Call of the Wild: Minnesotan’s Journey to Conservation Chronicled in Toyota-Sponsored Film

Posted on: Mar 21, 2023

POMA member Matt Addington recently completed a film inspired by Keng’s introduction at the 2021 POMA conference. "Six years ago, Keng Yang didn’t give much thought to the outdoors, even though his father had long used hunting as a source of food in his native Laos and now rural Minnesota.  This all changed when Keng acquired a hunting dog, named Kaiya, bridging the generational divide between a father and his American-born son, and forging a newfound appreciation for the natural world. Keng’s tale has been chronicled in a 16-minute short film, “Kaiya,” which recently launched publicly and virally through Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever, a non-profit wildlife habitat conservation organization based in Saint Paul.  The film was directed by fellow Minnesotan Matt Addington, an award-winning photographer, videographer and storyteller in the outdoor realm. Addington met Keng in 2021 at the Professional Outdoor Media Association‘s (POMA) national conference.  Keng was being hosted by POMA and Toyota as a “Toyota Let’s Go Places” scholarship recipient, acknowledging his potential in the outdoor industry." To read the full press release, follow this link. To view the film, “Kaiya,” visit www.pheasantsforever.org/KAIYA Originally published March 16, 2023 by Toyota.