1 00:00:04,500 --> 00:00:06,920 RADIO CHATTER 2 00:00:09,080 --> 00:00:11,400 I've got less than ten days now. 3 00:00:15,000 --> 00:00:16,280 Time's ticking. 4 00:00:20,320 --> 00:00:21,760 As soon as we arrived, 5 00:00:21,760 --> 00:00:23,680 we heard a roar. 6 00:00:23,680 --> 00:00:25,640 So, he's definitely around. 7 00:00:42,080 --> 00:00:44,800 SCREECHING 8 00:01:20,240 --> 00:01:23,360 I have two minds fighting each other. 9 00:01:27,840 --> 00:01:31,240 One is to see the gorillas 10 00:01:31,240 --> 00:01:33,200 being habituated, 11 00:01:33,200 --> 00:01:37,640 so they get used to humans. 12 00:01:37,640 --> 00:01:40,600 BARKING AND SCREECHING 13 00:01:46,600 --> 00:01:51,520 But one is to have Mpungwe remaining wild. 14 00:01:54,640 --> 00:01:59,120 I just wish I knew a little bit more about what I was getting into. 15 00:02:06,280 --> 00:02:09,280 SCREECHING 16 00:02:33,080 --> 00:02:36,640 As a wildlife cameraman, I've been lucky enough 17 00:02:36,640 --> 00:02:39,200 to film the most iconic animals on the planet. 18 00:02:45,200 --> 00:02:50,920 But gorillas hold so much significance to me. 19 00:02:57,840 --> 00:03:03,440 You find these creatures only right in the middle of Africa. 20 00:03:08,240 --> 00:03:10,840 This... This is where I come from. 21 00:03:21,720 --> 00:03:26,640 Now, I'm heading to document the mission to save the last remaining 22 00:03:26,640 --> 00:03:28,320 eastern lowland gorillas. 23 00:03:31,000 --> 00:03:33,920 NEWS FOOTAGE: - Mobutu could do nothing to stop the panic 24 00:03:33,920 --> 00:03:37,880 and lawlessness in Kinshasa. - Pressure from war, deforestation, 25 00:03:37,880 --> 00:03:41,920 and poaching has pushed these creatures to the 26 00:03:41,920 --> 00:03:43,400 verge of extinction. 27 00:03:44,640 --> 00:03:48,160 - During the war, half the population of these gorillas 28 00:03:48,160 --> 00:03:51,320 were killed and eaten for bushmeat. 29 00:03:53,280 --> 00:03:58,080 - To combat this, the government has turned to eco-tourism. 30 00:03:59,840 --> 00:04:01,880 - Oh, wow! Fantastic! 31 00:04:04,520 --> 00:04:08,800 - Tourist income will pay to ensure the gorillas are protected 32 00:04:08,800 --> 00:04:10,800 and their habitat is secured. 33 00:04:17,200 --> 00:04:22,080 The goal is to habituate a family of gorillas, 34 00:04:22,080 --> 00:04:27,160 a process designed to gradually get them used to humans. 35 00:04:32,800 --> 00:04:35,040 This is... This is our group. 36 00:04:35,040 --> 00:04:39,680 But will the gorillas' highly protective alpha male be 37 00:04:39,680 --> 00:04:41,440 willing to accept us? 38 00:04:43,080 --> 00:04:45,800 In the end, it's all down to him. 39 00:04:57,280 --> 00:05:00,520 We are in Democratic Republic of Congo, 40 00:05:00,520 --> 00:05:04,840 invited by the Kahuzi-Biega National Park. 41 00:05:10,840 --> 00:05:14,960 What is at stake here is the survival of this creature. 42 00:05:20,640 --> 00:05:26,600 So, what we are going to be doing is following habituation, 43 00:05:26,600 --> 00:05:31,360 essentially a process of getting a group of wild gorillas used 44 00:05:31,360 --> 00:05:38,520 to a human presence, so tourists can safely enter their territory. 45 00:05:39,680 --> 00:05:43,640 What we are going to be doing, no-one has filmed before. 46 00:05:45,280 --> 00:05:47,760 Every day, for the next three months, we're going to try to 47 00:05:47,760 --> 00:05:51,960 get closer, gradually becoming part of the gorilla family. 48 00:05:53,560 --> 00:05:57,680 But with primates, it's never easy. 49 00:05:59,000 --> 00:06:04,040 The last thing they want to do is hang around humans. 50 00:06:04,040 --> 00:06:06,480 To them, you are a threat. 51 00:06:09,560 --> 00:06:14,040 Gorillas usually live in a family of between five and ten, 52 00:06:14,040 --> 00:06:18,400 led by an alpha male, which is the silverback. 53 00:06:20,200 --> 00:06:25,240 99% of gorilla films are with habituated gorillas. 54 00:06:25,240 --> 00:06:29,760 The habituated group is not dangerous to film. 55 00:06:31,080 --> 00:06:34,200 But to film a non-habituated group, 56 00:06:34,200 --> 00:06:36,800 you're putting your life in danger 57 00:06:36,800 --> 00:06:40,680 because the silverback is there to protect every single 58 00:06:40,680 --> 00:06:43,760 member of his family. 