The Eagle With the Sunlit Eye
- Directed by: Ted Simpson
- Released: 2024 (educational)
- Year of Production: 2023
We drove it to extinction. We brought it back. Can we learn to look it in the eye?
The White Tailed Eagle is one of the largest birds of prey on the planet. For generations, humans have struck an uneasy relationship with this apex predator. We persecuted it to extinction in Britain a century ago - and then the 1970s saw this greatest of eagles brought back to our wild edges.
The return of this apex predator sparked controversy, as accusations of livestock killings quickly surfaced from Scotland’s rural community. Despite no record of predation in Norway, and with an Irish reintroduction scheme ongoing, in Scotland a war of words rages on over the future of this raptor.
This film dives unflinchingly into the conflict, just as the fire burns white hot. Pulling back the curtain on the reintroduction process, combining breathtaking visuals with heart stopping action, and even turning the cameras onto the filmmakers themselves, this epic documentary ultimately asks us - will we ever learn to live alongside the eagle with the sunlit eye? And what will we lose if we can’t?
Ted Simpson is a documentary filmmaker fascinated by stories from the wild edges, where people and nature collide.
He is best known for his first documentary feature, ‘The Cull - Scotland’s Deer Dilemma’, an intelligent, thought provoking film that delved deep into the fiery debate surrounding deer management and rewilding in the Scottish Highlands. Created in close collaboration with producer Finbar O’Sullivan, the film allowed space for each voice in the debate to be heard, posing questions to the audience and challenging them on their preconceptions throughout.
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