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Balakrishna

2019 15 min
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When an extraordinary new resident – Balakrishna, an Indian elephant – arrived in the town of East River, Nova Scotia, in 1967, no one was more in awe of the creature than young Winton Cook, who became inseparable from his mammoth new friend. Using painterly animation, photographs and home-movie treasures, Balakrishna transmits the wistfulness of childhood memories, while evoking themes of friendship and loss, and issues of immigration and elephant conservation.

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Balakrishna

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When an extraordinary new resident – Balakrishna, an Indian elephant – arrived in the town of East River, Nova Scotia, in 1967, no one was more in awe of the creature than young Winton Cook, who became inseparable from his mammoth new friend. Using painterly animation, photographs and home-movie treasures, Balakrishna transmits the wistfulness of childhood memories, while evoking themes of friendship and loss, and issues of immigration and elephant conservation.

  • writer
    Colin MacKenzie
    Aparna Kapur
  • director
    Colin MacKenzie
    Aparna Kapur
  • art director
    Aparna Kapur
  • animator
    Aparna Kapur
  • additional animation
    Élise Simard
    Claire Blanchet
  • compositing
    Élise Simard
    Claire Blanchet
  • story consultant
    Shandi Mitchell
  • picture editor
    Susan Shanks
  • voice
    Grady Ainscough
  • voice direction
    Teri Snelgrove
  • original music
    Judith Gruber-Stitzer
  • sound design
    Judith Gruber-Stitzer
  • assistant sound editor
    Sandy Pinteus
  • musician
    David Gossage
    Joe Grass
    Jason Sharp
  • director of photography
    Santosh Sivan
  • assistant camera
    Sojan Vn
  • production manager
    Milind Verekar
  • location manager
    Anirudh Menon
  • consulting elephant biologist
    Nibha Namboodiri
  • technical coordinator, project
    Steve Hallé
  • shooting equipment specialist
    Steve Hallé
  • interview recording
    Allan Scarth
  • foley
    Karla Baumgardner
    Geoff Mitchell
  • music recording
    Geoff Mitchell
  • voice recording
    The Mix Room
  • audio engineer
    Jamie Mahaffey
  • technical director
    Éloi Champagne
  • technical animation coordinator
    Randall Finnerty
  • post-production coordinator
    Daniel Lord
    Jean-François Laprise
  • technical coordinator
    Christopher MacIntosh
  • digital technical coordinator
    Isabelle Painchaud
    Pierre Dupont
    Patrick Trahan
  • researcher
    Colin MacKenzie
    Vincenzo Ravina
    Ashley Corbett
  • rights clearances
    Hélène Dubé
  • consultant
    Bruce Alcock
    Tina Ouellette
    Claire Blanchet
    Donald McWilliams
    Firas Momani
    Fred Casia
    Hélène Dubé
    Michael Crummey
  • transcription
    Dyane Provost
  • titles
    Cynthia Ouellet
  • online editor
    Denis Pilon
  • re-recording
    Jean-Paul Vialard
  • production coordinator
    Christine Williams
  • senior production coordinator
    Camila Blos
  • production manager trainee
    Marian Rebeiro
  • studio administrator
    Leslie Anne Poyntz
  • marketing manager
    Johanna Lessard
  • publicist
    Patricia Dillon-Moore
    Jennifer Mair
  • legal counsel
    Christian Pitchen
  • associate producer
    Teri Snelgrove
  • associate producer - development
    Mylène Augustin
    Jon Montes
  • producer - investigate
    Maral Mohammadian
  • producer
    Kat Baulu
  • executive producer
    Annette Clarke
  • executive director
    Michelle van Beusekom

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