59 00:06:45,760 --> 00:06:52,400 The silverback is about three times my size. He weighs 250kg. 60 00:06:52,400 --> 00:06:55,360 And their strength is unprecedented. 61 00:06:55,360 --> 00:06:58,680 Him attacking me would be lethal. 62 00:06:58,680 --> 00:07:01,480 With that said, as a wildlife cameraman, 63 00:07:01,480 --> 00:07:05,160 I like to film really wild animals. 64 00:07:05,160 --> 00:07:08,440 Then, you get to see the behaviour that you've never seen before. 65 00:07:11,040 --> 00:07:12,920 That's what does it for me. 66 00:07:15,920 --> 00:07:21,040 However, with a truly wild silverback, will three months 67 00:07:21,040 --> 00:07:25,320 be enough for him to essentially accept me into his family? 68 00:07:57,360 --> 00:07:59,280 - OK, let's go now. 69 00:09:14,080 --> 00:09:15,120 - OK. 70 00:09:20,160 --> 00:09:22,280 To habituate a gorilla family, 71 00:09:22,280 --> 00:09:27,520 essentially, you are trying to show them that you are a friend, 72 00:09:27,520 --> 00:09:30,840 and you do this by acting like them. 73 00:09:38,400 --> 00:09:40,920 BEATS LOUDLY 74 00:09:48,880 --> 00:09:50,520 CLAPPING 75 00:09:50,520 --> 00:09:53,640 RUSTLING 76 00:09:55,040 --> 00:10:00,720 For them to see us acting the same is to reassure them, 77 00:10:00,720 --> 00:10:05,080 to make them feel comfortable around us. 78 00:10:10,360 --> 00:10:12,440 PATTING CHEEKS 79 00:10:24,320 --> 00:10:27,920 Filming gorillas always feels magical to me. 80 00:10:27,920 --> 00:10:30,280 I can't get enough of them. 81 00:10:31,840 --> 00:10:34,200 PATTING STOMACH 82 00:10:43,400 --> 00:10:44,680 Yes! 83 00:10:45,760 --> 00:10:49,600 The thing that I love the most about filming gorillas 84 00:10:49,600 --> 00:10:54,200 is observing how similar they are to us. 85 00:10:55,840 --> 00:10:57,080 Their expression... 86 00:10:58,080 --> 00:10:59,280 ..mannerism... 87 00:11:00,640 --> 00:11:05,200 ..the dexterity of their hands, just...just like us. 88 00:11:08,280 --> 00:11:12,120 In fact, gorillas are so similar to us, 89 00:11:12,120 --> 00:11:15,960 they can catch human diseases. 90 00:11:15,960 --> 00:11:20,920 That's why, when they are in close proximity to us, 91 00:11:20,920 --> 00:11:22,880 we have to wear masks. 92 00:11:25,480 --> 00:11:31,680 I mean, they are one of our closest cousins, behind chimps and bonobos. 93 00:11:35,880 --> 00:11:39,360 The baby's playing, that means the silverback is not very far away. 94 00:11:52,360 --> 00:11:55,200 Gorillas are just constantly on the move, 95 00:11:55,200 --> 00:11:59,320 looking for bamboo shoots, or other foliage to eat. 96 00:12:00,920 --> 00:12:05,280 They can quite easily cover up to 5km a day... 97 00:12:07,000 --> 00:12:10,480 ..so to keep up with them is really exhausting. 98 00:12:52,080 --> 00:12:56,240 The silverback is about 20 metres from us, 99 00:12:56,240 --> 00:13:00,680 through this very thick foliage. 100 00:13:00,680 --> 00:13:05,360 No way I can film it because it's really dense. 101 00:13:10,120 --> 00:13:13,640 SCREECHING 102 00:13:29,960 --> 00:13:35,200 This is a completely different story to what I normally do 103 00:13:35,200 --> 00:13:39,440 when I film gorillas. The habituated group is already used to humans. 104 00:13:41,240 --> 00:13:46,000 These gorillas are wild. They don't know us, they can't trust us, 105 00:13:46,000 --> 00:13:48,800 especially the silverback, you know, he's very serious. 106 00:13:48,800 --> 00:13:50,200 He's got a job to do. 107 00:13:50,200 --> 00:13:52,960 Look after his family, look after his females. 108 00:13:58,960 --> 00:14:00,920 BARKING 109 00:14:15,920 --> 00:14:18,240 SCREECHING 110 00:14:40,440 --> 00:14:43,240 SCREECHING AND BARKING 111 00:14:44,920 --> 00:14:50,360 When the habituation starts, a silverback will charge. 112 00:14:51,480 --> 00:14:54,600 That charge is a way of saying, 113 00:14:54,600 --> 00:14:58,400 "Look, I've got a family here, so back off." 114 00:15:01,040 --> 00:15:04,880 But if you stand your ground, it stops him moving forward. 115 00:15:04,880 --> 00:15:08,680 SCREECHING 116 00:15:46,680 --> 00:15:52,320 I didn't quite realise how heavy habituating gorillas was. 117 00:15:52,320 --> 00:15:56,320 You really have to keep following them. 118 00:15:56,320 --> 00:16:01,240 If people disagree with this method, I can totally understand. 