Four years. One pride. One lion\u2019s growth from cub to king. On Aug. 18, the California Science Center IMAX Theater in Los Angeles hosted the world premiere of Disney and National Geographic\u2019s documentary \u201cLion.\u201d<\/p>\n
Directed by Disney Legend Jon Favreau and BBC Studios Natural History creative director Mike Gunton, \u201cLion\u201d follows the life of Kio, a young lion cub who grows into a king. Over the course of four years, Favreau, Gunton and the \u201cLion\u201d team captured Kio\u2019s journey from just a timid cub to powerful King lion.<\/p>\n
The night kicked off with Favreau and Gunton (executive producers), Sophie Darlington (director of photography), Simon Blakeney (co-executive producer), Niccol\u00f2 Pacella (Bleeding Fingers Music composer), George Hutson Warren (Bleeding Fingers Music composer) and Russell Emanuel (co-founder, president and CEO of Bleeding Fingers Music) walking the carpet.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The idea for \u201cLion\u201d came from Gunton, who wanted to follow a pride of lions over four years.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been working with Mike for a long time and we worked on a lot of projects together,\u201d Favreau said. \u201cMike approached me to do a documentary without any digital work. We went to National Geographic with this idea of following a pride of lions for four years. It was an ambitious project, and we wanted to give it a shot.\u201d<\/p>\n
The opportunity to be alongside a pride of lions is a rare experience for anyone. Blakeney recalls his memorable experience of working beside these animals.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing able to spend so much time with the lions, and when they walk past the car or you see them wake up and stretch, they are so magnificent, and it\u2019s such a joy to spend time with them,\u201d Blakeney said.<\/p>\n
When capturing the story of the lions, Darlington\u2019s mindset was to let the lions tell their own story in their own words, if they could speak.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were trying to let the lions tell their own story, and we just followed them for four years,\u201d Darlington said. \u201cWe have a proper story of drama, power, family and joy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Music is essential for storytelling. Emanuel and Bleeding Fingers Music\u2019s process of creating the score began at the heart of Africa.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe pictures inspire us, and we do what feels right when producing the score. When we went to Africa, it was a crazy, primitive yet emotional connection you make with music. To say it was inspirational would be an understatement,\u201d Emanuel said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Four-Part Series of \u201cLion\u201d is available on National Geographic and streams today on Disney+ and Hulu.<\/p>\n
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