From the lush wetlands of Botswana’s Okavango Delta comes the suspense-filled tale of a determined lioness ready to try anything—and willing to risk everything—to keep her family alive. In the new wildlife adventure, The Last Lions, filmmakers Dereck and Beverly Joubert follow the epic journey of a lioness named Ma di Tau (“Mother of Lions”) as she battles to protect her cubs against a daunting onslaught of enemies in order to ensure their survival.
Fleeing a raging fire and a rival pride headed by the dangerous cub-killing lioness Silver Eye, Ma di Tau and her fragile cubs must make their perilous escape by swimming a crocodile-infested river. Remote Duba Island is both a refuge and a strange new world for Ma di Tau and her cubs to conquer. On Duba, Ma di Tau must face off with the island’s herd of fierce buffalo whose huge, slashing horns are among the most dangerous weapons in Africa. Although the buffalo are one of her biggest threats, they are also one of her best hopes for survival if she can prevail over them. Yet, even as Ma di Tau faces devastating loss and escalating perils, she becomes part of a stunning turning point in the power dynamics on Duba Island, bringing together a competitive rival pride in a titanic primal bid to preserve the thing that matters most: the future of their bloodlines.
The gripping real-life saga of Ma di Tau, her cubs, the buffalo, and the rival pride unfolds inside a stark reality: Lions are vanishing from the wild. In the last 50 years, lion populations have plummeted from 450,000 to as few as 20,000. Dereck and Beverly Joubert weave their dramatic storytelling and breathtaking, up-close footage around a resonating question: Are Ma di Tau and her young to be among the last lions? Or will we as humans, having seen how tough, courageous and poignant their lives in the wild are, be moved to make a difference?
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Awards:
IWFF film festival: Best Cinematography, 2013
IWFF film festival: Best Editing, 2013
IWFF film festival: Best Sound Design, 2013
IWFF film festival: Best Film, 2013
IWFF film festival: Best Theatrical Release, 2013
Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival 2011 - ‘Best Theatrical Program’
Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival 2011 - ‘Best Original Music Score’
Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival 2011 - ‘Best Editing’
Wildscreen Golden Panda Award 2012 for Music Score
Evening Standard British Film Award 2012 – ‘Best Film Score’
Golden Horn SAFTA 2013 - Best Director of a Wildlife Programme
Golden Horn SAFTA 2013 - Best Editor of a Wildlife Programme
Golden Horn SAFTA 2013 - Best Cinematographer of a Wildlife Programme
Golden Horn SAFTA 2013 - Best TV Wildlife Programme - Wildlife Films
Nature Film Network / Japan Wildlife Film Festival 2013 in Tokyo - Best Theatrical Award
Emmy Award for Narration: Jeremy Irons
Doñana Film Festival 2013 - Best Script Award (Spain)
CMS Vatavaran Festival Awards 2014 – ‘Best of the Festival’ Award
