Five Questions for Filmmakers: Last Wild Places - Gorongosa

We reached out to our World Wildlife Day Film Showcase filmmakers to ask them five questions about the experience of making their films.

2020 WWD Finalist Trailer: Last Wild Places: Gorongosa from Jackson Wild on Vimeo.

​Answered by the team:

Director Sarah Joseph, Producer and Editor Dustin Sylvia, Producer Tyler Dinley, Director of Photography Ivan Agerton, Additional Cinematography Brett Kuxhausen, Sound Recordist Anna Pankova, Original Music by Julian Cisneros, Production Assistant Augusto Bila, Associate Producers Sydney Guthrie, Steph Toft and Devin Swanson, and Executive Producer and Creative Director Vanessa Serrao
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What inspired this story?

This film was inspired by National Geographic Society’s Last Wild Places initiative, which aims to help protect 30 percent of the planet by 2030. We are partnering with conservation organizations such as Gorongosa National Park as part of this goal. Gorongosa uses a progressive approach to conservation that balances the needs of people and wildlife. In particular, their efforts focused on educating and engaging women and youth inspired us.  We wanted to share the story of this landscape through the lens of what’s possible when you empower local people, especially girls.

Photo courtesy of Last Wild Places: Gorongosa

​What impact do you hope this film will have?

We hope this film will raise awareness about the need to protect our last remaining large natural areas, for the sake of preserving biodiversity and also for the value that they bring to humanity. We also hope it will help spread the message that it’s integral for local communities to be empowered as stewards of these wild places, and that when they are directly involved in conservation, people and nature benefit. Finally, we hope the film will inspire and empower people of all ages and backgrounds - especially women and girls - to become the next generation of conservationists.

Please visit Gorongosa.org to donate to their Cyclone Idai relief efforts, purchase their coffee (which supports local livelihoods through sustainable agroforestry), and to plan your own trip to Gorongosa National Park. You can also learn more about National Geographic Society’s Last Wild Places initiative here.

Photo courtesy of Last Wild Places: Gorongosa

Photo courtesy of Last Wild Places: Gorongosa