Synopsis

US, 2017; 103 min.

Is big game hunting a murderous sport or one of the keys to saving endangered species? This is the controversial question at the core of this sprawling, complex and beautifully photographed look at the tensions that exist between wildlife conservation and the global hunting industry. A Sundance 2017 critics’ favorite, Trophy journeys from the U.S. to South Africa, as it introduces us to an array of sympathetic individuals: farmers and anti-poaching teams who passionately believe they are saving the animals (even as they watch them get slaughtered); hunters who cathartically cry after the kill; and the indigenous people who need animal meat to survive. Called “captivating [and] compelling” ( Indiewire.com) and “gorgeous [and] supremely confrontational” (Village Voice), Trophy is a masterfully crafted and provocatively nonjudgmental film that offers no easy answers. Courtesy of The Orchard.

director bios

Shaul Schwarz is an Israeli documentary film director, cinematographer and award-wining photojournalist. His feature-length documentary Narco Cultura premiered at Sundance in 2013 and screened at film festivals worldwide including The Berlin International Film Festival and Hot Docs. He has shot and directed content for TNT, The Discovery Channel, The History Channel, and CNN. He is also a regular photographic contributor to TIME Magazine and National Geographic. Schwarz is based in Brooklyn, New York and is currently producing short film content for online publications while developing his third feature-length documentary. He is the founder of Reel Peak Films.

Christina Clusiau is a documentary photographer and filmmaker living in Brooklyn, New York. Originally from northern Minnesota, Christina relocated to NY to pursue a photography career after years of working as a human rights educator. In 2007 she studied at the International Center of Photography then went on to work at TIME.com as a national picture editor. As a freelancer she has shot for TIME.com's film division, The Wall Street Journal, Real Simple and the Johnson & Johnson Foundation. Christina has been an artist in Residence at Chunches De Mar in Costa Rica and an Upper Midwest Human Rights Fellow. She is currently co-directing a film about Mississippi's last abortion clinic. She is the co-founder of Reel Peak Films.