Yukon Resurrection, an F3T featured film, follows the story of the LaFave family deep in Canada’s Yukon territory. With four generations of experience owning and operating lodges deep in some of the most remote wildernesses, this film has everything anglers want. Untouched rivers and lakes, eager fish, and the diversity to target new species every day. When Midcurrent’s Sam Lungren heard about this fishery, he knew it was the perfect place for a film. Then, tragedy struck in 2022 when a fire burned down the lodge. The LaFaves were faced with a choice: to rebuild or to give up the fishing lodge business.
We had the chance to sit down with Lungren to discuss what went into making this film, from both the technical and human viewpoints.
Flylords: A lot of anglers think of Canada, particularly the Yukon, in terms of salmon and rainbow trout. What made you want to do a film focusing on lake trout, pike, and inconnu?
Sam Lungren: Lake trout grow larger than any other trout, often even bigger than king salmon. They’re an incredibly beautiful and aggressive sportfish, yet haven’t been featured in many major films. Everyone knows that pike are awesome, but relatively few anglers have even heard of inconnu. They’re also called sheefish or “Arctic tarpon” and reside only in rivers draining into the Arctic Ocean. Anglers have caught specimens weighing more than 50 pounds.
Flylords: The film centers around the LaFave family. Can you tell us more about discovering this story and when you knew you had to make a film on it?
Lungren: My colleague Gil Greenberg went to Inconnu Lodge as a kid and initially suggested we go up there to try to break the fly tackle world record for lake trout. When I spoke to Warren and Shawn LaFave and learned about their family’s 94-year history in the fishing lodge business, as well as the devastating fire in 2022, I knew we had a great human story on our hands. Huge fish were just the cherry on top.
Flylords: What went into capturing some of the epic drone eats we see in the film?
Lungren: Dan Favato was the cinematographer on this film and quickly visualized a lot of God-view imagery into the clear water. We would first locate fish or likely spots, then send up the drone to track the fly, working in close coordination between the pilot and angler. These lake trout, bull trout, pike, and inconnu almost never see angling pressure, so they played along with us beautifully.
Flylords: Yukon Resurrection captures a wide range of diversity in terms of the species you targeted. What’s it like fishing and filming in such a unique fishery?
Lungren: Inconnu Lodge operates on 18 lakes flowing into three different drainages within the Yukon Territory. Every watershed we fished offered new angling challenges and opportunities. We simply went fishing every day with open minds and tried to capture the experience from every angle we saw.
Flylords: The film focuses a lot on inconnu fishing, a species that does not get a lot of screen time. What challenges does catching an inconnu on the fly present?
Lungren: Inconnu is a French word meaning “unknown.” There’s very little scientific information about these fish. They’re a member of the whitefish family but look more like a cross between a tarpon and a bonefish. The world record is 53 pounds. Biologists believe they migrate hundreds of miles throughout Alaska and Canada, even into the ocean, following salmon runs. The two we caught were holding in deep water, requiring heavy flies and full-sink fly lines. That was a major bucket-list achievement for me, after learning of these fish from my uncle after a moose hunt he went on more than 30 years ago.
Flylords: Halfway through the film, we see tragedy strike when the original lodge caught fire, before the LaFave family ultimately rebuilds it. Talk us through incorporating this into the film.
Lungren: Four generations of the LaFave Family have owned and operated four lodges over the last century. Warren and his father built Inconnu in 1986. It burned down in an electrical fire caused by a pine marten in 2022. That’s the central tension of the narrative: whether they would rebuild or move on to more lucrative and predictable work. There are no roads within 50 miles of the lodge, so every board, bag of concrete, light fixture, and refrigerator had to be flown in on the side of a DeHavilland Beaver floatplane. Once you get to know the LaFaves, however, you realize that was never really a question at all.
Flylords: What was your favorite shot or sequence captured in this film?
Lungren: One of the more southern lakes we fished is known to hold bull trout in the outlet. I set up my AllRod AllFly system in the 10’6 Spey configuration and waded out above the first riffle. Dan sent up the drone and recorded a big bully smashing my orange streamer as it swung across. That’s always been one of my favorite species, and it was so satisfying to capture it in that manner.
Flylords: What challenges did you face in bringing this film to life, especially being in such a remote location?
Lungren: The weather is unpredictable in the mountains of northwestern Canada, and we certainly had a few tenuous moments. A big lightning storm showed up out of nowhere when we were filming at the outflow of the home lake, forcing us to hunker under some trees until a break in the weather gave us a window to run back to the lodge, praying we didn’t get hit by a lightning bolt in open water. Mosquitos are a fact of life, and you always need to keep an eye out for grizzly bears and moose. All said, though, we had a wonderful trip and no major disasters.
Flylords: Who are some of the people who made this film possible? Any ‘Thank you’s” or dedications you want to make?
Lungren: Cameraman Dan Favato deserves so much credit for his beautiful cinematography that captured the essence of that place and those people. Executive Producer Gil Greenberg surfaced the story, caught a lot of great fish, and provided that family connection to the LaFaves. Max Benz provided a final edit that really made the film and narrative pop. Nick Reygaert shared great feedback and insight. Of course, we couldn’t have done it without Warren, Shawn, Taylor, and Anita LaFave, as well as our guides Emmett Collens and Jared Marsh, and the rest of the lodge staff. A huge thank-you to every one of them, as well as to my wonderful wife, Leah, who gave me encouragement and support at every turn throughout this project.
Watch the Film
The 2026 Fly Fishing Film Tour is on the road, bringing another exciting lineup of captivating stories from the water to the big screen. If you want to watch the films in this year’s Behind the Lens series, check out the F3T Tour Schedule and purchase tickets for a show near you!
