Films that Focus on the Animal Kingdom
The International Elephant Film Festival is a unique opportunity to watch short and feature films that focus on the animal kingdom. Elephants are among the smartest animals on Earth, second only to chimpanzees and dolphins. These animals communicate with each other through infrasound calls, extremely low frequencies inaudible to humans. Elephants also collectively look after struggling babies. Elephants also have mourning rituals that are related to the joy of birth. These elephants weep during death.
Anthology
The International Elephant Film Festival has released an anthology of short films documenting the elephants of Amboseli National Park. Films from this anthology explore how the researchers changed the way people viewed wild African elephants. The films are all very different, but many share the same themes. These films explore the relationship between elephants and people, and the role of the environment in the conservation of these creatures.
The IEFF has recognized excellence in documentary films, PSAs, and advocacy films about elephants. The Festival also awards short films for their impact on elephant conservation, which are no longer than 5 minutes. Echo, the Elephants of Amboseli, and the researchers and filmmakers who documented her family’s struggles, were among the winners. The films that made the winner’s list were largely short and engaging, so the festival has an extensive audience.
Issues & Solutions
The issue of elephants and human conflict has been a longstanding and growing concern for India, especially in North Bengal, where the population has tripled and the forests are shrinking. This conflict is particularly acute in areas with paddy fields, tea gardens, and human habitation. Over 100 people die in the conflict every year, and a motley group of five to six people has to handle between 30 and 40 elephants at night. This film aims to address the underlying causes of elephant conflict and to redefine coexistence in the region.
The Festival aims to raise awareness of the pressing conservation issues facing elephants worldwide through films that feature the animals’ lives. With its goal of raising awareness, the festival partnered with the Secretariat of CITES and the Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival to produce an International Elephant Film Festival to celebrate the elephant’s contribution to conservation. The festival received over 250 submissions, which were reviewed by 75 preliminary judges over the course of six weeks. From this, a short list of finalists was selected for screening at the festival.
Animation
The International Elephant Film Festival is an annual event held in San Francisco that celebrates the filmmaking art form and the conservation of elephants. The festival is an effort to use the power of media to inspire wonder and move the dial on elephant conservation. To that end, the event will feature a variety of films that showcase the beauty of these majestic animals. Here are some highlights from the event. All films will be shown at the San Francisco International Film Festival, as well as a photo exhibition of some of the best animation.
The festival also offers an award ceremony to recognize the best short films produced about elephants. The event features films from Africa, the United States, Vietnam, and Thailand. The winner of each category will receive a prize of US$50,000, as well as free subtitled DVDs for libraries and schools. NGOs can also incorporate the winning films into their programming. Aside from celebrating outstanding work in the filmmaking world, the International Elephant Film Festival recognizes notable achievements in elephant conservation.
Documentary
The goal of the International Elephant Film Festival (IEFF) is to raise awareness of the plight of elephants and raise funds for their conservation. The festival showcases winning films worldwide, with particular focus on African nations. The festival also awards PSAs, media artwork, and advocacy films, and limits the awards to five minutes in length. The winning film, Echo, the Elephants of Amboseli, recognized the work of researchers who studied her family and the filmmakers who told her story.
Flying Elephants is another excellent documentary. The film is told from the perspective of a mother elephant and focuses on the problems that threaten her offspring. Today, elephant habitat is being destroyed at an alarming rate, and the film is a timely reminder of the need to protect them. Another documentary in the festival, Pangolins: The World’s Most Wanted Animal, was screened as part of a selection on the BBC’s Earth from Space.