A fateful moment occurred in Orlando, Florida on February 24, 2010 when a 12,000-pound, 22-foot killer whale, Tilikum, killed one of Sea World’s most gifted trainers, Dawn Brancheau. Although the joyful interaction between Tilikum and Ms. Brancheau usually delighted audiences at this famous theme park, there was no joy on the day that the giant orca pulled his trainer into the water and killed her.
“I didn’t understand why a killer whale would essentially bite the hand that feeds it,” stated Gabriela Cowperthwaite, in a recent ABC News article. Ms. Cowperthwaite is the filmmaker whose latest documentary Blackfish opens this week in theaters in New York and Los Angeles. It will also expand into other markets in subsequent weeks, and air on CNN this fall. In Blackfish, Ms. Cowperthwaite uses shocking footage and emotional interviews to tell the story of Tilikum, examining how Tilikum and Brancheau arrived at that fateful moment three years ago, and raising the question of whether killer whales should be held in captivity.
Interestingly, Ms. Cowperthwaite also stated in the ABC News article that “there is no documented case of a killer whale ever killing anybody in the wild. It’s only in captivity where these incidents have happened.” It was also reported that there have been four deaths involving killer whales in captivity, and Tilikum has been associated with three of them.
The film Blackfish will soon hit theaters across America and, hopefully, the public debate on the issue of keeping killer whales in amusement parks will no longer be ignored.
Check out the official trailer of the movie Blackfish…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8OEjYquyjcg
My husband and I saw this amazing documentary last month…..I feel utterly horribly for the poor Trainers injured and killed, and my heart absolutely BREAKS for the animals kept in captivity to the point where they’re literally driven mad. 🙁
It’s a sad situation all around. Heartbreaking! Thanks for commenting. So glad this film is reaching and affecting so many people.