BC Parks Foundation

Appreciating a BC Parks Foundation Champion

BC Parks Foundation supporters span the globe, but few travel the globe as extensively as James Frystak. James is a natural history and wildlife cinematographer. He’s traveled to Patagonia, India, Nepal, Japan and his favourite place in the world – the Canadian Arctic. 

“I love the solitude and the sense of emptiness,” says James. “The wildlife is spectacular – the polar bears and wolves. They don’t encounter humans often and they seem much more curious.”

James was a cinematographer for the award-winning series “Island of the Sea Wolves”, and it was at a panel of the screening of the series for the BC Parks Foundation that he knew he wanted to get involved. 

“When people experience nature, they fall in love with it.  When they fall in love with it, they want to help take care of it. The BC Parks Foundation helps people fall in love and care for nature, and I wanted to help the Foundation by sharing some of the video and stories I’ve collected of the amazing, natural places I’ve visited.” 

James is also contributing to important research, sometimes by accident. “I was up on Mount Washington filming the endangered Vancouver Island marmots. One day, I saw a marmot with a blue moustache. I asked the scientists if the marmots eat the wild berries as part of their diet. They said they’d never documented that behaviour before so I showed them footage of the marmots eating berries. It’s rewarding when you can surprise the researchers with your footage.” 

For James, nature is his happy place, whether it’s in the remote Arctic, filming marmots on Vancouver Island, or sitting on his balcony with his potted plants. “I’m a champion of nature, and that means I’m a champion of the BC Parks Foundation. Nature is everywhere, you don’t have to travel far. It’s so important to enjoy it and help care for it.”

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