Films

Empowers Africa funds and produces educational documentaries about wildlife protection, land conservation, and human empowerment issues in Africa, with the mission of raising awareness and funding. Below are a few examples of the films we have help fund and produce.


R.E.S.C.U.E - A Film About Community United for Elephants

R.E.S.C.U.E – A Film About Community United for Elephants

R.E.S.C.U.E. is a heartwarming short documentary about resilience, hope, and triumph in the fight to protect a species and to empower women and their communities.

The film gives viewers a behind-the-scenes look at the groundbreaking work of the Reteti Elephant Sanctuary and The Sarara Foundation in Northern Kenya. It is an inspiring example of what is possible in the realm of community-led conservation..

The film was privately funded by members of Empowers Africa Board of Trustees and Advisory Council.

Emergence – Saving Africa's Super Tuskers

Emergence – Saving Africa’s Super Tuskers*

*TRAILER ONLY – STAY TUNED FOR DETAILS ON HOW TO SCREEN FULL FILM IN 2023

Video Credit: Off Piste Africa & Ant Hoard

This collaborative film made by Off Piste Africa, Ant Hoard and Empowers Africa is a short documentary featuring Tsavo National Parks incredible super tuskers and the remarkable humans preserving these iconic elephants. Super Tuskers are elephants whose tusks are so large they touch the ground; each tusk weighs well over 100 lbs. There is a genetic variation that these elephants share that is responsible for this rare tusk size. Roughly 21 Super Tuskers exist on the planet and 9 of them live in the Greater Tsavo Ecosystem. Since elephants live to approximately 55 years old, many of these “Tuskers” are reaching the end of their lifespan.

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Empowers Africa Conservation Trip

Video Credit: Black Bean Productions

At the Somkhanda Game Reserve in South Africa, members of our Board of Trustees and their families funded and participated in conservation activities including elephant and lion collaring as well as rhino de-horning. At the nearby Care for Wild Rhino Sanctuary, they spent the day with orphaned rhinos. The trip was organized by Charity Travel and showcased the exceptional work of Wildlands, Wildlife ACT and Dr. Mike Toft of Kifaru Wildlife Veterinary Services. Filmmakers and Black Bean Productions’ founders James Suter and Oli Caldow joined the trip to document every experience.

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Black Mamba Anti-Poaching Unit

Video Credit: Black Bean Productions

This collaborative film with Black Bean Productions showcases the Black Mamba Anti-Poaching Unit, a team that consists primarily of women and has expanded to cover all 400 km2 of the Balule region in South Africa. The film was recently selected by National Geographic for their Short Film Showcase, a great privilege and an important platform through which to share the Mambas’ story.

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Dehorning a Rhino in the Wild

Video Credit: Black Bean Productions

Empowers Africa is proud of our first collaborative project with Black Bean Productions which has been featured in National Geographic’s Short Film Showcase and won Best Documentary Short at the 2017 London Independent Film Awards. This short film covers the practice of rhino dehorning as a way to combat the poaching crisis in Africa. Our team had the privilege of accompanying Wildlands, Wildlife ACT and wildlife veterinarian Mike Toft of Kifaru Wildlife Veterinary Services on this rhino dehorning exercise. Oli Caldow and Sam Suter of Black Bean Productions joined us to capture this medical procedure.

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Lion Pride Translocation

Video Credit: Black Bean Productions

Empowers Africa is proud to have played a part in a historic lion translocation in Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa. In partnership with Wildlands and Wildlife ACT, three lions (1 male, 2 female) arrived from Phinda Private Game Reserve to their new home at community-owned Somkhanda Community Game Reserve earlier this year.

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Thousand Herbs Community Garden Project

Video Credit: Black Bean Productions

We are very proud to share with you our latest collaborative film with Black Bean Productions featuring an income generating garden run by nine industrious women in South Africa. The short video covers the work of the Thousand Herbs and Vegetable Garden, a small business started by The Inzalo Community Project.

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Women Leading Change – Dunia Camp, Serengeti

Video Credit: Keenan Ferguson

This film features Dunia Camp, the only all female safari lodge in Africa. The camp is located in the heart of Tanzania’s Serengeti National Park and features beautiful cinematography and interviews with several staff members, including Angel who is the manager of Dunia Camp. Angel is driven by her strong desire to serve the community and conserve the environment – she believes that her all-female staff has been transformative in empowering women in the community, giving them the opportunity to work and have their voices heard.

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Lalela Project

Video Credit: Black Bean Productions

We are thrilled to share another collaborative project with Black Bean Productions featuring Lalela Project, a program that provides after-school arts education to children in grades 1-12 from an at-risk community called Imizamo Yetho in Hout Bay, South Africa.

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Empowers Africa Video

Video Credit: Black Bean Productions

Empowers Africa is a U.S. public charity under IRC Section 501(c)(3) that supports programs in the areas of human empowerment, wildlife protection and land conservation in Sub-saharan Africa. Find out more about what we do through this short video!


Partner Films

Volcanoes Safaris Partnership Trust: Project Highlights

Volcanoes Safaris Conservation Retreat 2022

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