'Cove' director Louie Psihoyos says Oscar win for 'Blackfish' would be game over for SeaWorld.

[Beringia]

Last edited Wed Jan 15, 2014, 11:34 AM - Edit history (1)

Academy Award Nominations are Thursday, January 16.

full article
http://www.mnn.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/blogs/exclusive-cove-director-says-oscar-win-for-blackfish-would-be-game-over

'Cove' director says Oscar win for 'Blackfish' would be game over for SeaWorld. Louie Psihoyos has harsh words for the animal theme park and its chances for survival in the wake of the documentary.

With only days left until Oscar nominations are announced, one of the most anticipated decisions is whether or not the film "Blackfish" will earn a shot at the Best Documentary category.

It's a feeling of anxiety that Louie Psihoyos, director of the 2009 Academy Award-winning documentary "The Cove," remembers all too well. In an interview with MNN, Psihoyos discusses the dramatic impact of "Blackfish," his feelings about SeaWorld's response, and why all marine parks should be nervous about the film's chances.


Mother Nature Network: 'Blackfish' director Gabriela Cowperthwaite mentioned in a Reddit AMA that she first met you last year at the Sundance Film Festival. Have you two grown closer since then, especially as awareness of 'Blackfishl' has increased and SeaWorld has gone on the offensive against the film?

Louie Psihoyos: Yes, I feel like Gabriela and I are part of a growing resistance against the use of animals for entertainment. In the bigger picture though, it's about respecting nature. Like the veterans of any war, you grow close to the people you go to battle with. Her film, more than ours, galvanized the movement. I feel like we may have got the fight started but hers is like a prize fighter coming in to deliver the knockout punch. It's such a well-done film that there isn't any amount of PR that SeaWorld can do to recover. Their only rebuttal is that they do conservation work, and that wasn't mentioned in Blackfish. However the film isn't about SeaWorld's conservation efforts, it is about how orcas don't belong in captivity. It's incredible that SeaWorld spends .0006 percent of their revenue on conservation, but they made all that money by kidnapping entertainment from the wild. They're like a pimp who hands out candy at Christmas thinking they deserve sainthood.

Based on your experience, what would an Oscar win do for the reach of 'Blackfish'?
If "Blackfish" wins, I would say it's game over for SeaWorld and all marine parks that make their living from abusing marine animals. I also see it as a new day for the environment. I see a new age coming where, as Gabriela says, people think of themselves as the "I-can't-believe-we-used-to-do-that" generation.



The Heist, a film, coming up from Louie Psihoyos

A bold mission to save species on the brink, from the Oscar-winning filmmakers of The Cove.

Ocean Preservation Society is launching a bold mission called The Heist, which will serve as the climax of our next documentary about the thousands of species that are blinking out before our eyes. It's estimated that half the species on the planet could disappear by the end of this century. But not if we can help it.

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ops/the-heist




http://www.ecorazzi.com/2014/01/13/exclusive-the-cove-director-louie-psihoyos-talks-new-heist-eco-thriller/

[NYC_SKP]

1. Sea World, et al, need to be put out of business unless they stop their animal abuses. TRAILER:

I actually had a post hidden, I think, arguing with someone here who felt that the animals are here to serve us.

[Beringia]

4. Seaworld depends

on their reputation. If that is badly damaged, no way to recover. I have seen a lot of anti-animals on this forum lately. It seems strange that so many self declared democrats do not care about the lives of animals.

[Trajan]

2. If this is copyrighted material

Then you have exceeded the Fair Use rules by about a gazillion paragraphs ... check it and modify, so DU doesn't get sued on your behalf.

[Beringia]

3. Says

4 paragraphs can be used. Also I am pretty sure Mother Nature Network would like to have their materials spread farther and wider.

[arthritisR_US]

5. I hope they win and I hope it's lights out for SeaWorld. nt

[defacto7]

6. and what happens to these animals

if SeaWorld goes down? Just turn them into the wild? Not a nice ending either way.

[Beringia]

7. They stop breeding them

Marine biologists have weighed in and say could be put in sea pens.

[xfundy]

8. No reason for zoos, etc to exist.

Photography and video is sophisticated enough to convey animal lives/habitats to anyone interested.

Keeping animals in confinement is inhumane at best.

[CFLDem]

9. I hope it wins, too.

Cause then SeaWorld might offer a better deal than the BOGO they got going now 😁

[CFLDem]

10. Well I guess it's game on now.

[Beaverhausen]

11. It wasn't nominated

http://oscar.go.com/nominees

[CFLDem]

12. Exactly

[Beringia]

13. Not sure why

It was better than the Cove as far as being dramatic and the work that went into it.

Could it be related to putting down theme parks, ala Disney?