A journey of survival: Auburn filmmaker showcases beauty of American River in new thriller

All the American River and surrounding area had to do was look beautiful for Zac Hersh's latest movie, "Redemption River." No makeup needed. But the river access, permits, stunts and funding – that was the tough part to film this thriller. And it all happened. Redemption River will be released exclusively on the Angel Studios platform on Thursday, Oct. 15, having already garnered eight awards – four at the Purpose Film Festival, three at the SacTown Film Festival and one at the International Christian Film Festival. Co-written and directed by Hersh and James Rich, Hersh describes the movie as a "faith and survivor narrative." After losing a child at birth, Margo and Josh (Emma Elle and Oscar Rudecindo) go on a rafting trip in an attempt to reconnect, but an accident leaves them stranded on a beach. "This accident forces them to confront everything they've been going through. The beach is a metaphor for where they are in life," Hersh told the Auburn Journal in a recent interview. "It's a journey of spiritual healing and survival at the same time." "It's a film about disconnecting to reconnect," said producer Mike Villucci, who called the Auburn Journal on Wednesday from New York. He and Hersh met through actor Michael Bonini, who plays Spencer in the movie. Hersh attended Skyridge Elementary and EV Cain schools in Auburn and graduated from Placer High School. After attending the Producers Program at the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television, Hersh returned to Auburn. With "Them" (2015), "Follower" (2022) and the sequel "Followers" (2024, filmed in Auburn) under his belt, he decided it was time to write a story highlighting the Auburn area's beauty. "I grew up spending a lot of time down at the river," Hersh said. "I always wanted to do a survival story set down there. One minute you're in town, the next in uncharted territory." Hersh, however, couldn't just hike down to Ruck-a-Chucky with a cast and camera crew – numbering "40-ish" on some days, he said – and blurt out, "LIGHTS! CAMERA! ACTION!" "When the script was done – and this was like an insane pipe dream – you write it and, 'How am I actually going to flip a raft and make it look real, use these locations, get a film crew down there?' " Hersh said. The answer was Juli Johnston and the Placer Lake Tahoe Film Office, who he credited as being "a huge resource." "The movie wouldn't have happened without her and the office," Hersh said. "She introduced us to probably 90 percent of the locations for the movie and helped us get all the permits." Johnston also introduced Hersh and Rich to Emmy Award-winning brothers Scott and Dustin Lindgren. Scott, an extreme kayaking legend, and Dustin, an extreme skier, choreographed the rafting scenes at Tunnel Chute. Hersh said they used mostly "river raft guys" as stunt doubles. "They had to hit that wall and flip the raft like six times. That's pretty nerve-racking," Hersh said. "It would have been impossible without them and all the people they brought; the best water safety people." He said Johnston also helped Hersh secure "traditionally not easy permits to get," such as performing stunts in the river (requiring 20 cameras). "She put us in touch with the park office and got us a weeklong permit at Mineral Bar, filmed when (Margo and Josh) were stranded on the beach. It's been a three-year project." Speaking of Ruck-a-Chucky, Tunnel Chute and the American River, that's what viewers will hear when they watch the movie. "A lot of movies will shy away from naming locations, but this one, we call it all what it is," Hersh said. The story touched Loomis resident Larry Gury. It has been more than 40 years since he and wife Terri lost a baby at 8 months of age, so when Gury read the script, "I'm like wow, this is something a lot of people don't understand, especially the mother, what they go through. My faith and belief, I just thought … it's a good message to get out." Gury, co-founder of California Family Fitness (now In-Shape Family Fitness), funded the movie and took his grandkids to the river during filming. "They really got a kick out of it," he said, adding they also got a kick out of seeing their names in the movie credits at the SacTown Film Festival. "He's been an incredible partner to me," Hersh said of Gury. "One of the main bonding things we have is being from the same area and wanting to highlight it and share its beauty." Hersh said his goal three years ago was to work with Angel Studios, one of the top distribution companies in the world. "You have to go through a voting process to get a movie with them," he said. "We went over it like 15 times before the movie finally made it through. We went through our own survival journey."