For immediate release.

This Earth Day, Fernbank Museum Gets a Little More Wild
“Serengeti: Journey to the Heart of Africa” Opens in the Giant Screen Theater on April 22

ATLANTA, APRIL 05, 2023— In celebration of Earth Day, Fernbank Museum invites visitors to a land of iconic, diverse and untamed animal life in “Serengeti: Journey to the Heart of Africa.”  This film will open in Fernbank's Giant Screen Theater on April 22.

Life happens in the Serengeti on an unprecedented scale. This impressive land is home to one of nature’s most spectacular events: the annual wildebeest migration. Viewers will be immersed in the intricately symbiotic ecosystem of east Africa, where more than one million wildebeest migrate in accordance with the flourishing short grass plains that depend on growth during rainy seasons. An astounding number of animals are impacted in some way by the wildebeests’ annual migration, including elephants, lions, cheetahs, pink flamingos, hippos, crocodiles and more.

Audiences will learn about other animals’ roles in navigating life in the Serengeti, including elephants’ impact on tree removal and deepening rivers, lions’ regulation of the grazing population and vultures’ role at the end of an animal’s life. “Serengeti: Journey to the Heart of Africa” also gives an inside perspective into the learning experiences that young animals go through as they follow alongside their parents, from lion cubs learning to hunt to wildebeest calves beginning to run.

The Serengeti is considered one of Africa’s seven natural wonders and for months during the global lockdowns, the film’s award-winning cinematographers were able to film it in a uniquely uninhabited setting.

“There wasn’t a single tourist in the park,” says filmmaker Michael Dalton. “This hasn’t happened since probably the 1970s or 1980s.”

Dalton has been to the Serengeti countless times in his life, and explored remote reaches of the landscape rarely seen by others. This deep, abiding familiarity with the ecosystem, combined with nearly unfettered access during filming, offered unparalleled opportunities to capture wildlife and vistas from perspectives few visitors — let alone filmmakers — have ever experienced.

From aerial views of the “Great Migration” filling the vast plains from horizon to horizon to haunting scenes of a lion’s breath steaming in the moonlight, “Serengeti: Journey to the Heart of Africa” offers audiences a thrillingly fresh, timeless window into a wilderness they only thought they knew.

“Our mission was to take our audience in there with the animals, so that as we move, you move with the animals. You’re within the herds; you feel like you’re part of the landscape,” says the film’s producer David Gross. “When you present the film in an impressive giant screen theater, it gives you the closest thing to actually being there in person.”

“Serengeti: Journey to the Heart of Africa” is produced by Definition Films and distributed by K2 Studios in Giant Screen and IMAXâ theaters at science centers, museums, aquariums and specialty theaters worldwide. This film is sponsored locally at Fernbank by Isdell Family Foundations.

“Serengeti: Journey to the Heart of Africa” will play daily in Fernbank’s Giant Screen Theater at Fernbank, starting April 22. General Admission tickets include daytime access to the museum, WildWoods, Fernbank Forest and the choice of one Giant Screen film. Tickets are available for purchase at FernbankMuseum.org for $25.95 for adults, $24.95 for seniors, $23.95 for children ages 3-12, free for children ages 2 and younger, and free for Fernbank Members. These prices are for tickets purchased online at FernbankMuseum.org. Tickets not purchased in advance are offered at the museum, if available, at a higher price.

Fernbank is located at 767 Clifton Road NE in Atlanta, minutes from midtown Atlanta and downtown Decatur.

IMAXâ is a registered trademark of IMAX Corporation.

Media Inquiries: 
Jena Allison, Communications Manager 
Jena.Allison@FernbankMuseum.org
404.929.6381 

About Fernbank 
Fernbank is one of the most popular and iconic cultural destinations in Atlanta. Known as  Atlanta's Science and Nature Experience, Fernbank invites guests to discover a World of Wow  through an expansive natural history museum, 4-story Giant Screen Theater and 75 acres of  nature adventures in WildWoods and Fernbank Forest. One of the oldest nonprofit  conservation organizations in the country, Fernbank was founded in 1939 to preserve Fernbank  Forest, the largest urban, old growth, Piedmont forest in the United States. The museum and  Giant Screen Theater opened as "a school in the woods for nature studies" on Oct. 5, 1992.  Fernbank is today known for its giant dinosaurs, hands-on STEAM* programming, immersive  experiences and year-round nature exploration. Visit FernbankMuseum.org for more  information. 
*Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics.