''The Serengeti Rules'' is a 2018 American documentary film directed by Nicolas Brown, and based on the book by

Sean B. Carroll Sean B. Carroll (born September 17, 1960) is an American Evolutionary developmental biology, evolutionary developmental biologist, author, educator and executive producer. He is a distinguished university professor at the University of Marylan ...

. The film explores the discoveries of five pioneering scientists— Tony Sinclair, Mary E. Power, Bob Paine, John Terborgh, and Jim Estes—whose decades of research laid the groundwork for modern ecology and offer hope that environmentalists today may be able to “upgrade” damaged ecosystems by understanding the rules that govern them. The film was produced by David Allen. Executive producers are David Guy Elisco, John Battsek and Dennis WC. Liu. ''The Serengeti Rules'' received support from Science Sandbox, an initiative of the

Simons Foundation The Simons Foundation is a private foundation established in 1994 by Marilyn and Jim Simons with offices in New York City. As one of the largest charitable organizations in the US with assets of over $5 billion in 2022, the foundation's mission ...

. The Serengeti Rules premiered April 21, 2018 at the

Tribeca Film Festival The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by Tribeca Productions. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive programming. Tribeca was f ...

and was released theatrically in select theaters in North America beginning on May 10, 2019 at the Quad Cinema in New York City. ''The Serengeti Rules'' aired as an episode of the

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

series ''

Nature Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. Although humans are ...

'' on October 9, 2019. The Serengeti Rules features the song “Society”, performed by Eddie Vedder, and written by Jerry Hannan.

Synopsis

Beginning in the 1960s, a small band of young scientists headed out into the wilderness, driven by an insatiable curiosity about how nature works. Immersed in some of the most remote and spectacular places on Earth—from the majestic Serengeti to the Amazon jungle; from the Arctic Ocean to Pacific tide pools—they discovered a single set of rules that govern all life. Now in the twilight of their eminent careers, these five unsung heroes of modern ecology—Bob Paine, Jim Estes, Mary Power, Tony Sinclair, and John Terborgh—share the stories of their adventures, and how their pioneering work flipped our view of nature on its head. Across the globe, they discovered that among the millions of species on our planet, some are far more important than others. They called these species “keystones,” because they hold the natural world together. The role of keystones is both revelatory and surprising: sea otters help kelp forests flourish, supporting everything from salmon to eagles; wolves enable rivers to run clear and help forests thrive; and the humble wildebeest controls the numbers of trees, butterflies, elephants, and even giraffes on the savanna. Unfortunately, these deep connections also work in reverse. When keystones are removed, ecosystems unravel and collapse—a phenomenon no one had imagined—or understood until their revolutionary discoveries. But with new knowledge also comes new hope, and these same visionaries reveal the remarkable resilience of nature—and how the rules they discovered can be used to upgrade and restore the natural world. They give us the chance to reimagine the world as it could and should be. Based on the book by Sean B. Carroll, The Serengeti Rules will forever change the way we see nature.

Awards

The Serengeti Rules has received the following awards: * 2019 Chuck Jonkel Scientific Legacy Award, International Wildlife Film Festival * 2019 Best Environmental Film, Vancouver International Mountain Film Festival * 2018 Wildscreen Panda Award: Smithsonian Channel Best Theatrical Film, Wildscreen Film Festival * 2018 Jackson Hole Science Media Award for Editing * 2018 Golden Owl Award, Best Science Documentary, Bergen International Film Festival * 2018 Green Fire Award, American Conservation Film Festival * 2018 Family Friendly Documentary, Maui Film Festival * 2019 Best Environmental Film, Sedona International Film Festival * 2019 Best Film, Ocean Environment; Best Film, Audience Choice; Waimea Ocean Film Festival * 2019 Prix Grand Écran, Festival international du film scientifique Pariscience * 2020

News & Documentary Emmy Award The News & Documentary Emmy Awards, or News & Documentary Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sci ...

nominee for Best Nature Documentary.

Cast

* Tony Sinclair (scientist, as himself) * Greg Kriek (Young Tony Sinclair) * Mary Power (scientist, as herself) * Ashlyn Jade Lopez (Mary Power age 8) * Samantha Nugent (Mary Power age 33) * Bob Paine (scientist, as himself) * Matthieson McCrae (Young Bob Paine) * John Terborgh (scientist, as himself) * Johnathan Newport (Young John Terborgh) * Jim Estes (scientist, as himself) * Jaime Excell (Young Jim Estes) *

(scientist, as himself) *Laurie Spiegel (Mary Power’s Mother)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Serengeti Rules 2018 films 2018 documentary films American documentary films Documentary films about environmental issues 2010s English-language films 2010s American films