Our Threatened & Endangered Species: Allegheny Woodrats, 66min., USA
Directed by Tracy Graziano
Our Threatened & Endangered Species: Allegheny Woodrat follows the Pennsylvania Game Commission and partners as they fight to save one of the state’s most elusive mammals. Once common across the Appalachian Mountains, the Allegheny woodrat has declined for decades due to habitat loss, disease, and the disappearance of its ancient ally—the American chestnut tree.

Get to know the filmmaker:

1. What motivated you to make this film?

Allegheny Woodrats is Episode II in a series on Threatened &
Endangered Species. These films aim to educate folks on the challenges
surrounding species conservation, and what people can do to get
involved and actions they can take at home to help all wildlife.
Wildlife conservation and management is complex, involving hard work,
creativity, tenacity and human politics. If we tell the story well, we
can ensure all of our native species persist into the future-because
people will not protect what they don't understand and they certainly
won't protect what they don't know.

The efforts surrounding saving the Allegheny woodrat are complex and
involve partnerships across state lines, with varying agencies,
non-profits, institutions and universities. There are over 15 groups
involved in seeing that this species persists into the future. But the
challenges the species' face is multi-faceted: from the effective
extinction of the American chestnut, to habitat fragmentation that
cascades into genetic isolation, inbreeding and population loss, and
finally the increasing raccoon population as a result of habitat
fragmentation. To save a species, we must address all of the
challenges. The effort, creative thinking and dedication to our
wildlife fills me with hope. Despite all the things going wrong with
conservation on a bigger scale, these stories are so impactful and
clearly state that we can and will affect change if we just act even
in small ways.

I am driven to make a difference with the films I produce. Documentary
film is a powerful tool that helps change hearts and minds-even for
species or issues for which are foreign to many people. This species
is a particular challenge because of the stigma in its name: it isn't
'just a rat' and I hope this piece sheds some light on the importance
of all wildlife, despite the name we have assigned them.

2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you
to make this film?

I started documenting field work with woodrats-actually
translocations-in August of 2020. So, shooting took place over five
years with the bulk of it taking place in 2024. I began editing full
time in late summer 2024, and tried to do re-shoots and all the
interviews in early 2025. Altogether the editing process took 18 solid
months.

I am one person and do all of the things: from research to writing,
shooting and editing, it's a monumental task of dedication.

3. How would you describe your film in two words!?

Woodrat quest.

4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?

The biggest obstacle in completing the film took place during each
phase of production: the landscape itself is challenging to haul film
equipment into. Bouldering and cameras don't mix very well. Luckily,
our biologists typically have an entourage of folks who eagerly tag
along to help with trapping efforts-who doesn't want to see a
threatened species? I was so grateful to have lots of helping
hands-but usually this just means taking in *all* of the equipment I
could ever need in a day rather than being selective and leaving
pieces behind. I am a one-woman band otherwise: shooting with multiple
cameras, as well as taking still photographs all at the same time.

Pre-production and post-production are often smashed together with
these projects because we simply aren't given enough time to write a
full-blown script in advance. I request scientific papers and
pertinent background literature from the biologist and create a 'wish
list' from that-much of which is unlikely to capture. So much of what
I shoot is literally trying to document what is in front of me in
every way that I can imagine in order to gather enough coverage for
the editing process. And as with all documentary, there are whole
events that take place that are not part of any plan and I'm just
along for the ride scrambling to understand what I am witnessing and
to record it all. It's very exciting yet scary at the same time. It's
a lot of pressure to shoot in such a way as to tell a story, bring the
audience along on the adventure, and also have the viewer become
invested in the subject to the level where they actually care about
the species in the end.

5. There are 5 stages of the filmmaking process: Development.
Pre-Production. Production. Post-Production. Distribution. What is
your favorite stage of the filmmaking process?

