Photo: Angie Wilson
Melinda MACINNIS The rhino is a majestic, iconic mammal that has wandered this planet in one form or another for over 50 million years. Most species of rhino, up until recently, have been listed as critically endangered, but over the course of a few years their numbers have taken a turn for the worst. The Western Black Rhino is gone, wiped from existence and the other species are sadly not far behind. Melinda MacInnis is a warrior, fighting to spread the word about Africa and Asia’s most endangered animals. After befriending one of the oldest conservation families in southern Africa, she decided enough is enough and turned to filmmaking as a method of spreading the word on this tragic loss of life. “I decided I couldn’t sit on the sidelines any more,” said Melinda. “More and more people are turning to documentaries to obtain vital information about the state of the planet and things that aren’t being covered properly in regular media.” With this goal in mind, she has been working on the production of her latest and greatest project called The Price. The Price is a documentary that takes a look at the rhino as a gatekeeper to our planet’s delicate ecological balance and potential precursor to an even greater crisis, a Sixth Mass Extinction event. “A lot of this stuff is quite dark,” confided Melinda, “so as we head into post production, our largest task is working to turn the natural outrage that most people feel when they learn about what’s going on, into something inspirational.” Currently in post-production, The Price will be ready for release in early 2015. Melinda MacInnis feels that every person on this planet has a role to play in improving the deeply intertwined relationship between humans, animals and our environment. “It doesn’t take a whole generation to evolve our attitudes and actions,” she urges, “we can start an ‘evolution’ revolution right now.” thepricedocumentary.com
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