Spirit Bears appear in Sience Centre
We are some of those lucky to see the screening of the new IMAX movie “Great Bear Rainforest”. This new documentary allows us to get into one of the most exquisite and secluded wilderness – Canada’s West Coast rainforest. This place is a natural habitat for Spirit Bears, a subspecies of the North American black bear that has white fur due to rare genetic trait.
This is the only place where Spirit Bears can be found; here 1 in every 10 bears has this cream-coloured coat. To compare – elsewhere in the world only 1 in million black bears born white. No-one knows how many of them in the world – the estimate is from 50 to 100.
The First Nations people populating the area never hunted the Spirit Bear; and today the younger generation helps research the unique bears and study their environment.
The film is not just about bears; it shows wide range of forest species and rich underwater world. The forest life is very dependent upon the not so noticeable but very powerful herring. Herring fuels the habitants of the forest providing all necessary nutrients to people and to animals.
For the First Nations People the traditional means of harvesting herring is a prime example of how sustainability has always been part-and-parcel of their way of life. They wait until herring lay their clusters of eggs on strands of kelp and only then harvest the eggs, never harming the fish!
The filmmakers spent three years in rainforest to make sure they capture all the details of wildlife and deliver such a complete and touching story. They had to take some risks to get some incredible shots – lowering the cameramen on a belay over the wall of the falls or swimming through rapids with the camera…
Book Signing event with movie director Ian McAllister 
Great Bear Rain forest Books on display 
Great Bear Rain forest Book Signing
The high professionalism of the crew makes the film full of moments when we all felt as being part of the environment – as a bird flying over the mountain or joining the surf scoters, black and white sea ducks, in their feeding on the herring eggs.
This is only a small insight – the unforgettable experience awaits, so don’t miss this unique chance!
The film is accompanied by a book “Great Bear Rainforest: A giant Screen Adventure in the Land of the Spirit Bear” by photographer and filmmaker Ian McAllister and co-author Alex Van Tol. The book takes you behind the scenes and tells about he challenges of filmmaking in such a challenging environment.