119 00:16:01,240 --> 00:16:04,600 But you have to be cruel to be kind 120 00:16:04,600 --> 00:16:08,120 and this is the pure example of it. 121 00:16:12,640 --> 00:16:14,880 Back in the '80s, 122 00:16:14,880 --> 00:16:18,840 habituation also helped mountain gorillas. 123 00:16:18,840 --> 00:16:22,400 There were around 400 left 124 00:16:22,400 --> 00:16:27,760 and then, Virunga, Bwindi National Park followed the same process. 125 00:16:27,760 --> 00:16:32,440 Now, we have more than 1,000 individuals, 126 00:16:32,440 --> 00:16:34,200 so it works. 127 00:17:13,360 --> 00:17:14,960 CHUCKLES 128 00:17:16,000 --> 00:17:17,760 Amazing! 129 00:17:25,480 --> 00:17:29,600 Yes, they tend to move around, according to where they're going to 130 00:17:29,600 --> 00:17:34,120 be eating at the end of the day, and then if they find around that 131 00:17:34,120 --> 00:17:38,160 area, everything is perfect, they will start building their nests. 132 00:17:44,680 --> 00:17:47,080 That is genius! 133 00:17:47,080 --> 00:17:49,960 She just pulled the curtain down 134 00:17:49,960 --> 00:17:54,240 to cover herself and her baby. 135 00:17:54,240 --> 00:17:58,200 Who told you that gorillas don't know what privacy is all about? 136 00:18:03,720 --> 00:18:07,160 That was a successful day, I would say. 137 00:18:07,160 --> 00:18:11,240 I can see how the habituation has progressed quite far already, 138 00:18:11,240 --> 00:18:14,960 in terms of how relaxed the juveniles are. 139 00:18:17,400 --> 00:18:21,680 However, it feels like we still got a long way to 140 00:18:21,680 --> 00:18:27,480 go before the silverback and other adults accept us. 141 00:18:30,280 --> 00:18:33,840 And I can see it's a tough job for these eco-guards, 142 00:18:33,840 --> 00:18:37,480 who've devoted their lives to gorillas. 143 00:18:37,480 --> 00:18:39,360 It's really tough. 144 00:19:12,080 --> 00:19:15,280 There are certain things about this very country that 145 00:19:15,280 --> 00:19:17,800 I'll react straight away. 146 00:19:20,120 --> 00:19:23,880 Although they seem really happy, from my point of view, 147 00:19:23,880 --> 00:19:29,280 I feel like... Come on, they deserve better than that, big time. 148 00:19:29,280 --> 00:19:34,000 These guys work really hard and what do they get in return? 149 00:19:36,480 --> 00:19:41,960 I am quite ashamed that the majority of the people 150 00:19:41,960 --> 00:19:46,400 in this country live on less than $1 a day. 151 00:19:46,400 --> 00:19:48,120 Literally nothing. 152 00:19:52,480 --> 00:19:57,000 Let's face it, I am one of them. It's just that I was lucky. 153 00:19:57,000 --> 00:20:01,040 I was born with parents that had different opportunities. 154 00:20:08,160 --> 00:20:11,960 I was born in a very large family, 155 00:20:11,960 --> 00:20:15,440 if you see it from a Western point of view. 156 00:20:15,440 --> 00:20:20,120 A family of eight and I'm right in the middle, number four. 157 00:20:22,600 --> 00:20:27,480 My mother was a headteacher and my dad was a medical doctor. 158 00:20:29,960 --> 00:20:35,320 We lived in the Republic of Congo, in the capital, Brazzaville. 159 00:20:35,320 --> 00:20:39,440 We weren't poor. I never struggled for anything, really. 160 00:20:39,440 --> 00:20:43,080 It was a strong family, really strong together. 161 00:20:43,080 --> 00:20:48,320 But sadly, I've got like two photos of my childhood. 162 00:20:48,320 --> 00:20:51,520 One of me and my sister and brothers 163 00:20:51,520 --> 00:20:54,840 and maybe one of my grandad, as well. 164 00:20:54,840 --> 00:20:59,520 But, yeah, most of our stuff was completely destroyed. 165 00:21:06,280 --> 00:21:08,320 Back in 1997, 166 00:21:08,320 --> 00:21:11,600 when the country was going through a huge upheaval, 167 00:21:11,600 --> 00:21:14,800 we were living outside the country at the time. 168 00:21:14,800 --> 00:21:19,080 Therefore, the house was left alone. 169 00:21:25,040 --> 00:21:28,400 We were amongst those who weren't lucky. 170 00:21:30,840 --> 00:21:33,400 The house was looted and burnt. 171 00:21:40,760 --> 00:21:42,680 So, we lost all our belongings. 172 00:21:46,680 --> 00:21:50,160 That very region in the '90s was completely 173 00:21:50,160 --> 00:21:53,040 affected by political instabilities. 174 00:21:54,920 --> 00:21:57,720 The Democratic Republic of Congo 175 00:21:57,720 --> 00:22:00,200 also went through consecutive wars... 176 00:22:03,840 --> 00:22:08,280 ..and that also affected the numbers of the gorillas, 177 00:22:08,280 --> 00:22:09,880 so the population plummeted. 