Carly Bodmer wanted to tell the larger-than-life tale of the Barefoot Bandit.
She surprised herself and wound up telling a more-grounded story of Colton Harris-Moore, the boy who plastered his bedroom wall with pictures of airplanes, stole more than a million dollars in cash and valuables, and taught himself to fly.
Bodmer didn’t know much about Harris-Moore four years ago, just that the Washington teen had captured international attention with his 27-month crime spree. The youth committed a string of residential and commercial burglaries, cruised from state to state in stolen cars and broke into hangars to steal and fly airplanes, several of which he crash-landed.
He committed some of the crimes barefoot, earning his famous nickname. Authorities caught him in the Bahamas in 2010.
Bodmer’s research took her from the tropical island where the story ended to Camano Island where it began. As she traced the crimes across nine states and three countries, she spoke with family members, friends, victims and investigators.
“You don’t come across something like this every day,” Bodmer said. “I saw somebody that I kind of identified with. Or maybe related to, is a better way to say it. I think a lot of people relate to that childhood rebellion.”
Bodmer’s 70-minute film, “The Barefoot Bandit Documentary,” is an independent effort that took her nearly four years to complete. The 32-year-old has worked in movies as a post-production sound editor for about a decade and wanted to do a personal creative project. She went to the Bahamas in 2010, shortly after Harris-Moore was caught, and started filming. She wasn’t sure at the time if it would turn into anything, but after interviewing a security guard who helped nab the Barefoot Bandit, Bodmer was hooked.
The guard’s name was Kenny. He had a friendly personality and a story to tell.
“If I had to be caught by anybody after a lifetime on the run, I’d want Kenny to catch me,” Bodmer said with a laugh. “He’s just the nicest guy.”
She was pleasantly surprised by how kind people were when she interviewed them for the film. Even victims who lost money, tools, cameras, cars, boats and airplanes to the Barefoot Bandit told her they wished the best for Harris- Moore, who is serving a seven-year prison sentence. He earned his GED in prison and is working with a mentor from Boeing, according to Bodmer’s research.
Pam Kohler, Harris-Moore’s mother, was the person Bodmer worried most about interviewing. Kohler is known by her neighbors as “Shotgun Pam” and has threatened to shoot reporters and authorities who come to her property.
Bodmer met Kohler at a grocery store near Kohler’s home. It was right after Harris-Moore was sentenced. “She just said, ‘My boy’s in the paper.’ ”
The article said Harris-Moore was neglected and abused as a child and saw continuous alcohol and drug abuse at home.
Kohler was upset and defiant, and she wanted to talk to someone. She told Bodmer stories about her son and showed the film crew pictures he had drawn years ago. There were sketches of planes, boats and an island labeled “the tropical treatment.” Bodmer used the pictures to create animations for the film.
“He drew them as a kid, but they kind of predict the future,” Bodmer said. “The tropical-treatment one is really telling.”
She couldn’t talk to Harris-Moore for the documentary because of his plea agreement, which sold his version of the story to 20th Century Fox for $1.3 million. Harris-Moore won’t get the money if the studio produces a film. Instead, it’s meant as restitution for the people he burglarized.
Though he wasn’t interviewed, Harris-Moore is in the film through his pictures and stories, Bodmer said.
“The one thing the film accomplishes with Colton’s voice is that sense of escapism through flight,” she said. “That’s where Colton’s voice is.”
Her film is the second to come out this year about the Barefoot Bandit. “Fly Colt Fly: Legend of the Barefoot Bandit” premiered at a Toronto film festival in February. It was created by Canadian filmmakers Andrew and Adam Gray and uses a mix of interviews and animation to explore Harris-Moore’s story and the mythical, folk-hero status of the Barefoot Bandit.
“I could have told that larger-than-life story, but it doesn’t really seem real,” Bodmer said. “At the same time, there’s nothing that can take away from the fantastic nature of this story. I can’t imagine going to an airport and taking off with an airplane like that. Even if I wanted to steal an airplane, I would have no idea how.”
Bodmer hopes people who watch the film can relate to Harris-Moore as well as his family and victims. The ending of the film, she said, “is a real zinger.”
“Of course I’m rooting for Colton,” Bodmer said. “He’s a nonviolent criminal. I think Colton kind of broke the cycle. He’s not violent, he doesn’t drink or smoke. All he did was hope for a better life. And you can’t help but root for someone like that.”
Kari Bray: kbray @heraldnet.com; 425-339-3439.
Screenings
“The Barefoot Bandit Documentary” is scheduled for a Washington premiere at the Friday Harbor Film Festival Nov. 7-9. Another screening of the film is set for 7 p.m. Nov. 12 in Stanwood, and two more showings are scheduled in the Everett Historic Theatre at 7 p.m. Dec. 1-2. The film will also play in Mount Vernon, Anacortes, Olympia, Portland and Los Angeles this winter.
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