I love shooting. One of my undergrad degrees is cinematography-I just
love it. My younger self wanted to only shoot and be in the field 100%
of the time. However, if all you do is shoot, the footage sits there
and accomplishes nothing. I've really started to appreciate the
post-production process more and more the further I've gotten into my
career. When I was younger, I would dread sitting in the editing bay
and it would take a force of nature to be disciplined enough to sit
day after day. But I enjoy organizing the mountain of footage that
results from all the time in the field, and coming up with creative
ways to fill the holes in the story as well as imagining the best ways
to communicate the science in each of these projects. On more than one
occasion, epiphanies happen in the editing room-the juxtaposition of
certain shots or events spark creative ways of problem solving and of
having new eyes on the subject. I'm always learning and this film was
no exception; I just generally love learning natural history
information, science, and then everything that surrounds the tech in
the documentary film industry.

Getting footage of a nocturnal threatened species certainly posed its
own challenges, and there are behaviors I felt were critical to
getting the audience to care about the species. Things like caching
odd items, and pruning acorns and seeds from trees are behaviors that
would be impossible to get in the wild. Having a 'pet woodrat' to act
these things out is out of the question, so I turned to animation to
illustrate these behaviors. During the literature review process, I
read that the species itself has an interesting tie to our state. The
very first Allegheny woodrat specimen -what's called the holotype--
was collected in a cave not far from Harrisburg. Our budget is
basically my pay, so fancy historical reenactments are just out of the
question-but animation brought that moment to life and helps define
the species for the viewer. From there it was a natural extension to
also animate a couple of key behaviors for the sake of the story and
so that the audience can empathize with the subject.

6. When did you realize that you wanted to make films?

I was a little late to the party with filmmaking. As an undergrad, I
started out as a painting major. I had a very strong background in art
as a young person, but once I got to university I was bored,
frustrated, and concerned about even being able to make a living off
of my art. So, I switched to biology-one of my other life passions. I
found it extremely challenging, but began to miss the outlet that only
art could provide. So, I muddled around a bit and started taking some
photography courses. I vividly remember doing critique in photo class
and the professor asking me in front of everyone if I had ever
considered filmmaking-because my series of photos up on the board
always seemed to tell a story. That's what finally made it click for
me: I could put my passion for wildlife and ecology together with
telling stories on film. So, there I was, a senior in undergrad,
declaring a dual major in biology and cinematography. From there, I
entered my undergrad film in the International Wildlife Film Festival
in Missoula, Montana. I was invited to take a one-week course on
Wildlife Filmmaking with Jeffery Boswall from the BBC, and during that
week I learned about a graduate program in development at Montana
State University. A year later, I was part of the very first class in
Science & Natural History Filmmaking. It was a dream.

In looking back as a kid, I grew up in a place that was developed into
housing over the course of my youth. The forests and fields that were
my playground were completely paved over by the time I was in high
school. This really affected me deeply and I suppose played a big part
in what would eventually become my career.

7. What film have you seen the most times in your life?

Probably Watership Down. I watched that over and over again as a kid.
Every time we went to the grocery store I would look to see if the VHS
tape was on the shelf and available for rental. If it was there, we
would take it home. I would watch it, rewind it, and watch it again.
It probably wasn't healthy. Haha.

8. In a perfect world: Who would you like to work with/collaborate
with
on a film?

I would love to collaborate with National Geographic, the BBC, or PBS
Nature or Nova on some science wildlife documentary films. I know that
my science literacy and filmmaking skill set combine to tell unique
stories. I do hope that even this film could be considered for
broadcast. More people need to see the hard working folks behind
species conservation, the passion they exude, and the persistence that
it takes to save our native wildlife.

9. You submitted to the festival via FilmFreeway. How has your
experiences been working on the festival platform site?

The submission process is simple and straightforward. Having
everything organized and easily searchable is a huge benefit for my
limited time in promoting my work. Also, the standard project page to
fill out is immensely helpful and ensures that festivals get what they
need to understand the film, and to hopefully promote it.

10. What is your favorite meal?

Breakfast. If I eat nothing else in a day it has to be breakfast.

11. What is next for you? A new film?

The next episode in the series "Our Threatened & Endangered Species"
is on the return of the piping plover as a nesting species in the
state of Pennsylvania. After more than 50 years of absence, this
iconic shorebird has returned to the only suitable habitat in the
state and successfully nested. This series is designed to have
educational curricula to go with them to schools, universities, and
sister agencies. Those accompanying materials are being written now by
our very talented and dedicated staff. I am so grateful for the life
that these films will have in shaping change.