178 00:22:11,680 --> 00:22:16,160 And the eastern part of the DRC, where I currently am, 179 00:22:16,160 --> 00:22:21,160 hasn't fully recovered and it's possible that unrest 180 00:22:21,160 --> 00:22:24,560 can break out again and that's the reason 181 00:22:24,560 --> 00:22:26,240 why I'm making this film, 182 00:22:26,240 --> 00:22:30,440 to give the park visibility, to make sure that the 183 00:22:30,440 --> 00:22:35,400 gorillas are protected and their home is protected. 184 00:23:21,840 --> 00:23:25,320 So, today will be focusing on the silverback, 185 00:23:25,320 --> 00:23:30,600 because he is the one that will open the gates for us. 186 00:23:35,640 --> 00:23:37,320 For the last two weeks, 187 00:23:37,320 --> 00:23:41,400 I haven't been able to fully see the silverback. 188 00:23:41,400 --> 00:23:44,960 He's always been hiding behind the foliage. 189 00:23:44,960 --> 00:23:50,040 But today, I really would like to see him face-to-face. 190 00:23:50,040 --> 00:23:54,880 That's the only way I can start building trust with him. 191 00:23:54,880 --> 00:23:59,400 I can see how difficult it is to actually habituate 192 00:23:59,400 --> 00:24:05,000 a group of gorillas because they just want to make sure that 193 00:24:05,000 --> 00:24:08,680 there's the distance between you and them. 194 00:24:08,680 --> 00:24:13,440 As soon as you cross that little boundary, the male charges. 195 00:24:13,440 --> 00:24:15,840 SCREECHING AND BARKING 196 00:24:30,920 --> 00:24:32,120 OK. 197 00:24:33,640 --> 00:24:34,880 This is... 198 00:24:36,920 --> 00:24:38,320 ..so challenging. 199 00:24:59,720 --> 00:25:00,760 OK. 200 00:25:44,040 --> 00:25:45,560 Which female is this one? 201 00:25:45,560 --> 00:25:47,560 - Tuliya. 202 00:25:47,560 --> 00:25:49,280 - She's extremely confident, huh? 203 00:26:02,880 --> 00:26:04,680 This female we're filming here, 204 00:26:04,680 --> 00:26:07,720 she's slightly different to the rest of the group. 205 00:26:07,720 --> 00:26:12,920 She's fully habituated. That's why she's quite relaxed, 206 00:26:12,920 --> 00:26:15,720 being only seven metres away 207 00:26:15,720 --> 00:26:19,680 and that's why she's got the name Tuliya. 208 00:26:19,680 --> 00:26:21,600 When you have a name, that is 209 00:26:21,600 --> 00:26:24,560 the last stage of the habituation process. 210 00:26:28,160 --> 00:26:31,160 This is how relaxed we are hoping Mpungwe 211 00:26:31,160 --> 00:26:33,560 and the rest of his family will become. 212 00:26:35,320 --> 00:26:36,960 - Hello. - Yeah? 213 00:26:36,960 --> 00:26:40,200 - Is it possible to follow the silverback? - Ah, oui, yeah. 214 00:29:01,600 --> 00:29:02,920 Yes. 215 00:29:04,040 --> 00:29:05,280 Look at that! 216 00:29:15,000 --> 00:29:19,920 It amazes me how a two and a half hundred kilogram creature 217 00:29:19,920 --> 00:29:22,240 can climb a tree like that. 218 00:30:30,320 --> 00:30:32,040 OK. 219 00:30:37,440 --> 00:30:41,040 No, I wasn't hiding at all. I was just, you know... 220 00:30:41,040 --> 00:30:46,200 It's just, I started to feel a connection with the group. 221 00:30:46,200 --> 00:30:51,160 And I think about these poor creatures being persecuted. 222 00:30:51,160 --> 00:30:55,760 And all they do is look after their families like any creature 223 00:30:55,760 --> 00:30:58,800 should do on Planet Earth, you know? 224 00:31:03,080 --> 00:31:06,320 And beyond that, I'm also trying to connect to this silverback, 225 00:31:06,320 --> 00:31:07,960 you know? 226 00:31:09,760 --> 00:31:12,360 This...patriarch. 227 00:31:17,560 --> 00:31:20,880 Gorillas are very much like humans. 228 00:31:22,920 --> 00:31:28,560 We share more than 98% of our genetic codes with them. 229 00:31:30,160 --> 00:31:34,800 And whenever I spend time with these cousins of ours... 230 00:31:36,240 --> 00:31:40,680 ..I can't help drawing similarities between their world 231 00:31:40,680 --> 00:31:42,480 and my world. 232 00:31:48,960 --> 00:31:54,080 It's bizarre I think that way, but every time I film the silverback... 233 00:31:56,560 --> 00:32:01,640 ..I always think of loads of resemblances 234 00:32:01,640 --> 00:32:04,040 to my grandad, Bonifas. 235 00:32:08,880 --> 00:32:12,760 This sort of sense of family protection, 236 00:32:12,760 --> 00:32:16,440 there's a sense of, you know, gentleness, 237 00:32:16,440 --> 00:32:21,000 the mannerism, how he holds himself, 238 00:32:21,000 --> 00:32:24,440 how he talk, how he looked at people. 