All That Breathes is a poetic tribute to a New Delhi family that has devoted its life to rescuing black kites that fall wounded from the sky.
The documentary focuses on the family, which has been operating the rescue for decades with the help of donations and other funding sources, and then lyrically pans out for sweeping shots of the sky and cityscape.
With stunning cinematography and utmost attention to the tiniest detail (down to mosquitos buzzing over a puddle), Sen follows Wildlife Rescue cofounders Nadeem and Saud and their equally dedicated volunteer Salik.
The film is an ambitiously intricate study of the intersection of environmental collapse, religious tension, and the love of two Muslim brothers for a feathered scavenger unnervingly falling from a smoggy Delhi sky.
It’s a tale of high drama in which the avian stars serve as canaries in a toxic global coal mine soon to engulf us all.
Nadeem and Saud learned about skeletal and muscle structure and the like from being teenage bodybuilders. They learned about caring for “all that breathes” from their mother.
There’s a scene in which one of the brothers mentions a (February 2020) New York Times profile, which seems to have turned on the funding spigot for their Wildlife Rescue.
Sen hopes his film inspires audiences to feel a kinship with the black kites and their bird relatives. “I want audiences to leave the theater and immediately look up,” he says.
When he read a newspaper article about the brothers, he knew he had the emotional anchor of his story. He found the brothers in the basement with huge, heavy cutting machines and other equipment for producing their soap dispensers.
“I think the brothers want to share their knowledge, receive more knowledge and make a bid for more resources so that they can improve their conditions of work,” he says.
Highlights
Virtual Pre-Cannes Screenings For Buyers Before July Physical Market
TIFF Reveals Plans for Industry Conference
Films by Shekhar Kapur and Shubham Yogi Selected for Toronto Gala
A Selection to Die for
Le Musk: A Brave New Frontier in Cinema
The Path finder: Jyoti Deshpande
Toonz to Honour Aabid Surti, Biren Ghose at Animation Masters Summit
India is the Country of Honour at Cannes
RAVINDRA VELHAL: DRIVING MEDIA TRANSFORMATION
THE PATH FINDER: JYOTI DESHPANDE
INTO THE WORLD OF RRR
Powerkids Appoints Manoj Mishra as CEO
Toonz Join Tunche Films to Co-Produce Spanish-Peruvian Animation Feature Kayara
National Museum of Indian Cinema Hosts Vintage Vehicles
I&B Secretary promises Govt’s Support to Film industry
Tom Cruise’s ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ to Blaze at Cannes
Illumination’s Minions: The Rise of Gru is the Annecy Festival Opener
Now, Shoot at Sight in India!
Lata Mangeshkar, India’s Singing Goddess
Quantum Image Making Has Arrived
Indian Films To Look Out For In 2022
2022: Centenary of Indian Cinema Legends
Singing Legend Lata Mangeshkar, Nightangale of India, Dies at 92
Bhushan Kumar’s T-Series Ventures Into OTT Content Creation Space