Dive into the mysterious and compelling world of orca whales as they make their journeys from their homes in the wild to captivity at amusement parks in “Blackfish,” a critically acclaimed, thought-provoking documentary that is slated to screen at REELSTORIES Film Festival this year.
REELSTORIES was founded in 2009 by Pepperdine alumna Susie Lee and a group of passionate students and is now in its fifth year. . Their aim was to celebrate the art of film and its ability to captivate audiences as well as challenge them to view the world around them with a different perspective.
In addition to the feature films, REELSTORIES will also host an interactive artwalk with food, student-produced short films and an awards ceremony and reception after the showings. The event is free and open to the public.
The lineup for REELSTORIES’ feature-films this year promises not to disappoint with three intriuging movies that capture the essence of its aim of opening the door to different worldviews for their audiences.
Shown in Elkins Auditorium, “Blackfish” is a documentary that appeared at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival. It chronicles the captivity of Tilikum and the purchase by SeaWorld of the killer whale, whose history of violence led to the death of three people.
This gripping whale tale tackles not only the deaths of three people, but also the larger question of the ethics and consequences with removing wild creatures from their environment and putting them in captivity.
Gabriela Cowperthwaite, director of “Blackfish,” was intrigued with the controversy surrounding the story of Dawn Brancheau, a well-respected SeaWorld trainer who was killed by the 12,000 pound orca Tilikum in the summer of 2010, according to National Geographic. As an investigative documentary filmmaker, she began to wonder why these highly intelligent creatures, who have a very low rate of killing humans in the wild, have frequently turned on them while in captivity.
The scenes showing the unexpected attacks by Tilikum and other orcas delves into the devastating consequences of holding these intelligent, territorial and highly unpredictable creatures in captivity and training them to perform on a daily basis in front of large crowds.
“Blackfish” offers a compelling and provocative view of what goes on behind the scenes of the shows involving orcas and the mental and physical plight of these creatures that both scientists and trainers do not yet fully understand.
On a more controversial note, the documentary, which has received backlash from the SeaWorld corporation, tackles the questions of how the financial interests of amusement parks have increasingly blurred the lines between the well-being of the animals and trainers and the financial well-being of the park.
Innovative, powerful, controversial and thought-provoking, “Blackfish” has pushed the boundaries of investigating the concealed issues facing water parks, such as SeaWorld, and exposing how much scientists and trainers still don’t know about these powerful animals — a fact that can have detrimental consequences.
“People need to see Blackfish,” said Senior Cory Batza in a press release for REELSTORIES Film Festival. “It’s one of those films that makes you think and want to take action right away. The Pepperdine community, especially those that attend REELSTORIES, can be very passionate about just causes. I’m excited to see people’s reactions to the film … and to see it again, myself!”
“Blackfish” appears to have the ability to expose captivating and controversial material with the right amount of cinematographic excellence that REELSTORIES aims to showcase with their selection of feature-films.
REELSTORIES Film Festival takes place on Jan. 31 with check-in beginning at 5:30 p.m. The feature documentaries debut at 7 p.m. in various locations throughout campus with “Blackfish” playing in Elkins Auditorium, “20 Feet From Stardom” showing in Smothers Theater and “The Crash Reel” screening in the Waves Cafe.
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Follow Danielle Accovelli on Twitter: @DanielleAccovel
As published in the Jan. 16 issue of the Pepperdine Graphic.
