Award Winning Filmmaker Kicks Off New Film Project About Sea Turtle Conservation In The Topsail Area

    JACKSONVILLE, NC, December 06, 2017 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Clark DeHart, a former environmental education TV host and filmmaker, embarks on a new wildlife documentary about sea turtles on the southeast coast. A Virginia native, DeHart's experience with sea turtle conservation started in North Carolina while visiting The Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center.

His new film project returns to The Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center to highlight the conservation legacy of its founder, Jean Beasley, a lifelong resident of Topsail Island. Beasley began a sea turtle hospital on Topsail Beach over 20 years ago, along with the development of educational programs and volunteer beach patrol. The Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center is a world-class sea turtle rehabilitation hospital. Dozens of sea turtles, including some of the most endangered species of sea turtle are admitted to the center each year. Specialized medical diagnosis and treatments are performed on site.

Sadly, many of the turtles that pass through The Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center are there because of human-caused injuries and illnesses. It is not uncommon for a sea turtle to be missing a flipper from net entanglements, or have buoyancy problems due to the ingestion of plastic bags and fishing hooks. The lucky ones are released back to the ocean after weeks or months of intense care.

DeHart's film project focuses on two sea turtle hospitals. Both these turtle hospitals were founded by women who started grassroots initiatives, and are still saving sea turtles today. Beasley dedicates every day to helping sea turtles, and is known endearingly in the community as "the turtle lady."

The film will take the viewer on a turtle's journey that includes medical diagnosis, rehabilitation treatment, and ultimately a joyous release back into the wild. It will focus on the incredible care these turtles receive as hospital volunteers conduct daily activities. This film will honor these women as trailblazers, emphasize their conservation initiatives, and acknowledge their public education success. As we look towards the future for sustainability in these programs and the survival of these sea turtle species. DeHart wants to celebrate the vision of these wildlife heroes, and the communities that support them.

DeHart is volunteering his time and expertise for the documentary planned for distribution at conservation film festivals and Amazon's streaming service. Currently, his film project is not fully funded. He's started a Kickstarter crowd funding campaign to bring this project to life. You can learn more about his film project and how you can participate at http://www.bit.ly/savingseaturtles

# # #