Islander Roo Smith is using video to share his love of Orcas Island.

Inspired by a poem he wrote, Smith made a 3-minute compilation of video filmed across the island to post on YouTube.

“My inspiration for the video stems from my amazing upbringing on Orcas Island,” Smith said. “I always try to explain the magic of Orcas to people and I find that words often fall short.”

While visiting the island over the summer between school and starting a videography business, Smith said he realized it was his chance to capture what makes the island special.

“I wrote this spoken word poem, ‘When I Say I’m an Islander,’ a few years ago when I was, again, trying to explain my identity as an island kid to my new communities that I was finding all over the world,” he said. “It seemed only fitting to try to make a video that both the local community and visitors to the island could cherish from that spoken word piece.”

Smith is taking a year off from college to work on his business, Castlehouse Videography, full-time. He will be traveling to Costa Rica, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Norway and Morocco to film over the next few months. He said he’s excited to learn, grow and explore his abilities. Unsure of where career may take him, Smith said he’s happy to be making films like “When I say I’m an Islander” and hopes it brings a smile to people’s faces.

“This video is for the community,” Smith said. “It’s for those amazing people who showed me, for 18 years, how special of a place Orcas Island can be.”

For more information about Smith’s work, visit https://www.castlehousevideography.com/ or check out his YouTube page at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6W3UN3as51vArhdm6qCCLg.