239 00:32:25,920 --> 00:32:31,080 Everything a proud and confident man would want to be, 240 00:32:31,080 --> 00:32:32,720 he had it all. 241 00:32:36,320 --> 00:32:37,640 People in the community 242 00:32:37,640 --> 00:32:41,240 and within the family really looked up to my grandad. 243 00:32:41,240 --> 00:32:44,200 He was the pillar in the family. 244 00:32:45,960 --> 00:32:47,720 The patriarch, you know. 245 00:32:49,040 --> 00:32:52,320 And I always wanted to be like him. 246 00:32:54,120 --> 00:32:57,440 The protecting figure, the leading figure... 247 00:32:59,440 --> 00:33:00,720 ..the silverback. 248 00:33:20,640 --> 00:33:24,080 I feel like we have taken a big step forward. 249 00:33:24,080 --> 00:33:28,080 Now that me and Mpungwe have looked at each other in the eye, 250 00:33:28,080 --> 00:33:32,480 I hope we have started to build some trust between us. 251 00:33:32,480 --> 00:33:38,080 Now, I would love to see if he can let me get a bit closer, 252 00:33:38,080 --> 00:33:42,000 to meet some of his family that he's been protecting so well. 253 00:33:44,760 --> 00:33:49,240 I know it must not be easy for him to let his guard down 254 00:33:49,240 --> 00:33:53,600 because gorillas and humans still don't have the best relationship. 255 00:33:53,600 --> 00:33:58,240 A fact that these rangers are trying to change. 256 00:35:15,320 --> 00:35:16,880 HE CLAPS 257 00:35:27,120 --> 00:35:29,880 - First, I was a park ranger. 258 00:35:29,880 --> 00:35:32,160 The gorilla habituation officer. 259 00:35:32,160 --> 00:35:36,560 Now, I'm a consultant to the park. 260 00:35:36,560 --> 00:35:39,240 When they need something related to the gorillas, 261 00:35:39,240 --> 00:35:42,360 training rangers and so on, they always come to me. 262 00:35:59,880 --> 00:36:01,200 - OK. 263 00:36:11,440 --> 00:36:15,520 - Until 1937, this was a free forest, 264 00:36:15,520 --> 00:36:17,640 where everyone had access. 265 00:36:21,320 --> 00:36:26,520 The Belgian colony era discovered that this forest is threatened, 266 00:36:26,520 --> 00:36:29,520 so they created a reserve, 267 00:36:29,520 --> 00:36:33,680 which became the Kahuzi-Biega National Park. 268 00:36:36,280 --> 00:36:40,960 So, the national park is fully protected 269 00:36:40,960 --> 00:36:46,280 to prevent the human pressure of the gorillas and their habitat. 270 00:36:48,560 --> 00:36:53,400 But life is very difficult here for all inhabitants. 271 00:37:07,080 --> 00:37:10,360 - The families are completely scattered around, 272 00:37:10,360 --> 00:37:12,440 each of them's got a tree. 273 00:37:23,920 --> 00:37:29,240 So, then, you can see the silverback's got the biggest tree. 274 00:37:34,000 --> 00:37:36,320 I think he's relaxing a little bit, 275 00:37:36,320 --> 00:37:41,360 with our presence because he's letting me see his family. 276 00:38:21,680 --> 00:38:25,720 - Why are the community members living around the park 277 00:38:25,720 --> 00:38:28,000 harming the gorillas and their habitat? 278 00:38:31,200 --> 00:38:33,680 Empty stomachs have no ears. 279 00:38:33,680 --> 00:38:35,240 They have no choice. 280 00:38:35,240 --> 00:38:39,920 We reached two million people living around the park. 281 00:38:39,920 --> 00:38:43,640 When people are concentrated, dominated by poverty, 282 00:38:43,640 --> 00:38:49,240 they have no other means, so they go and rely on the park resources. 283 00:39:15,720 --> 00:39:19,520 - So, when they're trapped by this, they will struggle to get 284 00:39:19,520 --> 00:39:23,880 out of it and then struggle to death by not being able to escape it. 285 00:39:28,320 --> 00:39:32,520 - Secondly, deforestation here is enormous. 286 00:39:36,280 --> 00:39:41,800 In 2020, more than 1,000 hectares of the habitat 287 00:39:41,800 --> 00:39:44,600 of the eastern lowland gorillas has been cleared out. 288 00:39:47,360 --> 00:39:50,760 The local people need more land where they can grow crops. 289 00:39:55,160 --> 00:39:59,520 People need more space where they can create villages to live in. 290 00:40:04,080 --> 00:40:06,960 So, what can we do now to help the gorillas? 291 00:40:09,680 --> 00:40:11,960 Invest into the community. 