John Stallone: A Filmmaker to Keep an Eye On
Daniel Xu 06.22.14
Anybody who has ever tried to film a hunt can attest to the fact that it’s harder than it looks. Filmmaker John Stallone said there’s no exception to that for him, although he has a bit of experience with a camera by now.
“Something always goes wrong,” he told me, chuckling. “On one occasion, an elk hunt in Arizona last year, the battery on our camera died and the GoPro we had wasn’t working right. We ended up filming on an iPhone.”
John has been hunting more or less since the age of five, and he first took up the bow and arrow at 13. His obsession with the sport saw him registering a coveted whitetail slam and harvesting 10 of the 29 recognized big game species in North America. John has hunted deer across 15 different states, but he’s always looking for another opportunity. These days, however, John’s hunts are a little less private. He currently hosts The Hunting Channel’s Tip of the Week and Huntech’s Days in The Wild. John is also on pro-staff for Huntech, Tru-Fire, Swhacker broadheads, and Mathews.
“I try to add an education aspect to my shows,” he said. “I try to show people how and why we do what we do.”
One recent episode saw John harvesting a nice-sized Coues buck in Arizona, and fans loved it enough to nominate it for inclusion in the upcoming Zac Griffith film expo. You can see it below:
John said one of the more important aspects of filming is to present hunting with honesty. He thinks that hunting is an experience that connects him closer to the land and the creatures that inhabit it, as well as allowing him time for self-discovery. His family won’t starve without venison and that he isn’t “thrilled” by the kill, but he’s in it for the total experience.
“I don’t consider myself a trophy hunter, I would say I’m into hunting for the experience of it all,” he mulled.
The Arizona trip was especially memorable because he had friends and family along as well.
“It made it that much better because you can share it with family. When it’s just me and my camera I miss the camaraderie that you have with other people. That’s why you started hunting, you know?”
