“Leopard Legacy“
The documentary “Leopard Legacy“ – a co-production by Into Nature Productions and Kurt Mayer Film, ORF, ARTE and WDR, in association with ORF-Enterprise (who is the global distributor) – was awarded in the category "Best Animal Behavior" at the renowned International Wildlife Film Festival of Missoula/Montana - the oldest nature film festival in the USA.
The International Wildlife Film Festival announced the award winners for its 44th edition as part of a pop-up installation at the First Montana Bank building in downtown Missoula. The sixty-five films, from over 300 submissions, were selected by an international jury consisting of filmmakers, producers, field biologists, conservationists, cinephiles, teachers, and University of Montana graduate students specializing in environmentally-focused or wildlife biology studies.
“Leopard Legacy” was selected by the final jurors Janet Han Vissering, Ami Vitale and Pipaluk Lykke in the category “Animal Behavior”; i.e. any program that includes especially notable footage of animal behavior that is rare and impactful in terms of human understanding of the natural world or which was captured using innovative techniques.
The acclaimed South African nature filmmaking duo Will and Lianne Steenkamp, also known for the multiple award-winning Universum two-parter "Vanishing Kings - Lions of the Namib”, once again score a major international success: For three years, the Steenkamps lived and filmed along Zambia’s Luangwa River. Day after day, in a specially adapted all-terrain vehicle, they followed every movement of a devoted mother leopard and her two newborn cubs.