IMAX, Chinese partners team up for Asian elephants documentary

IMAX China announced Thursday that its documentary "The Elephant Odyssey," co-produced with several Chinese partners including China International Publishing Center (CIPC), will be released on the Chinese mainland in October.

An IMAX poster for "The Elephant Odyssey." [Image courtesy of IMAX China]

Representatives of the film's creative team, along with officials from the National Forestry and Grassland Administration, the China Film Administration and local government departments, announced Oct. 23 as the release date for the Chinese mainland at the fifth Yunnan International Communication Forum in Xishuangbanna.

The film will also reach more than 1,800 IMAX screens across 91 countries and regions, plus streaming platforms worldwide.

"'The Elephant Odyssey' represents a significant achievement in IMAX's expansion into the upstream content industry," said Daniel Manwaring, CEO of IMAX China.

"We recognized the unique value of this story and, together with Singapore's Beach House Pictures and CIPC, brought it to the big screen through the visual language of IMAX," Manwaring added. "With IMAX's robust global theater network, we are able to present this film to audiences around the world, allowing Chinese stories to realize greater cultural value on the international stage."

The 76-minute "The Elephant Odyssey" is the first IMAX documentary focused on China's wild Asian elephants. It follows 15 elephants on a 17-month, 1,300-kilometer journey after they left the Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve in March 2020 and trekked north before turning back south.

The film also marks an international collaboration between IMAX, Beach House Pictures and CIPC, an organization under China International Communications Group (CICG) that specializes in global communication and exchange. Additional partners include CICG's Foreign Languages Press, Lucent Pictures and Anhui Film Group.

Directed by filmmaker Alice Gu and shot by Clair Popkin, cinematographer of the Academy Award-winning documentary "Free Solo," "The Elephant Odyssey" is a Filmed for IMAX production. The creative team spent three years making the film.

Shot entirely on location with IMAX cameras, the film also uses IMAX technology to remaster archival footage, sharpening the look of Yunnan's rainforest landscape and scenes from the elephant migration, said Chen Fang, director of CIPC's China Review Studio.

The film captures the herd's journey through rainforests, farmlands and villages, documenting rare moments such as a calf's birth and mud bathing, and revealing the elephants' thousand-year bond with the local Wa community.

IMAX has a history of producing documentaries on science and exploration, including the space-themed "Asteroid Hunters."

"The Elephant Odyssey" is the company's latest initiative to bring Chinese stories to global audiences while combining entertainment with science education.