An Apology to Elephants
| An Apology to Elephants | |
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Promotional poster for An Apology to Elephants
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| Directed by | Amy Schatz |
| Produced by | Amy Schatz Beth Aala |
| Written by | Jane Wagner |
| Starring |
Pat Derby Cynthia Moss Raman Sukumar |
| Narrated by | Lily Tomlin |
| Music by | Joby Talbot |
| Cinematography | Alex Rappaport, Scott Sinkler |
| Distributed by | HBO |
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Release date
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Running time
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40 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
An Apology to Elephants is a 2013 documentary that explores purported abuse and brutal treatment of elephants. It showcases elephant training and the alleged psychological trauma and physical damage done by living conditions in some zoos and circuses. It was premiered on HBO on April 24, 2013, also celebrated as an Earth Day. The documentary includes interviews with environmental activists and biologists, including Performing Animal Welfare Society co-founders Ed Stewart and Pat Derby. The film was dedicated to Derby, also known as an "elephant lady", who died on February 15, 2013.
Narrator Lily Tomlin campaigned on the subject for several years, in the course of which she met Pat Derby. Later, she suggested that HBO make a movie about elephant captivity. HBO began work on the documentary in 2011. It was later joined by PETA, which offered pictures and video footage, including photos from a whistleblower depicting elephant training at the Ringling Bros circus.
The documentary begins by showing the transfer of elephants from a train; the narrator states that "the elephants need our help". It proceeds with Joyce Poole, an elephant biologist, discussing some of the characteristics of an elephant, including mirror recognition capability. Cynthia Moss and Katy Payne explain some of the habits of elephants. While discussing anthropomorphism of elephants, Indian scientist Raman Sukumar states that elephants have a love–hate relationship with human society. The documentary then describes elephant capture for public display in circuses and zoos.
After describing the role of elephants in the environment, the documentary depicts some of the training techniques at circuses using bullhooks. It then shows an "elephant healing area" created in Northern California by Ed Stewart and Pat Derby, founders of Performing Animal Welfare Society. Derby tells the reunion story of Wanda, an elephant from Detroit Zoo, and Gypsy, from one of the circuses from Illinois, who were together in a circus in 1980 and bought together again in 2005. It describes various incidents of elephant communication and their emotional bonding; and it relates the story of Topsy from Luna Park, Coney Island, and her electrocution on January 4, 1903.
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