292 00:40:27,880 --> 00:40:30,760 This money will go to the public treasure 293 00:40:30,760 --> 00:40:34,720 to help the communities, in terms of development. 294 00:40:37,480 --> 00:40:41,200 When the humans are benefitting from the park, 295 00:40:41,200 --> 00:40:43,920 that's a security for the gorillas. 296 00:40:43,920 --> 00:40:48,880 In that way, the gorillas must pay for their own survival. 297 00:40:52,800 --> 00:40:56,640 - There's a paradox here for the silverback. 298 00:40:56,640 --> 00:41:00,480 To protect his family, he has to go against his natural instinct. 299 00:41:01,600 --> 00:41:07,000 And I can completely understand why it's so challenging for him, 300 00:41:07,000 --> 00:41:11,760 because Mpungwe has to learn to trust the very species that 301 00:41:11,760 --> 00:41:14,800 threaten him and his family the most. 302 00:41:24,000 --> 00:41:25,840 I feel like we are making progress. 303 00:41:26,920 --> 00:41:30,840 I've started to build a connection with Mpungwe, 304 00:41:30,840 --> 00:41:33,880 but he's still keeping us at a bit of distance. 305 00:41:35,480 --> 00:41:38,680 So, for the next week, we are going to try to get a bit closer 306 00:41:38,680 --> 00:41:42,280 and see whether he will tolerate our presence 307 00:41:42,280 --> 00:41:44,040 from around 20 metres or so. 308 00:41:45,320 --> 00:41:49,360 This is risky, though, because he's likely to charge. 309 00:41:54,840 --> 00:41:59,080 There are actually two methods of habituating gorillas. 310 00:41:59,080 --> 00:42:03,160 The first is a very submissive approach used by a female 311 00:42:03,160 --> 00:42:08,160 conservationist called Dian Fossey to get close to 312 00:42:08,160 --> 00:42:11,400 mountain gorillas for research purposes. 313 00:42:17,800 --> 00:42:23,680 But in Kahuzi-Biega, they've used a more assertive approach - 314 00:42:23,680 --> 00:42:26,840 standing tall, facing the gorillas. 315 00:42:34,200 --> 00:42:38,840 The park's founders had a theory - because they were male, they have 316 00:42:38,840 --> 00:42:44,400 to behave in a dominant fashion to win the respect of the silverback. 317 00:42:50,560 --> 00:42:52,760 Obviously, I don't want him to attack me. 318 00:42:57,760 --> 00:43:00,520 But it's vital for him to get used to humans. 319 00:43:08,760 --> 00:43:11,480 SCREECHING, ROARING 320 00:44:26,720 --> 00:44:28,480 BARKING 321 00:44:33,760 --> 00:44:41,240 SCREECHING, ROARING 322 00:44:44,480 --> 00:44:47,280 SCREECHING, ROARING 323 00:44:51,800 --> 00:44:56,840 There's a really big part of me that feels like we are harassing them. 324 00:44:56,840 --> 00:44:59,960 Their droppings are diarrhoea-like - 325 00:44:59,960 --> 00:45:02,640 that means they are slightly stressed. 326 00:45:03,760 --> 00:45:05,320 This is what worries me. 327 00:45:13,720 --> 00:45:15,120 HE CHUCKLES 328 00:45:54,600 --> 00:45:55,880 HE CHUCKLES 329 00:46:10,560 --> 00:46:12,800 It's a very, very risky job, 330 00:46:12,800 --> 00:46:17,240 but he keeps doing it to protect these gorillas. 331 00:46:20,800 --> 00:46:25,760 Mpungwe's clearly not comfortable with us just yet, 332 00:46:25,760 --> 00:46:28,720 but I have respect for that because he's doing what any 333 00:46:28,720 --> 00:46:32,240 silverback should do - protecting his family. 334 00:46:36,880 --> 00:46:39,400 - Do you think you're a silverback? - Oh! 335 00:46:42,480 --> 00:46:47,520 Let's put it this way - every family man on this planet, or dad, 336 00:46:47,520 --> 00:46:49,480 are silverbacks. 337 00:46:51,520 --> 00:46:53,040 And you're one of them! 338 00:46:53,040 --> 00:46:54,920 HE CHUCKLES 339 00:46:57,960 --> 00:47:01,800 I'm married to a beautiful English rose. 340 00:47:01,800 --> 00:47:03,880 HE CHUCKLES 341 00:47:03,880 --> 00:47:08,040 And I have two beautiful kids that also support me. 342 00:47:10,160 --> 00:47:12,320 I'm a lucky man. 343 00:47:12,320 --> 00:47:17,120 But it's been really hard for them - this is a time when they need me. 344 00:47:26,560 --> 00:47:31,080 - How much time do you spend away from home? - Mm... 345 00:47:31,080 --> 00:47:34,040 This year, I've been away for almost, um... 346 00:47:36,280 --> 00:47:39,520 ..like, pretty much, um... 347 00:47:41,880 --> 00:47:43,040 ..all the time. 348 00:47:58,880 --> 00:48:03,160 What scares me, though, is that what goes around comes around. 