild caught ornamental fish trade.
It is a carefully researched and visually stunning production offering an inside look at
the environmental and socio-economic benefits of the industry.
The story is told by the Piabeiros, researchers, conservationists, exporters, importers
and retailers of the trade.
The 90 minute documentary will be released on-line for everyone to watch at their
convenience. At this time the plan is to release it as a video-on-demand on Vimeo for a price of
approximately $4. However I am working with Project Piaba to investigate the possibility of
releasing it for free on Youtube.
After over 50 years of fish collection, the industry in Amazonas has proven to be sustainable
and a benefit to the protection of one the earths most important ecosystems.
However the trade in Amazonas is facing various challenges that are carefully examined in the
documentary. With the arrival of a new president in Brazil, deforestation and the mining of
rivers in Amazonia is increasing dramatically. The timing is now perfect for a documentary
which explores, in depth, the value of the ornamental fish industry of Amazonas and the
necessity to support it. Now, more than ever, it is necessary to educate aquarium hobbyists,
the general public and legislators about this important issue.


BIO: Don McConnell
Producer/director/cameraman/editor/writer of ‘ Wild Caught’.
Raised in Dublin, Ireland, I attended university in Boston USA.
I am a lifelong aquarium hobbyist and started my career at Bostons New England Aquarium
where I produced hundreds of educational videos about aquatic conservation.
After 5 years, I moved into freelance production for broadcast television. Over a period of 20
years my work has been seen on National Geographic Explorer, Discovery Channel, PBS Nova,
CNN, RAI and many more platforms.
In the year 2000 I joined a Project Piaba expedition to the Barcelos region of the Rio Negro,
Amazonas. I returned there many times since and 5 years ago eventually moved to Amazonas.
At that time, I began filming here in High Definition and this documentary went into production.
I intend to remain in Amazonas and continue filming and producing stories about rainforest /
aquatic conservation and productions for the ornamental fish trade using underwater and drone
equipment.
The Value of the documentary
I believe that this documentary will be a very valuable tool to help educate the public, hobbyists
and legislators about the value of the ornamental trade for conservation and livelihoods of the
people who live in the rainforest. Anticipation is enormous for the release of the film. After only
10 days of the release of 2 trailers on Facebook there have been over 60,000 views and
hundreds of comments. The audience consists primarily of hobbyists and people within the
trade. Instagram and Youtube promotions are next and we are sure to reach an even wider
audience.
‘Wild Caught’ will be an important reference for many years to come for those wanting to learn
more about the value of the aquarium trade. Please consider helping us complete and release
this important film quickly.
Regards,
Don McConnell
Producer: Wild Caught
Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil
email: amazonmicrocosm@gmail.com
Trailers : https://vimeo.com/showcase/5651014
SPONSORS:
Conservation International . IUCN – International Union for the Conservation of Nature
Project Piaba . American Cichlid Assoc. . OATA- Ornamental Aquatic Trade Assoc.
CarbonFund Foundation ( conservation USA ) . Segrest Farms ( importer USA )
Aquarium Glaser ( importer Germany ) . Sunbeam Aquarium ( importer Singapore )
Bassleer Biofish ( Belgium ) . Aquarium Zebra ( importer Singapore ) Aqueon ( retailer USA )
APET ( wholesaler USA ) . FishMart ( retailer USA ) . The FishMongers’ company ( UK )