Bonnie Whitehall

In this contemplative study, I ask the question whether older animals should be retired from zoo life in recognition of their needs as they age and as a gesture of gratitude for their years of service to the public.

I posed this question to two different scientists, both of whom work with animals, to share their views - Dr. Mary Lee Jensvold (Academic and Ethologist and Animal Behaviour) and Dr. Temple Grandin (Academic and Ethologist). The strategy of slow cinema was used to observe Puppe in her enclosure, North American’s oldest Sumatran Orangutan at the Toronto Zoo, to help the viewer feel her experience in captivity.

My intention is to challenge public perception on ‘life in the zoo’ by inviting the viewer to reconsider the function of a zoo, understand the reality of life for the animals behind their walls, and to think about the ethics of captivity for older animals.

Send me a request to watch the film.