Caught by the Roots

In the heart of the Pacific Northwest, Caught by the Roots begins with MATT PATTERSON, a marine corp racing down an Oregon highway in his pickup truck, late for a crucial custody hearing. A frantic phone call with his lawyer reveals his last chance to fight for the custody of his children. As panic rises, a devastating crash sends his truck flipping off the highway, and everything goes black. Then months later, Matt, now a military veteran and an amputee grappling with trauma, guilt, and the fragile threads of fatherhood. Hoping to reconnect with his children, Matt embarks on a weekend hike along Portland’s Eagle Creek Trail with his energetic son ADAM, his charming daughter HANNAH, and his ex-wife CLAIRE, who is three months pregnant and deeply skeptical of Matt, convinced his disability and poor judgment will put the kids in danger. Her simmering resentment toward Matt, rooted in blame and unresolved bitterness, casts a long shadow over the trip. At the trailhead, Matt takes an old, lesser known Native route instead of the main path. There, they encounter SANI, a wise Native American elder, who offers them a silent, knowing blessing before they begin their journey. But nature has its own plans. As the family rest on a cliffside path, and steps up to move forward, a sudden tug from Adam’s backpack sends the boy stumbling backward, silent and swift. He vanishes over the cliff’s edge, not falling to the forest below, but caught midway, suspended by the gnarled roots of an ancient tree clutching the rock face. As tensions rise, Claire’s long-buried resentments erupt, were Matt reveals the weight he carries, and the wilderness strips each character bare. With the help of PATEL, a mute, Sani’s loyal assistant, and XOLO, a retired K9 with unshakable loyalty, Matt takes the leap not only to rescue Adam but to redeem himself. Matt battles nature and a bear that threatens their lives, revealing a transformation from broken veteran to heroic father. In the quiet aftermath, Matt, once defined by what he lost, proves that being a father isn’t about being whole, but being there. Caught by the Roots is a grounded survival thriller interwoven with emotional and spiritual depth, a story of endurance, redemption, and the raw strength of presence in the face of impossible odds.