Thank you Disneynature for inviting us to screen
Disneynatureâs all-new feature film âPenguinsâ is a coming-of-age story about an AdĂŠlie penguin named Steve who joins hundreds of thousands of fellow males in the icy Antarctic spring on a quest to build a suitable nest, find a life partner and start a family. None of it comes easily for him, especially considering heâs targeted by everything from killer whales to leopard seals, who unapologetically threaten his happily ever after.
We screened Penguins at Disney Studios and it was the perfect backdrop to witness a day in the life of the AdĂŠlie penguin. Afterward, Academy Award-winning producer Roy Conli answered our many questions about the film.

Here are a few Facts from our Q & A with Producer Ron Conli:
- Disneynature Penguins was completely filmed in the Antarctic over 900 days!
- Cinematographers had to travel up to two weeks to get to some locations because of the icy conditions and YES, this was the most challenging nature film made by Disney to date.
- Filming took 3 years to get various shots. Areal views, which took about a year, are shot separately from land and the colony filming was filmed in a batch.
- Penguins are more curious about humans than afraid, therefore making filming them fairly
easy . - Disneynature’s Penguins focus is on the AdĂŠlie penguin which stands about 27 inches tall and weighs 6-13 lbs.
- Steve, discovered at Cape Crozier and the star of Penguins, is set out to become a first-time dad and is shown building a nest, selecting his mate and sharing parenting responsibilities like keeping the eggs warm, watching the young while his mate fetches food and even feeding them!
- Within one month, baby penguins grow as big as their parents.
- No one has ever filmed a penguin eating!
- Cinematographers kept a safe distance and did not enter the colony or nesting areas. The close-ups were filmed with long lenses.
- The AdĂŠlie penguin lives amongst the most difficult weather conditions on the planet in Anartica, traveling
upto 3000 miles during winter migration with temperatures as low as -40 degrees!

According to director Alastair Fothergill, not all penguins are created equal. âThe AdĂŠlie penguin is by far the most characterful penguin on the planet,â he says.

âPeople may be more familiar with Emperor penguins, but theyâre actually pretty mellow. I like to say that Emperor penguins are the California surfers and AdĂŠlie penguins are New York City taxi drivers. They have

âEven though theyâre birds, theyâre really aquatic creatures, and in the
water theyâre unbelievably graceful and elegant, fast and agile. But on land, theyâre so awkward; they walk with this sort of weird wobble. And yet, they have such spirit and moxie because they persevere in these crazy Antarctic conditions.â ~ Ed Helms, film narrator

âPenguinsâ continues Disneynatureâs conservation tradition: for every ticket sold opening week (April 17-23, 2019), Disneynature will make a donation to the Wildlife Conservation Network (WCN) to help protect penguins across the southern hemisphere.
PENGUINS opens in theatres everywhere on April 17th! Tickets HERE
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Visit the official website here: https://nature.disney.com/penguins


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