Do you remember the Yule Log program that WPIX broadcast at Christmastime from 1966 to 1989? Its amusing history is well documented on Wikipedia , which reveals the seemingly ever-crackling log in a fireplace was just a loop of 17 seconds that was later re-filmed and expanded to six minutes.

This Thanksgiving Day, WLIW21 is proud to premiere COLD HUDSON a seven-hour slow film. Beginning at 11am on November 23, 2017, COLD HUDSON follows the US Coast Guard Cutter Sturgeon Bay on a seven-hour journey up the Hudson River, starting at West Point, traveling north on the river to Catskill, then back south to Rhinecliff, NY. The straight-line distance of this journey is approximately 79 miles. The film is shot from the perspective of the captain and crew on the bow, and one static shot shows the real time progression of the ship as it cuts through cold waters. The USCGC Sturgeon Bay, a 140-foot Bay Class Cutter stationed at Governors Island, is used for breaking ice and rescuing ships caught in the frozen landscape that forms on the river each winter.

Watch on-air, or here online, on the WLIW21 Specials page.

COLD HUDSON is a communal ambient viewing experience driven by immersive sound and cinematic landscapes. It is a slower alternative to ad driven, competitive television. Director Billy Wirasnik says this type of film “let’s you do other things; it frees up your eyes and lets you make or have a conversation. So much of what people watch is just there to consume your attention and swallow you up. My films are an alternative to that structure.”

Path on the Hudson River

The map below marks the USCGC Sturgeon Bay’s starting point in green (West Point), the end point in red (Rhinecliff) and places of interest along the way, including Walkway Over the Hudson and the Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site.

About the Director

Billy Wirasnik is a filmmaker and sound designer for documentary films & podcasts. His profound connection to the Hudson River began during his childhood growing up in Kingston, NY, a small city situated on the Hudson about 100 miles north of New York City. His production company, Slo, produces and promotes minimal, real-time films that employ natural aural aesthetics and stunning yet honest visuals to elevate the seemingly mundane. He has directed several short narrative films, and is a sound designer for documentary and commercial films. He was an early participant of interactive documentaries, working on story development and sound for Good Luck Soup and the Emmy nominated and Peabody award winning HOLLOW. He currently sound designs the podcast, EF Outbound. COLD HUDSON is his directorial debut and most ambitious film project to date.

Learn more about the production company Slo on its official site.