For immediate release.

Fernbank Museum Highlights Namibia’s Desert Elephants in New Film

“Desert Elephants” opens Jan. 18, 2025

ATLANTA, Dec. 10, 2024— Discover how even one of the driest deserts on earth, life finds a way to thrive in “Desert Elephants,” Fernbank Museum’s newest giant screen film. In a heartwarming and dramatic tale, the documentary follows Little Foot, the newest member of a desert elephant herd, as she and her family navigate life in the arid environment. “Desert Elephants,” opening Jan. 18, 2025, brings the story of an extraordinary elephant population on the brink to the giant screen for the first time in a timeless tale of resilience, ingenuity and family bonds through incredible cinematography and storytelling.

In the southwest corner of Africa is the Namib Desert, spanning almost twice the size of Texas. It’s here that “Desert Elephants” takes place, detailing how, despite having significant needs for water, these elephants have learned to thrive in this land of extremes. This film provides access to one of two populations of desert elephants in the world, totaling close to 150 elephants compared to a historic 2,500-3,500 in the 18th century.

“I don’t think you can meet elephants and spend time with them without being profoundly affected or changed by them,” filmmaker Paul Phelan said. “We need to give them a voice.”

Audiences will follow the elephant calf Little Foot, who is barely a month old, on an epic and whimsical journey, witnessing how the largest land mammals on the planet grow through important familial relations and use their adaptations to survive. With a slow reproduction cycle of 3+ years and a high mortality rate due partly to the desert conditions, every calf’s life is priceless. As they make their way across the desert, this herd of desert elephants teach Little Foot — and the audience — important lessons for survival, including how an elephant uses its trunk, how much food an elephant family should eat in a day and how the growth process for female elephant calves is integral to their relationship with their mother, whom they will stay with for their entire life.

Viewers will journey with this family as they search for fresh food and water amid a harsh landscape that is continuously drying due to an ever-changing climate. “Desert Elephants” shows how the herd’s matriarch uses intuitive “superpowers” to stay alive, through her ability to find a water source below ground and sense a dust storm 100 miles away.

As the herd makes its way to an oasis by the end of the film, guests will leave with a newfound hope for the elephant species as a whole. Although desert elephant numbers have dwindled, Little Foot stands as a beacon of hope for the future existence of the resilient desert elephants. 

“Desert Elephants”is produced by Definition Studios and distributed by K2 Studios in IMAX®/Giant Screen and other specialty theaters located in science centers, museums, and other cultural destinations and attractions worldwide.

“Desert Elephants” is sponsored locally by Isdell Family Foundation.

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Tickets 

Exhibits, films and Discovery Days are included with daytime general admission and with CityPASS. General admission tickets include three floors of exhibits in the natural history museum, choice of one giant screen film, and 75-acres of nature explorations in Fernbank Forest and WildWoods. Fernbank After Dark and some other special after-hours events are available at a separate ticket price and may include access to special exhibits. Fernbank is located at 767 Clifton Road NE in Atlanta, minutes from midtown Atlanta and downtown Decatur.  

For more information, visit FernbankMuseum.org. General admission tickets include a film in the Giant Screen Theater. These prices vary and can be found at FernbankMuseum.org. Tickets not purchased in advance are offered, if available, at a higher price at the Box Office. More information is available at FernbankMuseum.org. 

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 not-for-profit 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, and is today known for its giant dinosaurs, hands-on STEAM* programming, immersive experiences, and year-round nature exploration. Visit fernbankmuseum.org for more information and join the conversation on Facebook, Instagram, X, YouTube and TikTok.   

*Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics.