Pride

The lions are from the wild.
The voices are from Hollywood.
The story is from the heart.

Real animals are the stars of this groundbreaking, live-action family film, set against the visually stunning backdrop of East Africa. It combines breathtaking natural history footage, cutting-edge animation techniques and sophisticated animation techniques that allow the animals to talk to each other and tell the story themselves.

Accepting the traditions of family life can sometimes prove too much for a mischievous young lion cub like Suki. But on the whole, growing up in the Serengeti is good, and it seems nothing can disturb the harmony of her peaceful pride. Then tragedy strikes, and it tests her courage and exposes the laws and forces of nature in her struggle to survive.

Featuring the voices of: Kate Winslet(Titanic), Helen Mirren(Prime Suspect), Sean Bean(The Lord of the Rings), Rupert Graves(Maurice), Jim Broadbent (Moulin Rouge!) and Robbie Coltrane (Harry Potter and the Sorcer's Stone)

"Endearing, witty and tense, and probably the best family-based television drama of the entire festive period." -Guardian
"The footage garnered was spectacularly successful... the script was ... especially sharp when dealing with parent-child interaction..." -The Times
"A beautifully shot natural-history drama." -Independent
"Simon Nye ( Men Behaving Badly ) has done a great job of writing a storyline designed to support an impressive dramatised interpretation of a lion's life"- Observer
"For once, an all-star line-up - direction by John Downer, script by Simon Nye, the voices of a dazzling cast - delivers the goods, reinventing the Disney-style animal movie. Animatronic trickery allows lions filmed in Africa to speak Nye's words, as Kate Winslet's enchanting Suki falls for the marauder menacing her pride. Ideal family viewing."- Sunday Times
"Without doubt, the most charming programme of the last few days was Pride. Hidden cameras caught these animals close-up, and computer wizardry not only made their mouths move so that they appeared to speak, but also altered their faces so that they could express emotions such as anger, fear, sadness and joy. Human stars, who would have cost a fortune to assemble if they had appeared on screen... provided the voices, and Simon Nye's script was one of his sharpest and funniest since Men Behaving Badly at its prime."- Daily Star
"A triumph of technical skill and imagination... Downer's photography was breathtaking. A lot of it was achieved with the use of ' bouldercams', which he invented and used to great effect in Lions - Spy In The Den. But it was the combination of lions looking as if they really were talking and Nye's genius at giving each of them totally individual characters that made Pride such a memorable and enjoyable television event. The actors were, without exception, quite brilliant... All great fun for what pantomime publicists used to call 'children of all ages'. If it isn't destined to be a regular Christmas feature, I'll eat my antelope."- Daily Mai
l "What makes this even better than The Lion King is that the stars are real lions - filmed on the plains of the Serengeti. But thanks to some amazing animation from the Henson Creature Shop and an all-star cast of human voices, this pride can talk. And a very funny script it is too... There are few things cuter than lion cubs, and Pride has all the ingredients to be a roaring success with the whole family."- Mirror
"The wildlife is beautiful to watch and the drama of the big cats' lives made to feel very real. It's a winning work of imagination and with genuine animal stars, a cut above Disney's The Lion King."- Express
"Against all odds, the whole thing works... the line-up of talent involved is astonishing. The original footage is by John Downer, who made Lions - Spy in the Den and Bears - Spy in the Woods. Pride is very cleverly made and - if you can suspend the cynic in your soul - as charming as a box of kittens."- Evening Standard

On a lush African savannah, a contented pride of Lions have everything they need to live - a grove of trees for shade, a river and plentiful food. But as two young cubs, Suki and her brother Linus, play under the watchful eye of their mother Macheeba, the tranquillity of the pride is cruelly disturbed by an attack from the rival Wanderers, a group of lions recently moved in to the land across the river.

They are dubbed the Wanderers because they come and go and seem wild and restless. Two huge Wanderer males Dark and Harry injure a number of the Pride, and kill one of their lionesses, before being driven off by Macheeba. She takes the dead lioness's cub Fleck under her wing. Suki and Linus aren't too thrilled about sharing their mother with the orphaned Fleck, but Pride rules dictate that they must all pull together if they're to survive.

The Wanderers move on, and the Pride slowly recovers from the fatal attack. Suki, Linus and Fleck start to explore the savannah, and their playfulness and youthful bravado lead them into dangerous encounters: they meet a spitting cobra; have a near fatal run-in with a crocodile; get chased by a herd of elephants.

As Suki grows up, she becomes known as a rebel and questioner of everything, not to mention a stroppy teenager. She rebels against her mother's hunting lessons, telling her she doesn't want to kill, and complaining about the fact that the female lions are expected to do all the hunting while the male lions just sleep all day and preen themselves. Macheeba is shocked by her daughter's refusal to hunt. She explains that killing is a necessity - just the way things are. The news circulates that the Wanderers have moved back into the neighbourhood. Fleck repeats wild rumours that they eat each other, ride on the backs of elephants, sleep with their eyes open. In defiance of Macheeba's stern warnings to steer well clear of the rival lions, Suki persuades Linus to come with her on an adventure into enemy territory.

