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Resident Orca

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In 2019, Simon Schneider and Sarah Sharkey Pearce set out to make a film about the last living Southern Resident Killer Whale in captivity, an orca named Lolita (or “Toki”), who had been captured in Puget Sound in 1970. Lolita spent more than half a century in the Miami Seaquarium’s “Whale Bowl’, a tank that measured 80 x 35 foot, and only 6 metres deep. As filming progressed, they joined a coalition of environmentalists, billionaire philanthopists, disenchanted ex trainers, and Lummi elders, all fighting to have the aging and ailing orca returned to her ocean home. It proves a long and painful odyssey, but also provides remarkable insights into how humans and animals feel about each other.

 

Apr 2: Q&A with director Simon Schneider & Tah-Mahs Ellie Kinely

Directors

Sarah Sharkey Pearce & Simon Schneider

Featuring

Squil-le-he-le Raynell Morris, Tah-Mahs Ellie Kinely

Credits
Country of Origin

Canada

Year

2024

Language

English

19+
97 min

Book Tickets

This event has passed.

Credits

Screenwriter

Sarah Sharkey Pearce, Simon Schneider

Cinematography

Simon Schneider

Editor

Tony Kent

Original Music

Josh Zubot, Jesse Zubot

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