Lines of Hope - A Day on the Water
Photography by Annabel Long (Images 1-4) and Jim Langman (Images 5-8).
Coming into my role as a CXG intern for summer 2025, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I knew there would be storytelling, I knew that there would be marketing, and I knew that we were making a docuseries. But I had no idea that in my first two weeks, I was going to be wading in a river in giant fishing gear holding an audio recorder in one hand and a camera in the other.
Let me back up for a second and tell you how this whole thing got started. About a year ago, Brett, my boss and the owner of CXG, and his friend Andy got an idea to make a docuseries detailing veterans’ journeys to healing through fly fishing. But this wasn’t just a nature film - it would be a story about unconventional paths to healing and the importance of nature to mental health. It would also be fully filmed and based in Central Ohio, showing a big story taking place in a small community and the intersection of city and natural beauty. Securing the grand prize grant from the Greater Columbus Arts Council sealed the deal, and the story was waiting to be told. We just had to find it.
Andy Stiebler, owner of his own fly rod company, was big in the Central Ohio fly fishing community, so he was a natural partner for the film. He then introduced Brett and the CXG team to Jarod Klucho, veteran and avid fly fisher. Jarod was the founder of Veteran Recreation Ohio, a Columbus-based nonprofit allocating funds towards different recreational activities for local veterans. Jarod quickly became our voice for the film, and with his team of veterans ready to help tell their story, we were ready to get rolling (literally).
I, a new and eager intern, was lucky to be there one of the first days on the water. This time, we were just getting some B-roll and audio, so the whole team of veterans wasn’t there. Andy was on the water fishing, and me, Brett, and cameraman Nick were there to capture it. Let me walk you through my day on the water, my amazing fishing getup, and everything I learned along the way.