349 00:48:03,160 --> 00:48:06,880 I have a fear that, one day, my kids will leave me. 350 00:48:08,880 --> 00:48:10,000 HE CHUCKLES 351 00:48:12,040 --> 00:48:13,160 Oh! 352 00:48:15,760 --> 00:48:18,720 God, I'm so weak, I'm so weak! 353 00:48:22,160 --> 00:48:26,320 OK, look, I'll be strong. Hang on. 354 00:48:29,240 --> 00:48:30,280 Um... 355 00:48:32,240 --> 00:48:35,960 The reason I have that fear is because, for me, 356 00:48:35,960 --> 00:48:38,920 family means everything. 357 00:48:41,680 --> 00:48:45,000 They need me so much that, when I leave, you know, 358 00:48:45,000 --> 00:48:47,120 it's so...it's so painful. 359 00:48:47,120 --> 00:48:52,160 But I don't do this job for just a pleasure. 360 00:48:54,760 --> 00:49:00,480 I do it now because I want to get people engaged into what 361 00:49:00,480 --> 00:49:06,080 needs to be done to make sure that the gorillas are protected. 362 00:49:08,360 --> 00:49:11,440 For me in particular, that feeling is an addiction. 363 00:49:17,440 --> 00:49:21,200 The last week has been quite intense for the gorillas, 364 00:49:21,200 --> 00:49:26,080 but I'm wondering now whether our constant presence has had an 365 00:49:26,080 --> 00:49:33,600 impact in terms of Mpungwe allowing us closer to him and his family. 366 00:49:36,520 --> 00:49:38,040 It looks very open here. 367 00:49:40,040 --> 00:49:43,920 It might give me a chance to see individuals quite clearly, 368 00:49:43,920 --> 00:49:45,840 get some nice portraits, as well. 369 00:50:04,520 --> 00:50:07,920 When gorillas see you every day, 370 00:50:07,920 --> 00:50:11,000 that's when the trust starts to kick in. 371 00:50:16,000 --> 00:50:19,960 And then, all of a sudden, through the habituation, 372 00:50:19,960 --> 00:50:21,800 you become part of the group. 373 00:50:24,160 --> 00:50:27,160 And then, they start doing things naturally, 374 00:50:27,160 --> 00:50:29,520 and that's the moment, that's the moment 375 00:50:29,520 --> 00:50:35,320 when you start getting the best out of their behaviour. 376 00:50:48,360 --> 00:50:50,120 HE CHUCKLES 377 00:51:14,320 --> 00:51:18,000 Most females are sort of, you know, quite chilled by now. 378 00:51:20,200 --> 00:51:22,440 But Mpungwe's a wild animal. 379 00:51:25,960 --> 00:51:28,840 He's not going to give you 100% trust. 380 00:51:30,480 --> 00:51:36,800 He's got every instinct a man has to protect his family. 381 00:51:57,200 --> 00:51:58,400 Mpungwe, it's only me! 382 00:51:59,640 --> 00:52:04,400 He's being very, very cautious of me with the camera. 383 00:52:06,280 --> 00:52:09,160 And I keep trying to say, you know, well, look, 384 00:52:09,160 --> 00:52:10,600 I just want to be your friend. 385 00:52:12,400 --> 00:52:14,080 SCREECHING 386 00:52:14,080 --> 00:52:15,840 Mpungwe! Come on. 387 00:52:17,720 --> 00:52:19,760 He's not charging forward. 388 00:52:22,720 --> 00:52:28,120 Mpungwe's starting to allow us to come. It is a milestone. 389 00:52:34,600 --> 00:52:39,200 He's even standing and staring at me. He never used to do that before. 390 00:52:42,160 --> 00:52:47,440 Usually, direct eye contact with a silverback is considered to 391 00:52:47,440 --> 00:52:50,160 be a threat from a gorilla's point of view. 392 00:52:52,240 --> 00:52:58,600 The fact that Mpungwe doesn't charge when I'm looking directly at him is 393 00:52:58,600 --> 00:53:00,680 potentially a good sign 394 00:53:00,680 --> 00:53:03,920 because it means that he might be getting used to me. 395 00:53:08,560 --> 00:53:09,840 HE CLEARS THROAT 396 00:53:26,440 --> 00:53:27,480 Hey! 397 00:53:34,600 --> 00:53:35,640 HE SIGHS 398 00:53:54,360 --> 00:53:59,640 I am literally ten metres from the baby and the mother. 399 00:54:01,080 --> 00:54:03,640 They're just sitting there, looking at us. 400 00:54:09,520 --> 00:54:13,240 Females become sexually mature around seven or eight. 401 00:54:14,720 --> 00:54:17,520 Once a female begins to breed, 402 00:54:17,520 --> 00:54:23,720 she will give birth to one baby every 4-6 years. 403 00:54:25,560 --> 00:54:27,680 That is a cutie! 404 00:54:28,800 --> 00:54:32,440 This low rate of reproduction is what partly makes it 405 00:54:32,440 --> 00:54:36,720 difficult for the gorillas to recover from population decline. 406 00:54:38,480 --> 00:54:42,920 And knowing that really emphasises the importance 407 00:54:42,920 --> 00:54:44,200 of what we're doing here. 408 00:54:47,880 --> 00:54:50,440 Oh! She's feeding, she's feeding! 