Alison’s Adventures:
INCANtations
courtesy Alison Teal
A quick look at the life of Alison Teal Blehert-Koehn is humbling. You probably haven’t heard her name, but if you’ve perused a Patagonia catalog, seen a Teva ad campaign, or picked up National Geographic, you may have seen her. Alison’s adventure-photographer parents started snapping photos of her in the hands of Indian pilgrims and beneath elephants when she was just 2 months old. Now a 24-year-old filmmaker, Teal Blehert-Koehn turns the camera around.
For INCANtations—premiering at Patagonia’s Wild and Scenic Film Festival Jan. 15-17, 2010—Alison writes, directs, shoots, and narrates a trip with her parents into the Peruvian Andes. Funny cultural misunderstandings combine with a spirited sense of adventure and ironic, sometimes sarcastic interpretations of cultural differences: soccer games, yoga demos, and traditional Incan healing ceremonies. Alison’s kid-friendly voice and sense of humor lend whimsy to the 35-minute travelogue, part of a series about shamans around the world, which will have you laughing about her eccentricities and those of her parents, hosts, and guides. It’ll also inspire you to plan your own adventure. www.alisonteal.com
