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We reached out to our Jackson Wild Media Awards filmmakers to ask them five questions about the experience of making their films.
What inspired this story? Director/Producer Daphne Wong: The Chinese White Dolphin (Sousa chinensis) has been living in the waters of Hong Kong for hundreds of years. The dolphin, which is in fact pink in appearance, is nicknamed ‘Panda of the Sea’, due to its rarity and friendliness. Despite being chosen as the handover mascot in 1997 when Britain returned the region to China, the Chinese White Dolphin’s fate is not auspicious at all. Their numbers have plunged 80% since 2003, leaving only 32 of their kind in Hong Kong's waters. They are facing multiple threats, including habitat loss due to coastal development, water pollution, and danger of collision with vessels. This film is about their plight and hopes to raise awareness for the endangered cetacean. Were there any surprising or meaningful moments/experiences you want to share? DW: With fewer and fewer dolphins and harsher living conditions in Hong Kong, stable encounters with dolphins are hard to come by. The most memorable experience I had whilst filming was when 15 dolphins surrounded the research vessel, circling the boat and breaching next to us. We had half an hour with this superpod before we had to head back to port before the sun sets.
Any fun facts about the film/program, the subject matter or the production crew that might surprise the audience? DW: Despite its name, the Chinese White Dolphin is often referred to as the pink dolphin due to their pink coloration in appearance. Baby calves are dark grey in colour, which would eventually fade into light grey and into spots. These spots fade as they approach adulthood, and they become fully white (or rather, pink). Their pinkness is prominent due to a network of blood vessels near the skin’s surface, which was thought to have been developed for temperature regulation. How can audience members take action to help the cause or issue featured in this film? DW: The Chinese White Dolphins in Hong Kong have now reached a critical juncture. If they are not given enough room to breathe and regenerate in the near future, the city’s mascot would eventually fade away and become part of history. Audience members can help by supporting the 'Dolphin30: Saving the Handover Mascot' campaign. The Hong Kong Dolphin Conservation Society is petitioning for a large and connected marine park as a shelter for the remaining dolphins, and the re-route of high-speed ferries to better protect and to relieve the stress on the dolphins. 
Photo courtesy of Breathing Room
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We reached out to our Jackson Wild Media Awards filmmakers to ask them five questions about the experience of making their films.
What inspired this story? Producer Walter Köhler: The Vaquita is a very iconic species. If we cannot save this species, what hope is there for others. It would be really easy to protect if just politics would be there to fight wildlife crime. Our agenda was to warn the world that if we let two highly organized crime syndicates - the Chinese Mafia and the Mexican drug cartels - work together without being attacked by law enforcement we will lose one species after the other in the Sea of Cortez and everywhere around the world. Describe some of the challenges faced while making this film/program. WK: We had to overcome a lot of security challenges. We were attacked, got death threats, fought against corruption. There was more than one dangerous situation. When we left the shores of the Sea of Cortez we knew there was no turning back. Mexico is the most dangerous country in the world for journalists - and filmmakers. 
Photo courtesy of Sea of Shadows
What did you learn from your experience making this film/program? WK: Never give up even when the situation feels hopeless. As filmmakers we can make a difference and change the world for good. How do you approach storytelling? WK: We wanted to construct a film which could be also viewed as a thriller movie à la "Sicario" - with the exception that every action, every bullet fired was real. We tried to make it as "entertaining" as possible. The Vaquita needs more friends that just our usual community of nature lovers. What impact do you hope this film/program will have? WK: We work hard to force the Mexican government to start strict law enforcement measures and especially go for the Mexican-Chinese traffickers. We gave all our intelligence to Mexico and still they go unharmed to this day. In strong contrast to the Chinese government who achieved a lot of arrests of Totoaba traffickers. We still hope that everything we do at the moment works out until the next Totoaba season starts in December. It is the last chance for the Vaquita. The last ten or so specimens will not survive another poaching season.
Were there any surprising or meaningful moments/experiences you want to share? WK: It was quite a experience to film the first moving images of a species and to know that it is just a few individuals away from extinction. They are so hard to see and so hard to find them and still we manage it to kill them just for greed! Any fun facts about the film/program, the subject matter or the production crew that might surprise the audience? WK: No, no fun moments! More the opposite! Anything else you would like people to know? WK: The Vaquita would be the first animal with the highest protection from CITES which could now go forever. We must do anything to stop this happening! What next? WK: We will turn our attention to the Amazon. The situation gets totally out of hand. We must send our cameras down there. The lung of the world needs our combined actions. 
Photo courtesy of Sea of Shadows
How can audience members take action to help the cause or issue featured in this film? WK: Get on to social media. Force the Mexican government to take action. Did the film team use any unusual techniques or unique imaging technology? WK: Without drones the film would not have been possible at all. What were some of the specific editing challenges you had to address? WK: It was hard and took us quite a while to combine our several narrative threads and interweave them which each other without disturbing the overall picture. Thanks to our wonderful editing team, we achieved what we longed for from the very beginning. What were the biggest influences on how you approached writing this project? WK: Reality! |
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