Dereck Joubert	...	(Director)
Dereck Joubert	...	(Writer)
J.B. Arthur	...	Composer
Dereck Joubert	...	Cinematographer
Selinda Pride	...
Bolelo	...
Lebone	...	Bolelo's mom

Comments: There was some big controversy surrounding this film in the niche world of conservationists versus trophy hunters when it came out

[TLDR] version: Dereck claims lions were hunted to extinction (except for two, a mother and her daughter) in the Selinda Reserve prior to him buying the land in 2005 and outlawing hunting. Others say the ebb and flow of animal populations has everything to do with natural causes like flooding and drought and nothing to do with hunting

Some links if you are interested in details and whatnot

* Dereck's <a href="https://www.wildlifefilms.co/birth-of-a-pride">brief summary of the film</a> on his website
* Dereck's <a href="https://africageographic.com/stories/dereck-joubert-sets-record-straight-about-trophy-hunting-impact-lions-refutes-claims-so-called-benefits/">response</a> to some guy who calls bullshit on his story
* The previous owners of the land <a href="https://africageographic.com/stories/opinion-selinda-reserve-botswana-not-hunted-say-former-owners-reply-dereck-joubert/">respond</a> to Dereck's response
* <a href="https://www.safaritalk.net/topic/13958-selinda-a-ten-years-love-story/">Safaritalk thread</a> from some guy who's been going there for 30 years and says "Fake news. Fix the fucking toilets". He claims he saw more lions there before Dereck bought it than after

Anyway, that's all off-court nonsense. This is NOT a message-y film at all except for a few sentences that don't matter much

This all took place in Dereck's backyard. It's a story of a couple lionesses who welcome a couple dudes from who wander into their territory from Namibia. Dereck says it's because they could tell the gunshots had stopped. Probably bullshit but who cares?

They copulate, and then the rest of the film is about their cubs. From zero until the boy cubs are old enough to be kicked out of the pride. Biggest theme is the bitch of having to cross crocodile and <a href="https://i.postimg.cc/T3k13y0s/hippos.jpg">hippo infested rivers</a>. It's beautiful (and intimately photographed) to see these lions and cubs <a href="https://i.postimg.cc/xCm156Qr/anxious.jpg">anxious</a> and scared, <a href="https://i.postimg.cc/cH7N62ZJ/snarling.jpg">snarling at things they can't see</a> as they traverse the waters

Dereck narrates it and adds to the very personal and casual nature of the film. He has none of the drama in his voice that long time collaborator Jeremy Irons often brings. Dereck sounds like a loving father affectionately narrating a home movie about his children's mishaps and joys

Dereck's photography is so artful compared to what we usually see in a lion documentary. <a href="https://i.postimg.cc/KzCgvKGb/lion-on-the-moon.jpg">This</a> is how he photographs a lion coming down for drink

Long time collaborator JB Arthur's score is lovely and subtle. This is a really nice movie that gets better with re-watches :)


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Re-watch makes me recognize Dereck Joubert as a fine narrator. This looks great with some remarkable scenes, a lot of river crossings

Another lovely and low-key outing from the Jouberts

Highlight of this one is the cubs. Two of them are afraid to swim and there are a lot of rivers to cross. One night mom just leaves them on the other side of a swampy crocodile and hippo infested river. Unsurprisingly, they're ready to take the plunge next morning


Summary: Follow two males lions who swam across the river from Namibia, and joined up with two females in Selinda. This union resulted in six cubs as they grow, learn to hunt, and ultimately, become the first pride in Selinda in many years.

In the year 2000 all the lions in a place called Selinda had been hunted virtually to extinction. Two lionesses walked around, calling into a void.

One day everything changed.

In 2006 we stopped all hunting in the area. Botswana banned all hunting in 2014. The land was primed for recovery.

Then, two males lions swam across the river from Namibia, and we filmed them the day they came in, skittish, but looking for the young females who were leaving scent.

We use sophisticated thermal cameras to cover this story and as a result, our two female characters names are hot and light, Bolelo and Lebone.
The males mated, and the 6 cubs from the two females are the core of our story as they grow, learn to hunt, and become the first pride in Selinda in many years.

What we were witnessing was the birth of a pride, and within the pride a young male character emerges, a reluctant swimmer, but one who forges a bond with the males.

Buffalo started to come in. Almost as if the area knows it was safe again, the flood returns and even more wildlife came in.

One day, the pride had to move. A major scene in the film is about this epic crossing of a river. Two females and six cubs. The females swam across with four cubs. 2 remained. They went back and forth and the two refused to move. It was a two day brain teaser for the females and finally, they saved all cubs. Once they had them, they weren’t letting them go, even into the next buffalo hunt. Tiny cubs scattered and ran under the feet of the buffalo.

All of these cubs make it to adulthood, the males eventually throw the youngsters out, and we discover that while cubs are born, it is not until this moment, when the subadults are thrown out, that a pride is born .