SA rhino poaching documentary ‘Stroop’ wins international awards

Two South African women who uprooted their lives to dedicate four years to creating the film Stroop: Journey into the Rhino Horn War have been gaining major international recognition. Bonné de Bod and director Susan Scott quite literally risked everything in making the movie, including their lives. In the process of seeing this film to fruition, they sold their homes, left their jobs and moved back into their parents’ homes.

 

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— PRESS RELEASE: SOUTH AFRICAN RHINO FILM WINS TOP AWARDS AT LA AND SAN DIEGO FILM FESTIVALS — _______________________________ The South African feature documentary S T R O O P – journey into the rhino horn war has won the coveted Best Documentary award at the prestigious San Diego International Film Festival held this past weekend. Hollywood’s Mudbound producer Kyle Tekiela presented the award to filmmakers Bonné de Bod and Susan Scott saying, “documentaries tell stories that bring big issues to light and the jury felt this was one of the biggest of them all, that poignantly conveys the struggle the world’s rhinos are having to remain alive for the next decade.” The weekend was a winning one for the filmmakers as they also scooped an additional two awards – from the LA-based Glendale International Film Festival where they picked the Best Female Filmmakers award (a huge accomplishment given that over 130-films across fiction and documentary were in competition, which meant that STROOP was given the nod across all genres). And – also in LA – from the city’s premiere film festival, LA Femme, which supports women producers from around the world, De Bod and Scott were awarded the Special Documentary of Focus Award. The previous weekend, the film received another nod in the form of Best Documentary award at the San Pedro International Film Festival, also held in Los Angeles, and last month, STROOP was handed the 2018 Green Tenacity Award by the judges of the San Francisco Green Film Festival. In recognition of the impact the South African film is having in California, the California Legislature as well as the State Senator have sent the filmmakers certificates of recognition from the State of California for outstanding achievements in the cinematic arts, thanking the South Africans for their work in revealing the rhino crisis to the world and contributing to the arts and the Californian community. Says STROOP producer and presenter de Bod: “Winning these awards has opened up new opportunities to get the film seen around the globe. “Film festival directors and distributors are contacting us directly because of the buzz around the documentary and to get somethin…

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The film ultimately exposes the inhumane world of the illegal rhino horn trade. From rhinos being poached in the Kruger National Park to having their horns hacked off, which are transported into Asia for different uses. Over the last decade, 7100 rhinos have been brutally killed for their horns.

 

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“I’ve had many ups and downs over the past few years investigating this ‘world of greed’. But the most difficult part by far is witnessing what we, as humans, are capable of.” – @bonnedebod #rhino #poaching #stroopfilm #ranger #bravery #crime #wildlife #wildlifetrade #carcass #crimescene #imfolozi #imfolozigamereserve #ezemvelokznwildlife #southafrica #bonnedebod

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Both Bonné de Bod and Susan Scott are first-time filmmakers, which makes the film all the more interesting. By exposing the underbelly of the world of this illegal trade, the women fully immersed themselves in the danger and heartbreak of getting the message across.

 

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— BREAKING: TRAFFICKING SYNDICATE ARRESTS IN ASIA — Thai authorities working with the Elephant Action League have just announced arrests of wildlife traffickers from the Bach Family Syndicate (a major syndicate linked to the Keosavang/Lemtongthai pseudo hunts revealed in Julian Rademeyer’s ‘Killing for Profit’) EAL’s director, Andrea Crosta says that he”believes that this specific ring of traffickers that we took down is behind the smuggling of at least 56.5 kg of rhino horn from South Africa in the past four months.” Well done to the investigators at the Elephant Action League – EAL and the Royal Thai Police/Customs. #rhino #poaching #trafficking #wildlife #wildlifetrade #africa #asia #rhinopoaching #rhinohorn #trade #marketing #poached #wildlifedocumentary #nature #environment #journalism @elephantleague

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Stroop has gained serious international traction and has won 10 international awards at nine different film festivals. Watching the trailer is sure to give you goosebumps.

The awards that Stroop has won include:

• San Francisco Green Film Festival – The Green Tenacity Award
• Santa Cruz Film Festival – Spirit of Action Feature Film Award
• San Pedro International Film Festival – Best Documentary Award
• Glendale International Film Festival – Best Female Filmmaker Award
• LA Femme International Film Festival – Special Focus Documentary Award
• San Diego International Film Festival – Best Documentary Award
• Mystic Film Festival – Best International Documentary Award
• Wildlife Film Festival Rotterdam – Newcomer Award
• Berlin Courage Film Festival – Best Documentary Award
• Berlin Courage Film Festival – The Courage Award for Most Courageous Film

Image: Unsplash