C4 Video Productions was established in 2006 by Chris Kadooka and Darren Park.
Chris was born and raised on the Big Island and has been fishing all of his life. From humble beginnings in Kona, catching bait with a handpole, to learning to cast a spinner, then on to bigger fish with ulua poles and conventional reels. Chris has learned how to make his own fishing poles, has made several of his own throw nets which he uses to catch bait, and has learned the habits and methods uses to catch almost every nearshore gamefish. Now his attention has turned from catching fish to teaching individuals how to be effective, responsible fishermen, and how to conserve the marine resource for the future generations.
At a very young age Darren would tag along with his dad on many fishing adventures on Oahu, whether it was from shore or their boat. As a child his dad would take him to catch everything from oama to tuna. Darren loves to fish, he was even caught by his mom fishing for her comets she had outside. Fishing was a wonderful family affair for Darren, he would always go with his mom and dad on their boat determined to catch a big fish for grandma, and he always did, before he succumbed to seasickness. Darren also loves and appreciates the beauty of exotic tropical fish. His house has a dedicated fish room that holds over 85 aquariums. Whether the fish is big or small, in a tank or the ocean, Darren just loves fish and everything about them.
In the summer of 2004 Chris got a digital video camera and began taking video footage of their fishing trips on the Big Island. Having fished all of his life on the Big Island he was comfortable being at the beach and was more interested in taping the footage of friends and relatives fighting fish and recording the joy and excitement that comes along with landing their prized catches. Through the 2004 and 2005 fishing season, Chris continued to video tape their fishing trips. At home, he learned how to edit and assemble the video footage on a computer and was able to produce several home movies on DVD. After each project was completed he eagerly showed the product to family and friends. The shows were well received by his friends and many commented that he should try and market the shows to other fishermen. He knew that the quality of the short home movies (each about 20 minutes long) was fine for family and friends, but was far from what would be acceptable for retail sale. He did realize though, that a locally produced DVD on fishing might fill a niche in the local market, because at the time there were no videos produced that showed ‘how to’ catch fish from the shoreline in Hawaii. At the time the only way fishermen could see fishing in Hawaii was to tune in to the weekly broadcast of Hawaii Goes Fishing on OC16. That show was formatted as a ‘come along with us and see where we went and see what we caught’ type of show. Viewers got to see the participants go out and catch fish, but due to the limitations of TV time, they never got to see the details of ‘how the fish were caught’, or ‘how to use the tackle or equipment’. In the fall of 2005 Chris consulted with his friend Doug Hamasaki, media specialist from the University of Hawaii, as to the prospects of producing a fishing video for retail sale. Doug reviewed Chris’s previous home movies and gave a wealth of candid constructive criticism on production content and technique. Since Chris had no formal training in video production, there was a lot to work on. Doug helped Chris a lot in the production process, giving pointers on camera work, sound acquisition, and editing style and technique. With time Chris’s video production quality increased.
At that point, Chris made the decision to go for it and try and make a show that covered the ‘how to’s’ of fishing in Hawaii. The title of the first show would be ‘Baitcasting Basics’ because baitcasting is the simplest form of fishing. With the help of his business partner Darren Park, they were able to recruit the talents of several key individuals in order to complete the show. Brian Kimata from Brian’s Fishing Supply to provide explanation and instruction on the use of the fishing gear; Naoki Hayashi from Gyotaku by Naoki to demonstrate how a gyotaku print is made from the fish that are caught on the show; Jason Arimoto who created five original musical compositions for the show; and Mark Nitta who provided equipment and technical services for video tapping the production.
After a year in production, the DVD was finally completed in the fall of 2006 and was distributed to local Hawaii fishing supply stores in October 2006. It features 45 minutes of instruction in the proper use of tackle and gear; 20 minutes of action where the guys catch goatfish, ulua, and barracuda; a Gyotaku section where three of the fish that were caught in the show are made into gyotaku prints; a tips and tricks sections that shows some less common info; and a short music section showcasing the original music compositions. The disk is currently being sold in stores throughout the state on the islands of Hawaii, Maui, Oahu, and Kauai.
Darren has been instrumental to the completion of the DVD. He brings to the company his sales and marketing skills from running his own online tropical fish business. He is also the main on-camera demonstration and fish catching talent on the video because he is such a diligent fishermen, changing his bait often and tending to his poles. Through his networking connections, the company was able to secure the music talent for the show. He has also helped with the pre-production, filming, post-production, marketing, and distribution of the final product.
To help fishermen enjoy the sport of fishing by showing them how to use the gear, tackle, and fishing techniques that are special to fishing in Hawaii, and to promote the
concepts of conservation and good stewardship of the marine environment.
What sets our company apart is the fact that we are first and foremost, fishermen. We are video producers second. As such we are able to identify what the fishermen’s areas of interest are, and we target our shows to present information and entertainment in those specific areas.
We are self funded, so what we produce and show is a reflection of the average fishermen, not an endorsement from any company or agency.
One of the core values of the company is conservation. With the constant increase in human population, there is also a great increase in fishing pressure at public fishing areas. Fish are scarcer and harder to catch.
While we hope to help fishermen to be able to catch more fish and enjoy the activity of fishing, we also want to promote the concept of conservation.
Through effort such as the State of Hawaii’s Division of Aquatic Resources Tag and Release Program, we are helping to promote the concept of tag and release. The company name itself is based on the four “C’s” related to conservation. Cast your line out, Catch a fish, Capture the moment on a camera, and Conserve the resource by releasing it if you aren’t going to eat it.
Another core value is the care of the land and marine environment. As fishermen, we realize what a great privilege we have to be able to fish from shore in Hawaii, and it is our responsibility to conduct ourselves with honor and respect for the land and ocean. We hope to promote values of good stewardship such as cleaning up the area after you fish. If others left some trash, take it out and leave the area cleaner than when you got there. Don’t toss things that will hurt the environment in the ocean and take from it only what you need. In other words treat the beach, ocean, and the resources within it with caring and respect. It is our hope that our videos will not only entertain and educate fishermen, but will also influence them to be good stewards of the land and that their actions will help to preserve and maintain the marine resources for the future generations.