Blackfish Documentary

Documentaries are a form of genre in the film industry that aims to discuss a certain topic in the world, often trying to prove a point or persuade the audience towards a particular cause. The cove (2009), directed by Louie Psihoyos, is about the annual dolphin slaughter in Tai Ji that happens every year in Japan. It shows the ventures of the activist Ric O’ Barry who tries his hardest to expose the injustice within the industry. Blackfish (2013), directed by Gabriela Cowpertha is about the captivity of Orca Whales in public wild life parks such as Sea World. Very much like The Cove, Blackfish attempts to expose a certain dark side of what seems to be a harmless company and show the world that captivity can be dangerous for whales and even

The death of Dawn Brancheau made national news back in 2010. Dawn was working as an orca trainer at the SeaWorld of Orlando when the tragic accident occurred. While doing a relationship session with Tilikum, the largest orca in captivity, Dawn was pulled into the water and drowned. It was a story that not only shocked the nation but left people wondering how something so horrible could happen. Gabriela Cowperthwaite‘s use of the accounts of retired SeaWorld trainers exposed the harsh reality of captured animals in her documentary Blackfish. In creating a piece focused on the life of one orca, Cowperthwaite has allowed viewers to look into the lives of captured animals and has shown the greater social issue of animal rights, the treatment

Blackfish, directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite, tales of the beloved, yet infamous, killer whales are told in manner as to prove to the audience, those who might have visited SeaWorld or an attraction like it, how inhumane it is to keep such intelligent animals locked up, and how dangerous it is to those caretakers by their side, through the use of pathos heavy imagery, built up ethos during interviews, and humanizing some of the animal’s mannerisms as to build an emotional connection. Within the first few seconds of the documentary, a pathos heavy phone call takes place from the Orange County Sheriff’s Office which states that a S.O was needed for a trainer that was eaten by one of the whales. The phone call leaves the audience off guard

In the documentary “Blackfish”, the creators use rhetorical strategy to show the audience the cruel treatment of animals in facilities such as Sea World in order to promote release and fair care of animals in captivity. Commonly used in this documentary, pathos, is a strategy in which the author uses words and examples to invoke an emotion in the audience. Scenes of whales being taken from their family pod, or footage of a whale that had been raked by the teeth of another whale are prime examples of this emotional appeal in action. The main animal in this film is a twelve-thousand-pound whale named Tilikum. “Tilly” was taken from the wild about thirty years ago. Since then, he performs many shows, and experiences cruel treatment in almost every

The documentary, Blackfish, proves that there was and still is quite a bit of controversy over whether it is ethical to keep Orcas in captivity. Some people believe that it is acceptable since the Orcas are being treated and fed well. Other people, however, believe that this is not ethical because being kept in a tank for twenty years leads to aggression and therefore is too dangerous for humans. The documentary proves that there are many incidents, in the past, where a whale has harmed their trainer. One example of this, that made people more aware of the danger, was the death of Dawn Brancheau in 2010 (Cowperthwaite & Oteyza, 2013). The incidence has led to many different debates over the years and Sea World has had to try to refute the claims that were made about them. The claims were regarding their treatment of the whales and other issues. However, Sea World was not

Blackfish (2013) directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite argues that orcas in captivity, including entertainment aquariums such as Sea World live in abusive situations and poor conditions that can lead to mental problems. She argues this through the films use of interviews, video, and statistics.

For many years, we’ve been going to such places like, SeaWorld, and Six Flags, to see vast animals, like Orcas, also known as the killer whale, which we wouldn’t normally see out in the wild. Orcas have been around for millions of years; it’s known to be one of the smartest mammals, closest to humans. Since of their friendliness, people have taken advantage of them. For the past sixty years people have brought these massive creatures into their aquariums to make profit out of it, but never thought about their lives. What if you were kept in a cage for years, and was pushed to do such activities, you wouldn’t do in your normal life. While being in captivities, killer whales are forced to do plentiful tricks, which they normally wouldn’t do

