New Hank Patterson film premieres in Montana this week

by Chris Hunt

The infamous CuttyRainBrown is the unicorn of the fly fishing world. The coldwater sasquatch, as it were. America's Loch Ness Monster. The fishy chupacabra. 

Rumors of the fish persist. Never has one been brought to hand. Sure, friends of friends who know a guy who saw a dude catch one once in an obscure backcountry trout stream in central Idaho swear by the existence of the improbable Salmo/Oncorhynchus hybrid, but no true scientific evidence exists to prove that this creature is real. 

But there's hope, thanks everybody's favorite fly fishing guide (and high school graduate), Hank Patterson.

The beloved YouTube fly fishing personality is launching his new film this week in Helena and Missoula, Mont., and moviegoers in those two cities will be among the first to know if the CuttyRainBrown is real, or just an out-of-reach, beyond-the-imagination dream catch for fly anglers worldwide. The film is citizen science at its ... weirdest. 

Hank Patterson and the Mystery of the CuttyRainBrown premieres Friday, Jan. 15 in Helena at the Myrna Loy Theater. Doors open at 6 p.m. and the film starts at 7 p.m. The next night, Jan. 16, the film screens at the Wilma Theater in Missoula. Doors open at 7, and the film screens at 8. Prior to the screening, there's a pre-film party at the Grizzly Hackle fly shop sponsored by the shop and Big Sky Brewing Co., both generous Trout Unlimited sponsors.

Film producer Travis Swartz notes that a full film schedule with screenings planned all across the country will be available soon. As a bonus, TU chapters can enjoy a discounted screening fee of the film and keep the proceeds generated from it. TU is a proud sponsor of Hank Patterson and the Mystery of the CuttyRainBrown, largely because, if we're protect this rare fish, we need all the data we can get in order to do it. 

For tickets to one (or both!) of the Montana screenings, visit hankpatterson.com, CrossCurrents Fly Shop in Helena or the Grizzly Hackle in Missoula. 

Chris Hunt is the national communications director for Trout Unlimited. He works from Idaho Falls, Idaho.