Saving The Wild Wins Film Award For Love Song To Nature

Comvita, global market leader in Mānuka honey, is pleased to announce its charitable partner, Saving the Wild, has been named a winner at the 2021 Wildlife Conservation Film Festival in New York for the short film, Kimana Tuskers.

The 12-minute film, directed and written by Saving the Wild founder Jamie Joseph, follows the story of one of earth’s last remaining tusker elephants as he navigates a vanishing landscape through the Kimana Wildlife Corridor.

Narrated by two-time Academy Award nominated actor Djimon Hounsou, with post-production by Wellington's Academy Award winning facility, Park Road Post (known for their work on Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit), the film sends alarm bells out around the risk of farm development, which has further eroded the wild land in the Greater Amboseli ecosystem in Kenya.

Held annually in New York, the Wildlife Conservation Film Festival is dedicated to highlighting the critical need for and importance of protecting global biodiversity, attracting a diverse audience from around the world including filmmakers, wildlife advocates and scientists.

Comvita Group CEO, David Banfield, describes the film as being a powerful call for Kiwis and people from all over the world to recognise the human impact on the planet, and do our part in caring for the environment in practical and sustainable ways.

“Comvita’s partnership with Saving the Wild was brought about due to our shared commitment to caring for ‘nature in need’. Bringing our mission to life through real action, this truly embodies our commitment to Kaitiakitanga, or guardianship of nature.

“We’re proud to partner with Jamie and her team on this work to protect the amazing Kimana Tuskers and want to congratulate them on this well-deserved accolade. When we shared the film with the Comvita team, there wasn’t a dry eye in the house as we saw the majesty of these incredible elephants. It’s such a tremendous opportunity to showcase the work being done – and which still needs to be done – to protect global biodiversity while also helping connect people back to nature,” adds Banfield.

Comvita has partnered with Saving the Wild on the establishment of the Saving the Wild Bee Keeping Project, with so far 200 beehives rolled out across the Kimana Wildlife Corridor, securing wild land, strengthening biodiversity across the region, and supporting local jobs that work in harmony with nature.

Kimana Tuskers will have its world premiere screening at the Wildlife Conservation Film Festival in New York on October 18th. Following this, on November 3rd, Comvita is set to host the Middle Eastern premiere of the film as part of its presence at Expo 2020 Dubai.

© Scoop Media