POACHER HUNTERS
The Apocalypse Now of nature documentaries. This is the story of ex special forces turned licensed to kill mercenaries, who've dropped out of the first world to protect vanishing elephants from illegal poachers in Kasungu National Park, Malawi.
Outnumbered and underfunded, they push on, fighting a new type of battle, defending the undefended, as they atone for their actions in past wars.
They are fighting for a cause of their own choosing, beyond politics, beyond payment, and no doubt, beyond any search for glory.
. They once made their living protecting dignitaries in the war torn Middle East, served in Afghanistan and Chad, and guarded ships from pirate attacks off the Somali coast.
Today, these men who once sold their fighting skills to the highest bidder have marooned themselves in one of the most remote parts of
Malawi, unheralded and unknown, in service to the elephants they love.
Revenue from the illegal trade in endangered species is second only to the drug trade. The people who participate in this trade are as ruthless and violent as any drug cartel. Even with their sophisticated weapons and tactics, the anti-poachers are outnumbered by
by poachers who can live rough in the bush for weeks on end, and can disappear into the villages at a moment’s notice. They are highly motivated to do whatever they can to take ivory out of the park, destined to be sold for immense profit on the global black market.
The loss of wildlife due to poaching has reduced this once popular park to desolation. Tourism has dried up and the surrounding
villages suffer economically, perpetuating a cycle of poverty and spurs on the cruelty that causes it in the first place.
It’s not the eco doc we’re used to seeing. This is the story of flawed men, fighting not only elephant poachers, but their past
actions in war. They are fighting both battles with the only tools they know how to use, weapons and tactics; the tools of war.
It’s An Inconvenient Truth meets Cartel Land.