"A River Runs Through It" 

 

The Movie That Changed Fly Fishing…

An Evening with Tom Skerritt and Friends.

 

 

Tuesday March 31, 2026 at 6:15pm

at the Lobero Theatre, Santa Barbara

 

 

Since its release more than 30 years ago, no film has impacted fly-fishing and the rivers and streams essential to the sport more than Robert Redford's cinematic adaption of Norman Maclean's "A River Runs Through it".

 

The Santa Barbara Flyfishers will host a conversation to explore the direct and indirect impacts this landmark film has had on our precious waters and rivers and the people that fish them.

 

Hear from a diverse set of voices that representing the arts, conservation, fly-fishing, and indigenous perspectives.

 

 

Panelists scheduled to appear include:

Chris Wood, Moderator: President & CEO of Trout Unlimited.

 

 

Tom Skerrit: Actor. Conservationist. River advocate.

Eric Ladd: American Rivers Board. Chairman, Outlaw Partners.

John Maclean: Journalist and author, son of author Norman Mclean.

Kayeloni Scott: Tribal member and Nez Perce descendant.

 

 

The panel will be followed by one-time screening of the legendary movie. 

 

 

"A River Runs Through It" elevated flyfishing from a quiet, regional pastime to a national and international movement. It reshaped the business, aesthetic and emotional identity of the sport, bringing in new people, new money and new meaning.

 

 

As Norman Maclean wrote…"Eventually, all things merge into one, and a river runs through it."