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The HeroRats of Cambodia.

In Cambodia humans and rats work together to clear a deadly remnant of decades of war, landmines.

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The HeroRats of Cambodia.

The HeroRats of Cambodia.

The HeroRats of Cambodia.

The HeroRats of Cambodia.

The HeroRats of Cambodia.

In Cambodia humans and rats work together to clear a deadly remnant of decades of war, landmines.

In Cambodia humans and rats work together to clear a deadly remnant of decades of war, landmines.

In Cambodia humans and rats work together to clear a deadly remnant of decades of war, landmines.

In Cambodia humans and rats work together to clear a deadly remnant of decades of war, landmines.

Bethany Staley
Bethany Staley
Bethany Staley
Bethany Staley
1 Campaign |
Bristol, United Kingdom
$1,787 USD $1,787 USD 21 backers
71% of $2,517 Flexible Goal Flexible Goal
Overview
In Cambodia the charity APOPO has trained the Giant African Pouched Rat to detect, using their sense of smell, unexploded landmines. The HeroRats of Cambodia is a short documentary which will follow this unique relationship as humans and animals work together to rid the country of landmines and make Cambodia a safer place for its civilians. It will also highlight the impact this work has had on the local Cambodian people who have no choice but to live alongside the minefields.

Hello!

My name is Beth Staley. I am an environmental filmmaker currently studying a masters degree in Wildlife Filmmaking at the University of the West of England in partnership with the BBC Natural History Unit. For my masters, I am producing a broadcast quality 10-13 minute short film which will be screened to industry leading natural history filmmakers in October 2019 in Bristol. I also intend to take the film to film festivals and use it to promote the incredible work that the charity APOPO is undertaking. However, to create this film I need your help. 

I have always been fascinated with the environment and have dreamt of being a wildlife filmmaker from a very young age. I am also a keen in conserving our environment and want to marry my love of film and passion for the environment together to create films that have a lasting impact. Whilst studying my undergraduate degree in human geography I came across the fascinating topic of conflict and animals and this is where I discovered APOPO and the herorats. 

The Cause 

APOPO is a charity dedicated to finding unique ways to help combat the vast numbers of landmines and other unexploded ordinances left in countries that have experienced terrible conflict. The charity has trained Giant African Pouched Rats to detect landmines that have yet to be discovered using their sense of smell. The rats are too light to set landmines off meaning they can run freely over landmine affected areas without being injured. They also work 90 times faster than human de-miners can. This means that APOPO can clear areas of land affected by mines much more quickly and less expensively. So far in Cambodia they have discovered and destroyed 45,000 landmines and unexploded ordinance and handed back to local communities 15 million square metes of land. This work has been invaluable for local communities and means they can now work and play safely. Unfortunately, due to decades of conflict in the country, 64,000 landmine and other explosive remnants of war casualties have been recorded in Cambodia since 1979. With over 40,000 amputees, Cambodia has the highest ratio of mine amputees per capita in the world. 

The Story

The story within my film will follow two central characters, a rat and a rat handler as they work together to achieve a common goal. That goal is to make Cambodia a safer place for its civilians. However, I will also feature personal stories from local Cambodian people to emphasise the impact this work is having for communities across Cambodia and highlight just how valuable these rats are. Within my film I particularly want to depict the close bond APOPO rat handlers have with their rat counterparts. Each rat is cared for incredibly well by their handlers. They are each given names and are looked after individually by their assigned handlers. Because of this, there is an intimate bond between the handler and his/her rat. All of these narrative strands will be woven together within my film to create a story which emphasises the scope of the issue that landmines are having in Cambodia but also a unique way in which we can combat them. 

 

The Impact

With this film, I hope to raise awareness of the incredible work that the charity APOPO is conducting and show just how valuable the rats and rat handlers have been to the local Cambodian people. Landmines and other unexploded ordinance still litter the landscape of many countries around the world affected by war and conflict. In fact in 2017 there were nearly 20 landmine related injuries a day across the world. This is a huge issue, affecting thousands of innocent civilians that we cannot ignore. It it my hope that this film will bring to light this issue and also emphasise a unique solution to combat this problem.

The Location

This film will be located in the South-East Asian country of Cambodia. Filming will mainly be centred around the city Siem Reap and the land to the north and west. This is where the majority of landmines still exist in Cambodia. 

 

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