LOS ANGELES, Dec. 11, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Byron Horner,
Executive Producer and President of Spirit Bear Entertainment and
distributor MacGillivray Freeman Films announced today that
Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds has
signed on to narrate Great Bear Rainforest set in one
of the planet's most exquisite and secluded
wildernesses.
Hidden from the outside world, Canada's Great Bear Rainforest is home to an
immense array of wildlife, including the fabled all-white spirit
bear—the rarest bear on earth—and the indigenous First Nations, who
have provided stewardship of the forest for millennia.
Great Bear Rainforest is the first time this
wildlife-rich world will be experienced in IMAX and giant screen
theaters when it is released globally on February 15, 2019.
"We can't think of a more perfect fit for this project than
Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds," says
Director Ian McAllister, who is also
Canadian and has lived and worked in the Great Bear Rainforest for
30 years. "Ryan is a wonderful representative for the ongoing
conservation of this globally significant rainforest which is part
of his Canadian heritage and we are thrilled he will be our
narrator."
"I want my children to know there is still an area in this world
that has remained wild, and will remain that way, because of the
long history of stewardship shown by indigenous people," says
Ryan Reynolds. "I hope this
film inspires the younger generation that there is hope for the
future if we all work together and take care of our planet's
remaining wild places."
The main title theme for the film will be composed by the
legendary Academy Award®-winning composer, Hans Zimmer with the score being composed by
Anže Rozman for Bleeding Fingers Music, produced by Russell Emanuel.
"When I saw the footage that Ian
McAllister and Byron Horner
showed me of their film I could not help but be swept away by the
spellbinding imagery of this truly remarkable place," said Zimmer.
"I was so moved by the beauty and grandness of this environment
that I felt compelled to be involved on a deeper level and I am
excited to be a part of the team."
"Featuring three First Nations' youth sharing in their own
voices their intergenerational conservation efforts, the Great Bear
Rainforest represents two firsts. This is the first giant screen
film for IMAX theaters shot exclusively in British Columbia and the first to feature
Indigenous Peoples in Canada,"
shares Executive Producer Byron Horner.
Director Ian McAllister and
producer Jeff Turner and their crews
spent three years filming throughout the remote reaches of the
Great Bear Rainforest. From the underwater ocean world,
through the salmon river valleys to the ice-capped peaks of the
Coast Mountains, their unprecedented close-up footage of the spirit
bear, along with stunning shots of the forest's coastal wolves,
grizzlies, sea otters, humpback whales, sea lions, salmon and the
annual herring spawn will thrill audiences who may not even know
that such a world exists.
"When we first saw some initial footage of Great Bear
Rainforest, we were absolutely captivated by the visuals
and knew this was a story that must be told on the giant
screen," added Shaun
MacGillivray, president of MacGillivray Freeman
Films. "There is no more powerful format for showcasing the
extraordinary beauty of this ancient rainforest."
Ryan Reynolds is the star
and producer of Fox's hit Deadpool franchise. He is
currently shooting Michael Bay's
6 Underground for Netflix and will soon be heard as the
voice of 'Detective Pikachu' in Legendary/Warner Bros
Pokémon: Detective Pikachu. He is currently working on a
slate of films as a producer through his company Maximum
Effort.
Hans Zimmer has scored more than 150 projects
across all mediums, which, combined, have grossed more than
$28 billion dollars at the worldwide
box office. Zimmer has been honored with an Academy
Award®, two Golden Globes®, three Grammys®, an American Music
Award, and a Tony® Award. Zimmer most recently co-scored the
critically acclaimed Blade Runner 2049 alongside
Benjamin Wallfisch, which earned the
pair BAFTA and Critics' Choice nominations for Best Score.
Additionally, Zimmer created the score for Christopher Nolan's Dunkirk, for
which he was nominated for multiple awards including an Academy
Award, Grammy Award, Golden Globe, BAFTA Award, and Critics' Choice
Award. Other notable scores of Zimmer's
include Gladiator, The Thin Red
Line, As Good as It Gets, Rain
Man, The Dark
Knight trilogy, Inception, Thelma and
Louise, Black Hawk Down and The Last
Samurai. Upcoming projects include a live-action remake
of The Lion King, which will be released by Disney
in 2019 and Widows, which will be
released later this year and reteams Zimmer with director
Steve McQueen. Last
summer, Zimmer completed a highly successful, critically
acclaimed tour across Europe and
the U.S.
Great Bear Rainforest is a Spirit Bear
Entertainment film presented by Seaspan and directed by
Ian McAllister, produced by
Jeff Turner and executive produced
by Kyle Washington and Byron Horner. The film is distributed by
MacGillivray Freeman Films. Great Bear
Rainforest will be released in select IMAX and giant
screen theaters beginning February
15, 2019. The film will be accompanied by a companion
book written by Ian McAllister and
Alex Van Tol and published by Orca Book Publishers.
About Spirit Bear Entertainment
Based in Parksville, British Columbia, Spirit Bear
Entertainment Inc. is a film production company focused on natural
history documentaries. As part of making the Great Bear Rainforest,
Spirit Bear Entertainment executed protocol agreements with
Gitga'at, Kitasoo Xai'xais and Heiltsuk First Nations in whose
traditional territories we filmed the Great Bear Rainforest.
About Seaspan
Seaspan is an association of Canadian
Companies primarily involved in coastal marine transportation, ship
docking/ship escort, ship repair and shipbuilding services in
Western North America. In addition
to the marine transportation services offered directly through
Seaspan, commercial ferry, shipyard and bunkering services are
provided via affiliate companies: Marine Petrobulk, Seaspan
Ferries, Vancouver Drydock, Vancouver Shipyards and Victoria
Shipyards. Seaspan has a long tradition working with First Nations
on the coast of British
Columbia.
About MacGillivray Freeman Films
MacGillivray Freeman
Films is the world's foremost independent producer and distributor
of giant-screen 70mm films with 40 films for IMAX and giant-screen
theaters to its credit. Throughout the company's 50-year history,
its films have won numerous international awards including two
Academy Award® nominations and three films inducted into
the IMAX Hall of Fame. MacGillivray Freeman's films are known for
their artistry and celebration of science and the natural world. It
is the first documentary film company to reach the one-billion-dollar benchmark for worldwide box
office.
http://greatbearrainforestfilm.com
Media Contacts:
MacGillivray Freeman Films
Boutique Publicity
Lori
Rick
Risa Chapnick & Ariana Swan
949-494-1055
818-305-6053
lrick@macfreefilms.com
risa@boutiquepublicity.com
ariana@boutiquepublicity.com
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SOURCE MacGillivray Freeman Films