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Jesse Roper learns to create fire in the wild, in Sacred Knowledge web series

Ragnarock Studios production shares primitive skills with Islanders
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Taylor Mar has spent years learning primitive knowledge and even teaches at a primitive knowledge gathering called Firemaker in Comox. (Photo provided by Shannon Carman)

In case of the big one, whether it’s a tsunami or an earthquake, a new web-series from Ragnarock Studios arms it’s viewers with primitive knowledge in case of a disaster.

The first episode of the Sacred Knowledge web-series features Jesse Roper and Pete MacDonald in the wild, learning how to create fire using only a bow-drill with the guidance of Taylor Mar.

Mar is a bundle of knowledge when it comes to primitive skills, spending his life learning from people, books or YouTube covering topic such as hunting, foraging for food, pit cooking and other basic life skills.

“For us living on an Island, if those ferries shut down or if there’s some type of natural disaster, it doesn’t take long for shelves to empty,” says Mar. “Especially if people panic, those shelves will empty even quicker.”

The web-series has only launched one episode but the hope is that with enough eyes on the content, Ragnarock can get the funding to create and film more episodes. According to Shannon Carman, the company’s communication and marketing lead, Ragnarock Studios started five years ago out of the idea of creating content locally that would also employ local people.

READ ALSO: Indigenous leader shares traditional knowledge of B.C. plants for Earth Day

“It’s really inspired by the fact that you can have three people with a couple thousand dollars worth of gear and they can produce high level things that would have taken a whole crew of Hollywood people before,” says Carman.

They’ve released another pilot called The Fishin’ Musician’s Kitchen, calling it a showcase of west coast culture at it’s core. The show features Steve Ling, drummer for The Roper Show and Red Seal chef, foraging for ingredients, cooking them and then having a jam session party after the feast.

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Hey yo! So here at @ragnarockstudios, we got a good few projects on the go... One of them being THE FISHIN’ MUSICIANS KITCHEN! This is a show with West Coast Culture at its core, with rock’n’roll host and Red Seal chef Steve Ling taking you out to forage and fish for fresh ingredients, cook ‘em into some beautiful food, and have some tunes and a party afterwards! Sounds like a lot of fun, right? Check out the first episode in our bio, and tell us what you think! 🎣 —————————————————————- #fishingbc #salishsea #cheanuhmarina #beautifulbritishcolumbia #pacificnorthwest #wildrenfrew #vanisle #gofishbc #bcfishing #bcisbeautiful #sharethecoast #instayyj #pedderbayrvresortmarina #vancouverisland #cascadia #getoutdoors #livelovecanada @vanislemarina #cascadianow #spiritbay #sookebc #getoutstayout #outdoorlife #videoproduction @vancouverislandfishclub #vancouverislandguide #victoria_buzz #explorevancouverisland #explorevictoria

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Mar says the videos are a way for people to begin to connect with nature and understand the world around them in a better way.

“One of the reasons nature doesn’t get the respect it deserves is people don’t understand it, they look outside and it’s a wall of green, but if you start to know these plants by name and their values and how they interact with other plants around them and what they bring to the ecosystem, you’re not just going to pull them up,” says Mar.

An added benefit, says Mar, is the nutritious value of food found in the wild.

READ ALSO: Saanich branches into ‘nature’ education

“You’re going to get superior food from the wild — as good as vegetables are from the store — if you look up the nutritional stats, wild food is always superior,” he says.

According to Carman the timeline of when more episodes will be released is largely dependent on funding but the team has a plethora of ideas story-boarded and ready to go. Mar says something he’d really like to see take shape is an episode focusing on basket making.

“Bringing someone one with a skill that I haven’t really had the opportunity to explore [would be exciting],” he says. “So having the opportunity to learn something new.”

Another component to the videos are the 360-degree, immersive tutorials that share valuable skill sets.

For more information on Ragnarock Studios or to watch the first episode of Sacred Knowledge visit ragnarockstudios.com.



kendra.crighton@blackpress.ca

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The first episode of Ragnarock Studio’s new webseries, Sacred Knowledge, features Jesse Roper and Pete MacDonald in the wild, learning how to create fire using only a bow-drill with the guidance of Taylor Mar. (Photo provided by Shannon Carman)