2015 Red Rock Film Festival

Peeled Faces on the Amazon: The Story of the Amazon Express
USA (102 min.) Documentary Feature
DIR West Hansen, Ian Prikryl, Steve Lewis

This is the account of the first expedition to paddle the entire 4200 mile length of the Amazon River from its newly discovered most distant source at 14,600 elevation in the Peruvian Andes to the Atlantic Ocean in Brazil. Sponsored by a National Geographic Explorers grant and two years of fund raising, the Amazon Express expedition was led by Texas native, first time explorer, West Hansen. The team included young adrenalin junkie white water yahoos and old curmudgeons who should have known better. This documentary captures the first film footage of the Mantaro River, which makes up the initial 500 miles of the Amazon River basin. In 2012, after surviving the deadly rapids, the team covered the final 3600 miles while being held at gunpoint five times, surviving jungle rot, team strife, sickness, narcotraffickers, massive tidal surges and numerous other obstacles. I’m sure you’ll enjoy the ride.