They find themselves surrounded by a pack of hyenas. Linus escapes, cowardly leaving Suki to her fate, but the Wanderer Dark comes to the rescue, picking off the hyenas one by one. Suki is captivated by Dark's courage, and his wild, brooding manner. The male lions in her own pride seem weak and dull by comparison.

The cubs are nearly fully grown - Linus is still cowardly and nervous, and Suki still dreams of her encounter with Dark. A drought is drawing in and food is less plentiful. Driven by the need for food, the Wanderers move closer and now only a dwindling stream separates the two prides. Suki sees Dark across the stream, bravely seeing off a bull elephant, fuelling her childhood fantasies.

Macheeba warns Suki against taking a mate from another pride - what's wrong with the males in her own family, like Fleck? He clearly likes Suki, but she's just not interested. Relations between Suki and Macheeba get increasingly fraught, and when the young lioness decides to adopt an antelope as a pet rather than kill it, it's the final straw for her mother.

The two have a furious row, and Suki runs away from home, crossing the river in search of Dark. He and Suki mate, and she takes the biggest step of her life: she turns her back on the Pride, and joins the Wanderers. Her family are devastated: Linus calls to her across the stream that renouncing her pride is a terrible thing and she'll live to regret it. Macheeba misses her daughter desperately. If only she hadn't driven her away.

Suki soon finds that life with the Wanderers is not as wonderful and exciting as she'd expected. Their territory is sparse, she misses her family and the Wanderers are openly hostile to her, especially when she refuses to hunt. The struggle to find food is becoming desperate for both prides, and skirmishes between them over prey are frequent.

When Suki discovers she's pregnant, she hopes she'll now be accepted into the Wanderers, but as far as they're concerned it's just more mouths to feed. Suki gives birth to three beautiful cubs, but within days two of the cubs go missing - Suki suspects Harry of their murder, but he threatens to kill her last remaining cub if she tells Dark of her suspicions.

Suki overhears Dark and Harry planning an attack on her pride to take their territory. She realises now that Dark is not the hero she thought he was, and that her loyalties lie with her own pride. Under cover of night, she and Cub sneak out of the Wanderers' camp, crossing the stream to warn Linus and Fleck of the impending attack. But they won't forgive her and won't let her and her cub back in. Suki and Cub, ostracised from both prides, hole up in the increasingly hostile, parched landscape.

With an attack from the Wanderers looming, Linus starts to organise the Pride's defences. Without Suki to fight his battles for him, Linus has begun to grow in confidence and courage. But with food short, and Fleck's announcement that he's leaving the pride, Linus can't help wondering if they've got the strength to withstand an attack.

Meanwhile in the wilderness, Suki and Cub are desperately hungry. She needs to keep her cub alive, so Suki is forced to hunt and kill for the very first time, using tips she picked up from the Wanderers. She feeds her cub, and leaves the remains of her prey for her family's pride to feed on. Suki tells Cub that she now knows her mother was right: you need to belong to a community where everyone has their role. She shares her feelings, and her fears for her pride with Lush, a handsome young lion who she encounters in the wilderness. He used to belong to the Pride, and is now on his way back home.

The Pride wait nervously for the Wanderers' assault. They're low on numbers, so when Lush appears to join their ranks, followed by Suki, it's a gift from heaven. When the Wanderers finally attack, Linus is shocked to see Fleck among their number. But the Pride are well prepared, and put up a brave defence. With fire raging around them, Linus and Lush take on Dark and Harry, while Suki takes on Fleck, quickly getting the upper hand. But Suki stops dead, when she sees the psychopathic Harry holding her beloved Cub in his jaws.

Harry is about to kill the little lion, when Dark steps in and saves his cub. Linus finishes Harry off, proving to his family and to himself that he's become a proper male, with the courage and strength to lead his pride. Dark looks at Suki tenderly, knowing it's all over, and he and his fellow Wanderers' limp back defeated to their side of the river.

Suki's family welcomes her back, grateful for her act of bravery. In a touching reunion, she introduces Macheeba to her first grandchild. At last, Suki is back where she belongs, among her own pride. The nightmare is over. The prides' territories are defined once more and the rain has brought more food. Suki and Lush mate, and together they produce cubs. Suki shows off her cubs across the river to Dark, and the two prides face each other across the water, reconciled - at least for now...

Real animals are the stars of this groundbreaking, live-action family film, set against the visually stunning backdrop of East Africa. It combines breathtaking natural history footage, cutting-edge animation techniques, a high-profile voice cast, a skillfully judged script by Simon Nye and sophisticated animation techniques that allow the animals to talk to each other and tell the story themselves. Accepting the traditions of family life can sometimes prove too much for a mischievous young lion cub like Suki. But on the whole, growing up in the Serengeti is good, and it seems nothing can disturb the harmony of her peaceful pride. Then tragedy strikes, and it tests her courage and exposes the laws and forces of nature in her struggle to survive.

Cast
Suki. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Kate Winslett
Macheeba. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Helen Mirren
Dark. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Sean Bean
Linus. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Rupert Graves
Fleck. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Martin Freeman
James. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Robbie Coltrane
Eddie. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jim Broadbent
Harry. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .John Hurt
Lush. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Kwame Kwei-Armah
Production Credits
Written by. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Simon Nye
Directed by. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .John Downer
Produced by. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .John Downer
Executive Producer. . . . . . . . . . . . . Laura Mackie