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Acclaimed Documentary, 'Bonobos Back to the Wild' to Reach USA Audiences and Theatres This Summer

NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / July 13, 2015 / The acclaimed, French docudrama, "Beny" by director Alain Tixier, will be presented to theatrical audiences in the USA with a newly adapted, English-language version titled "Bonobos: Back to the Wild." The feature film, which combines documentary footage shot in the Congo, with dramatic re-enactments of actual events, will be released to theatres beginning July 31, by Hannover House, Inc. (OTC: HHSE). The film will premiere in Washington, DC at a special event screening and one-week theatrical engagement to benefit the Lola Ya Bonobo sanctuary in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. On August 7, the film's release will be expanded to include New York City, Los Angeles and Chicago before expanding on August 14 and August 21 to reach more than 50 top markets in the USA.

"BONOBOS: Back to the Wild" is the English-language adaptation of French director Alain Tixier's acclaimed documentary, "Beny" (a.k.a. "Bonobos"). The film tells the true story of naturalist Claudine André and her work in the Congo to protect the critically endangered bonobo apes. Sometimes mistakenly referred to as "pygmy Chimpanzees," bonobos are actually a unique species of primate – and the closest cousin of all to mankind (with a shared genetic code that is 98.7% identical to humans).

Over twenty years ago, Claudine André formed the Lola Ya Bonobo Rescue Center deep in the forest of the central African nation of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Political unrest and civil war had taken a toll on the economy, and food was becoming scarce. Villagers had grown more aggressive in pursuing live game from the forest as a food source. Despite their status as a protected species, adult bonobos were being slaughtered for "bush meat" by poachers, who would often keep the baby apes for black-market sale as exotic pets. With the support of the government and local police, Claudine and her team have since rescued over 400 orphaned bonobos and placed them into protective care at her Lola Ya Bonobo Rescue Center.

The film opens with the story of one young bonobo, Beni, in the wilds of the equatorial forest with his extended bonobo tribe. Their carefree lives are soon interrupted when poachers shoot and kill Beni's mother, and kidnap and crate him for sale. While in the custody of the poachers, Beni is abused, teased and malnourished. However, before he can be sold and shipped overseas, Claudine and a Congolese Policeman successfully locate the poachers and confiscate the young bonobo.

At Lola Ya Bonobo, Beni is nursed back to health by his new, human "mothers." He befriends new bonobo playmates, and over the coming years he learns survival skills that will be needed when he reaches maturity. Ultimately, in a bittersweet parting from Claudine and his Lola Ya Bonobo human family, the fully-grown adult Beni is released back into the wild.

The story of Beni's rescue, raising and release is true, and was skillfully chronicled and re-enacted by acclaimed French documentary filmmaker Alain Tixier. Shot over a six-month period in the Congo – and featuring stunning visuals – the film presents the most revealing look ever into the lives and loves of mankind's closest cousin. Claudine André and her successful bonobo achievements have drawn comparisons to Jane Goodall's work with chimpanzees and Dian Fossey's study of gorillas.

Producer / Writer Vivian Schilling ("Toys in the Attic") utilized some powerhouse talent to provide the voices for Beni and for Claudine's narration. LUKE EVANS, (star of "Dracula Untold", "Fast and Furious 6" and "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" among other major box office hits) performed the role of Beni, and recorded at Warner Brothers De Lane Lea Studios in London. Rebecca Hall, star of "Vicky Cristina Barcelona," "Transcendence," "Iron Man 3," and the upcoming "Big Friendly Giant" was a perfect vocal match to provide the narration for Claudine in the film. Her performance was recorded at Sync Sound in New York and in Savannah, GA.

"Bonobos: Back to the Wild" will open at theatres this summer through Hannover House, beginning with a one-week exclusive in Washington, D.C., then expanding to the top 20 DMA's on August 7th and 14th, including New York, Los Angeles and Chicago.

ABOUT THE CAST & PRINCIPAL FILMMAKERS:

Claudine André is a Belgian conservationist. She founded Lola Ya Bonobo in 1994, which is a bonobo sanctuary, just south of Kinshasa, at Mont Ngafula, in the Lukaya Valley, Democratic Republic of Congo. The aim of the sanctuary is to collect young bonobos, most having been orphaned due to the actions of poachers, and eventually reintroduce them into a forest reserve. During the same year, Claudine André started the Friends of Animals in the Congo, of which she is still president.

Claudine arrived in Congo as a child, with her father, who was a veterinary surgeon, and has lived there ever since. She ran an art boutique, sourcing and selling rare art works. She married Victor and has five children. When war disrupted daily life in Kinshasa, the capital city of the Democratic Republic of Congo, in the 1990s, Claudine worked as a volunteer in Kinshasa Zoo, because the animals had been neglected and were starving. Elsewhere in the country, people were finding traditional food production difficult, because of the war, and turned instead to bushmeat to feed themselves and their families. This in turn led to orphaned bonobo turning up for sale on the streets of Kinshasa - and it was from this situation that Claudine started Lola Ya Bonobo. Claudine portrays herself in the film, in both documentary and docudrama (recreated) footage based on actual events.

