Ultimate Showdown Between Elephant and Giraffe for Scarce Water in WWF Campaign

Cirkus performs an Astonishing Animal Wrangling Act for WWF.

Freshwater is the source of life. It’s what makes Earth unique in the known universe. It’s also a resource under threat. Just 3% of water on the planet is fresh water and only about 1% is readily available for human use, making it precious.

 

The one-two punch of global population growth and climate change means we must be innovative and committed when it comes to water management and conservation. 

 
 
World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the world’s leading conservation organization, is working to protect fresh water ecosystems and improve water access, efficiency, and allocation for people and the environment. Those coming together to make up an essential component for saving most of WWF’s priority of places and species, and reducing the impact of humanity’s water footprint.
 
With the above in mind, Human Cannonball Romain Borrel came up with this simple but poignant storyline of an elephant and giraffe fighting over a bottle of water in the African heat. In true Cirkus spirit, the animals contort themselves and each other to get a drink, though there is no clear winner. Then again, with your support they might just be helped!
giraffe stares down at elephant trunk in battle
surreal tangled giraffe neck and elephant trunk
All animation departments at the Bigtop were asked to push the envelope to bring this spectacle and the animals to life.
 
A special thank you goes out to Wildlight Safari’s Dean Fitzpatrick who filmed the background plates at Namibia’s Pelican Point – home of the desert elephant, the oldest desert and the second driest place in the world! We would also like to give a BIG shout out to The Sound Room for the film’s sound design and music.
 
So please show your appreciation for this film and it’s cause, and donate to WWF today!
 
A standing ovation for:
Cirkus Team
Director: Romain Borrel
Modeling & Texturing: Mahesh Dammoju, James Turnbull, Jonathan Paccou, Fredrick Ueberle and Merith de Haas
Rigging: Richard Maegaki and Shuo (Tim) Liu
Particle Animation: Chris Lyne, Christian Greet
Animation: Jester Joon Seok Yoon, Shuo (Tim) Liu, Karl Davis
Lighting and Rendering; James Turnbull and Chris Lyne
Producer: Marko Klijn
Account Management: Meta Bindinga
Sound Design: Marshall Smith and Tom Fox at The Sound Room
Live action background plates: Patricia Ko and Dean Fitzpatrick of Wildlight Safaris.
WWF:
Richard Lee, Communications manager for WWF’s global Freshwater Practice
Bonnie Chia, Head of Brand at WWF International