Black Fish uses the death of a recognized Killer Whale trainer at SeaWorld, Dawn Brancheau who was one of Tilikums trainers thorough his twenty years in captivity, almost as a framing device to explore the theory that possessing Orcas in captivity is corrupt and unnatural for the whales. In Black fish, there are many different tragedies that went on while the Orcas were in captivity. Fisher men separated the young from the mothers and took them into SeaWorld. Many of the workers were unaware of all of the immoral actions they were taking part in. Tilikum was the Killer Whale that ended up killing Dawn Brancheau and causing a stir in SeaWorld. Having Orcas in captivity damages them but, the trainers were scared to leave because they want to continue to care for the whales. There is a relationship shared with the trainers and the whales yet it is obvious that very little was taught in the SeaWorld industry about these intelligent mammals.

In the documentary “Blackfish”, directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite, she discussed the harmful events that have occurred when keeping killer whales contained for show and entertainment purposes. Cowperthwaite argued the fact that the killer whales become aggressive when held captive in an area too small for them and separated from their families. Throughout the documentary there were many horrifying stories about the attacks told by people who had saw the tragedies first-hand.

The idea that orcas are wild and unpredictable in their behaviour is shown through the documentary Blackfish directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite through the visual conventions of celebrity figure and expert opinion to produce this idea. This idea is important because throughout the documentary we are told Orca’s held in captivity become aggressive and lash out because they are unpredictable and we see these examples of their

The claim further argues that said stress can be directly blamed for the violent outbursts of the orcas against the training staff. When whales are taken away from their families in the wild waters, they grieve the pain and suffering that is associated with that parting, thus making the whales an emotional time bomb. The documentary provides grounds to argue that orcas suffer the emotional repercussions of separation, much like humans do by with the fact that scientists have proven them to be conscious of human-like relationships and feelings via MRI’s. Moreover, included in this documentary was a commercial of a killer whale giving birth to baby Kalina. Much like our society, killer whales value their relationships with their offspring. Once Kalina was taken from her mother, Katina, is shown being immobile in the corner of the tank, audibly screeching and crying. Being able to see and hear the tragic response of the mother makes the audience empathize with the orca and want to cry for her. Incorporating this event shows how holding orcas in captivity can negatively affect them psychologically. This vivid scene gives the audience the ability to sympathize on a personal level with a mammal other than

Director Gabriela Cowperthwaite in the documentary, Blackfish (2013), argues that captivity triggers aggression in killer whales. Cowperthwaite supports her argument by demonstrating shocking footage and emotional interviews to present a convincing case against keeping these animals in captivity and for human entertainment. The author’s purpose is to show the problems that are caused by captivity in order to aware the audience that keeping killer whales in captivity affects their behavior mentally and physically. The author writes in resentful tone to Sea World, the people who visited Sea World, and those who were present during the killer whale incident. Gabriela Cowperthwaite argues that keeping killer whales in captivity at SeaWorld affects their mentality due to how they are being treated. She makes this argument by applying pathos, ethos, and logos.

In 2013 Gabriela Cowperthwaite produced and directed the documentary “Blackfish”. This documentary mainly focused on the issues behind killer whales being held in captivity such as at the famous amusement park Sea World, instead of the open ocean. Some negative outcomes of these animals being confined to such small spaces is, many accounts have been documented of the whales being agitated and having an aggressive tone with other whales and the trainers as well that work with them. A handful of these are human deaths caused by the orca whales. Throughout the documentary the director uses the Rhetorical strategies ethos, pathos, and logos to persuade the audience and try to convince them that her argument has a valid point and can be

Blackfish, a documentary filmed by director, Gabriela Cowperthwaite, centers around the neglect and mistreatment that large animals, like orcas, receive in captivity. The document’s purpose is to not only spread awareness about the treatment of orcas but to also cause a change in the situation they are forced to be in.

“Blackfish” the documentary film was created to reveal how confinement of killer whales can lead to dangerous behavior toward human trainers. The main claim this film displayed is how the captivity of Killer Whales triggers aggression and is unsafe for humans and other marine mammals. Blackfish uses the story of Tilikum (most aggressive killer whale who killed the most amount of Sea World trainers), interviews of previous trainers, and court hearings regarding OSHA and Sea World to support their claim.