The documentary film The Elephant Odyssey will be released in domestic theaters starting October 23, and later roll out in IMAX cinemas worldwide, overseas theaters and new media platforms. The announcement came at its premiere held in Beijing on October 21.

The Elephant Odyssey is China's first original IMAX documentary centered on Asian elephants. It brings to global audiences real events including the northward migration and southward return of the Yunnan Asian elephant herd in southwest China, as well as the rewilding and release of rescued elephant Ahbao.

The well-known Yunnan journey, captured in the documentary, began in March 2020, when a herd left the Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve and headed north. Crossing multiple prefectures and cities, they reached Jinning in Kunming, marking the northernmost range recorded for wild Asian elephants in China. Guided through soft intervention by the authorities and protected by local communities along the route, the herd traveled more than 1,000 kilometers before safely returning south in August 2021.

This "heading north and returning south" sparked a nationwide online "elephant-watching" sensation, was covered by more than 100 Chinese and foreign media outlets, and emerged as an iconic Chinese ecological story with global influence.

Co-produced by teams from China, Canada, Singapore, the U.S. and the UK, the documentary is directed by Chinese-American documentary filmmaker Gu Yujin, with Oscar-winning cinematographer Claire Popkin as director of photography.

Over three years, the crew made multiple field trips deep into Yunnan's tropical rainforests. Shot on specialized IMAX equipment, the documentary records the comprehensive conservation measures rolled out by the Chinese government to protect Asian elephants. It contributes China's wisdom and solutions to biodiversity protection and building a shared future for all life on Earth.

During the premiere, Gu and Popkin shared their memorable filming experiences in Yunnan's rainforests via video. Huang Xuan, actor and the film's goodwill ambassador, released a video message calling on audiences to watch the documentary and experience the harmony between humanity and nature.

"The Elephant Odyssey uses authentic footage to showcase the practices and achievements of China's ecological civilization development," Zhao Ling, a representative of China Foreign Languages Publications and Distribution Center, said in the opening remarks.

He said The Elephant Odyssey, as an international co-production, creates a platform for exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations. It explores effective international communication approaches for telling China's stories through emotional resonance, enabling audiences from different countries to learn about China's ecological conservation philosophies and practices via immersive viewing.

"Biodiversity is a shared concern for all humanity, and overseas audiences are eager to discover ecological stories from China," said Feng Bo, China general manager of Villa Beach Pictures Singapore. Drawing on observations and follow-up research into this globally noted human-elephant story, The Elephant Odyssey leverages international storytelling and visual power to illustrate the meaning of coexistence between humans and wildlife, and convey the core of China's ecological conservation efforts.

The Elephant Odyssey is guided by the State Council Information Office and the National Forestry and Grassland Administration (National Park Administration), and supervised by China Foreign Languages Publishing Administration, the Publicity Department of the Yunnan Provincial Party Committee, and China Film Co-Production Corporation. Its producers include China Foreign Languages Publications and Distribution Center, IMAX, and Villa Beach Pictures Singapore.