Person of the Forest

Orangutans: The Great Ape Escape

2013

Leonora is no ordinary orangutan, she is a pioneer. With her three year old son in her arms, she is about to set off on an epic journey back to the wild - the great ape escape. It is a long way from what she is used to. After being orphaned as a baby, she has spent the majority of her life in a rescue centre. She is leaving behind 600 other orangutans, all of whom are relying on her for their chance at freedom. If Leonora can make it, they could too.

Nénette

2010

Nénette, an orangutan, is the star of the Parisian zoo where she has lived most of her long life. She is a mother of four and has survived three mates, and she bonds only with a few select keepers. The camera rests throughout on Nénette and the other apes in everyday situations. We only see the visitors as occasional reflections in the glass, but we hear their recorded comments and conversations alongside interviews with the zoo keepers.

The Orangutan King

2005

For fifteen million years orangutans roamed tropical forests from China to South East Asia. In Borneo, one of their last island outposts, lives one today who is a legend. He's won more than just a kingdom, he's won human hearts. They gave him the name Kusasi. The Orangutan King is the story of Kusasi's life told to us by a remarkable witness. Dr Birute M. Galdikas has been researching orangutans in Borneo for over 40 years. Now, for the first time, Dr Galdikas will draw audiences deep into the orangutan universe. With enthusiasm and insight she tells us this special story - taking us back 30 years and unfolding Kusasi's story with detail, energy, and the wonder that she still feels for the orangutan species. As a three year old orphan, Kusasi fell under the care of Galdikas in her forest research camp. But driven by a cunning and tenacious spirit Kusasi did not behave as the other ex-captive infants.

Terry Pratchett: Facing Extinction

2013

Best-selling author Sir Terry Pratchett, diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 2007, has one last adventure he wants to go on. Eighteen years ago Terry had a life-changing experience in the jungles of Borneo, where he encountered orangutans in the wild for the first time. Now he is going back to find out what the future holds for these endangered species, and discover a new threat to their habitat that could push them to the brink of extinction. His Alzheimer's will make the trip an incredible challenge both physically and mentally, as he contemplates the role of mankind in the eradication of the planet's species, and considers his own inevitable extinction.

Zoofobia

2022

The tragic death of a polar bear triggers the end of the Buenos Aires Zoo. A superhero lover lawyer asks a court to declare the orangutan Sandra a Non-Human Person and revolutionizes the planet. A very Argentine story, full of passions, embarrassing missteps and memorable characters.

Among the Great Apes with Michelle Yeoh

2009

Renowned actress Michelle Yeoh journeys home to Malaysia to get to know her adopted orangutan, learning from the Sepilok Rehabilitation Centre about the efforts being made to safeguard and sustain this endangered species.

Disenchanted Forest

2002

We call them o-rang-u-tans, which literally means "forest persons" in the Malay and Indonesian languages. They are the only great apes native to Asia. Of all the apes, they are the closest to man in genetic makeup. And they face extinction. Two years in the making, the film is an intimate portrayal of the world of orangutans, the threats to their survival and the people committed to help them thrive. The film focuses on a recent discovery that orangutans do not rely on animal instinct for survival, but instead have a culture that they have preserved from generation to generation.

Orangutan Rescue - Back to The Wild

2014

Red Ape: Saving the Orangutan

2018

For the last decade, a team of frontline medics has been fighting to save Borneo's critically endangered orangutans. Armed with cameras, International Animal Rescue has documented their struggle: pulling apes from devastated jungle, giving emergency medical care, rehabilitating and releasing the healthiest orangutans back into the wild. This is both the story of their life-saving work and of how one of our closest wild relatives has been pushed to the brink of extinction. Combining genuine rescue footage with contributions from experts throughout, this documentary looks toward the future and asks what hope remains to save the orangutan.

Rise of the Eco-Warriors

2014

A group of passionate young environmentalists spend 100 days in the jungles of Borneo in effort to save the rainforests and its endangered orangutans in this Australian documentary...

Eyes of the Orangutan

Invalid Date

Documentary of wildlife tourism and the exploitation of Orangutans

Dunston Checks In

1996

Hotel manager Robert Grant is forced by his boss to postpone his family vacation when a hotel critic checks in. Trouble is, the critic is really a villainous jewel thief with an orangutan assistant named Dunston. When Dunston gets loose and tries to escape a life of crime -- aided by Robert's sons -- havoc, hijinks and lots of laughs abound!

Any Which Way You Can

1980

Philo takes part in a bare knuckle fight – as he does – to make more money than he can earn from his car repair business. He decides to retire, but when the Mafia come along and arrange another fight, he's pushed into it. A motorcycle gang and an orangutan called Clyde all add to the 'fun'.

Every Which Way but Loose

1978

Philo Beddoe is your regular, easygoing, truck-driving guy. He's also the best bar-room brawler west of the Rockies. And he lives with a 165-pound orangutan named Clyde. Like other guys, Philo finally falls in love - with a flighty singer who leads him on a screwball chase across the American Southwest. Nothing's in the way except a motorcycle gang, some cops, and legendary brawler Tank Murdock.

Link

1986

Young graduate student Jane Chase becomes the new assistant to an eccentric zoology professor at the remote home he shares with two brilliant chimpanzees and an elderly orangutan butler named Link. But when one of the chimps is found dead and the professor mysteriously disappears, Link becomes dangerously aggressive towards Jane. Now, the time for “monkey business” is over and the true terror is about to begin.