Luke Evans is a Welsh actor and singer. Evans began his career on the stage, performing in many of London's West End productions such as Rent, Miss Saigon, and Piaf before getting his breakthrough role in Hollywood starring in the Clash of the Titans 2010 remake, playing Apollo. Following his debut, Evans was cast in such action and thriller films as Immortals (2011), The Raven (2012), and the re-imagined The Three Musketeers (2011), in which he played Aramis.

In 2013, Evans starred as the main antagonist Owen Shaw in the blockbuster Fast & Furious 6, and also played Bard the Bowman in Peter Jackson's three-part adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit. Evans also portrayed the vampire Dracula in the character's film origin story, Dracula Untold. In "Bonobos: Back to the Wild," Luke provides the voice of "Beni" an orphaned bonobo, based on an actual rescued bonobo and his true story of rehabilitation and release to the wild.

Rebecca Hall is a British-American actress. In 2003, she won the Ian Charleson Award for her debut stage performance in a production of Mrs. Warren's Profession. She has appeared in the films The Prestige, Vicky Cristina Barcelona (for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe), The Town, Frost/Nixon, Iron Man 3, and Transcendence.

In June 2010, Hall won the Supporting Actress BAFTA for her portrayal of Paula Garland in the 2009 Channel 4 production Red Riding: In the Year of Our Lord 1974. She was also nominated for the Leading Actress BAFTA in 2013 for her role as Sylvia Tietjens in BBC Two's Parade's End. Rebecca provides the English-language narration voice for Claudine André in "Bonobos: Back to the Wild."

Alain Tixier directed "Bonobos: Back to the Wild," and is recognized as one of the most awarded and acclaimed documentary film producers and directors in France. His impressive resume includes multiple feature documentaries, television specials and series, including some of the following:


-2015 Bonobos: Back to the Wild
-2011 Beny: Back to the Wild (Documentary)
-1998-2006 Ushuaïa nature (TV Series documentary) (11 episodes)
-Retour vers la planète des singes (2006)
- Le temps du rêve et de la création (2005)
- Le désert des Léviathans (2004)
- Les sortilèges de l'Île Rouge (2002)
- Le trésor bleu (2001)
1996-1997 Opération Okavango (TV Series documentary) (3 episodes)
- Les rescapés du Gondwana (1997)
- Le Nil de glace (1996)
- On a marché sur la terre (1996)
1987 Ushuaïa, le magazine de l'extrême (TV Series documentary)

Vivian Schilling is an American novelist, actor and independent filmmaker. Born and raised in Kansas, Schilling studied at The Lee Strasberg Theater Institute and also under Stella Adler before embarking upon careers in literature and film. In 2012, Schilling completed work for Paris-based Eurocine Films as the writer, producer and director of the English adaptation of Toys in the Attic, based on the stop-motion, animated feature by Czech director Jiri Barta. The film was released theatrically in September 2012 and received top accolades from The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, USA Today and The New York Post among others.

Schilling has acted in a variety of leading roles in independent films since 1986, including Savage Land and the Polish film Niemcy, a World War II drama based on the stage play by Leon Kruczkowski. She portrayed feminist and author Gertrude Atherton opposite Campbell Scott's Ambrose Bierce in the film anthology Ambrose Bierce: Civil War Stories. Schilling also provided the voice of Buttercup in Toys in the Attic alongside co-stars Forest Whitaker, Joan Cusack and Cary Elwes.

Schilling has written two novels: Quietus (Penguin-Putnam) and Sacred Prey (St. Martin's Press), both released to critical acclaim.

For "Bonobos: Back to the Wild," Schilling performed all key production roles to bring the film to the U.S. and other English speaking audiences worldwide. The adaptation of the French script, as well as the casting and direction of talent, required the engagement of a filmmaker with writing, directoral and post-production experience. Schilling's adaptation of "Toys in the Attic" made her the perfect choice for SND Films and MC4 to engage as Producer. Schilling met with director Alain Tixier at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival to present her vision for the English version – which included subtitles for the French and Lingala language scenes to preserve the integrity of the documentary – with additions to the narration and voice over scripts to make it accessible to all ages. Schilling began recording talent at Warner Brothers DeLane Lea studios in London in February (2015), and finished the film's mix and mastering in June. BONOBOS: BACK TO THE WILD


Nature Docudrama
DIRECTOR: Alain Tixier
PRODUCERS: Jean-Pierre Bailly, Vivian Schilling
PRINCIPAL CAST: Claudine André, Luke Evans, Rebecca Hall
STUDIO: Hannover House
INITIAL THEATRICAL RELEASE DATE: July 31, 2015 (Washington, D.C., Expands Aug. 7, 14, 21)
RELEASE BREADTH: Top 20 DMA's (Limited Release)
TECH DETAILS: 84 Minutes, Dolby DTS, 1:1.85 aspect ratio
MPAA RATING: Pending (anticipated PG)

CONTACT:

Eric Parkinson
[e-mail]
479-751-4500

SOURCE: Hannover House, Inc.
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