409 00:54:52,280 --> 00:54:56,360 Oh! She was feeding! Look, look! Ha-ha! 410 00:54:56,360 --> 00:54:58,640 Look at her face! Just...just look at that! 411 00:55:00,280 --> 00:55:03,360 I've never seen a mother gorilla feeding her baby. 412 00:55:12,960 --> 00:55:14,320 Wow! 413 00:55:14,320 --> 00:55:15,360 HE CHUCKLES 414 00:55:20,120 --> 00:55:22,480 Mpungwe is not very far from here. 415 00:55:22,480 --> 00:55:27,800 He's keeping an eye on the family. 416 00:55:35,640 --> 00:55:40,200 He's there to look after the family, he's there to solve problems. 417 00:55:40,200 --> 00:55:45,360 You know, the confidence, the power - it takes me back 418 00:55:45,360 --> 00:55:49,720 to my grandfather, Bonifas, you know, just like that! 419 00:55:51,800 --> 00:55:53,040 Because... 420 00:55:53,040 --> 00:55:54,080 HE CHUCKLES 421 00:55:56,080 --> 00:55:57,720 Oh! 422 00:55:57,720 --> 00:55:58,880 HE CHUCKLES 423 00:55:58,880 --> 00:56:00,040 Oh, jeez! 424 00:56:14,840 --> 00:56:19,000 Being a strong male figure was one of the most 425 00:56:19,000 --> 00:56:22,640 important values instilled in me. 426 00:56:25,760 --> 00:56:28,680 When I was growing up, I was left-handed. 427 00:56:30,040 --> 00:56:33,360 Back then, if you were left-handed, 428 00:56:33,360 --> 00:56:38,120 it's not a good sign for a boy. 429 00:56:38,120 --> 00:56:42,560 Being left-handed was seen as being less masculine, basically. 430 00:56:45,840 --> 00:56:49,280 That's just one of the traditions in our culture. 431 00:56:52,080 --> 00:56:59,440 So, my grandad would use a bandage to cover my left hand 432 00:56:59,440 --> 00:57:05,040 so I can't use it, and that made me very slow at school. 433 00:57:08,280 --> 00:57:11,200 I almost believed that I wasn't good enough, in a way. 434 00:57:14,000 --> 00:57:16,920 When you are the last one to finish everything, 435 00:57:16,920 --> 00:57:19,840 you always get a little bit marginalised. 436 00:57:22,920 --> 00:57:25,960 For a powerful creature like Mpungwe, 437 00:57:25,960 --> 00:57:28,800 if you're going to be his friend, you've got to be strong. 438 00:57:30,160 --> 00:57:33,080 You have to prove to him that you are man enough. 439 00:57:49,280 --> 00:57:50,680 Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh! 440 00:57:52,840 --> 00:57:56,480 Throughout the year, gorillas will move through different 441 00:57:56,480 --> 00:58:02,200 areas in their territory to find the food that they are looking for. 442 00:58:03,200 --> 00:58:06,160 I'm well over halfway of my trip now, 443 00:58:06,160 --> 00:58:11,040 and the gorillas have moved from the bamboo forest and they're 444 00:58:11,040 --> 00:58:15,560 now in an area where they can eat bark, fruits and flowers. 445 00:58:18,400 --> 00:58:25,160 And this place is nuts - not only the density of the forest, 446 00:58:25,160 --> 00:58:28,360 the hills are really, really high. 447 00:58:28,360 --> 00:58:32,480 We're talking about 500-metres' drop. 448 00:58:34,520 --> 00:58:38,240 And this is the type of terrain where Mpungwe 449 00:58:38,240 --> 00:58:41,080 will just ambush the team. 450 00:58:42,080 --> 00:58:45,600 So, safety-wise, we just have to be extremely careful. 451 00:58:53,520 --> 00:58:55,000 BARKING 452 00:58:57,360 --> 00:58:59,080 BARKING 453 00:59:00,400 --> 00:59:02,520 Before, he would charge from distance, 454 00:59:02,520 --> 00:59:08,480 but now he's starting to come really close and, yeah, size me up a bit. 455 00:59:12,000 --> 00:59:16,360 But I have to stand tall, and that is... That is key. 456 00:59:17,400 --> 00:59:18,960 SCREECHING 457 00:59:20,560 --> 00:59:22,840 Despite how aggressive he looks... 458 00:59:22,840 --> 00:59:24,600 SCREECHING 459 00:59:24,600 --> 00:59:26,680 ..now that Mpungwe's getting close to us 460 00:59:26,680 --> 00:59:31,560 without charging is actually a sign that he's getting used to us. 461 00:59:35,840 --> 00:59:41,520 I'm certain that Mpungwe knows that I want to be a part of his group, 462 00:59:41,520 --> 00:59:47,960 but whether he will eventually allow me in, that is the big question. 463 00:59:52,840 --> 00:59:59,800 SCREECHING, BARKING 464 00:59:59,800 --> 01:00:01,320 Mpungwe, it's me! 465 01:00:05,600 --> 01:00:08,280 SCREECHING 466 01:00:08,280 --> 01:00:10,680 SCREECHING, ROARING 467 01:00:18,080 --> 01:00:20,480 The previous terrain, he was able to gauge 468 01:00:20,480 --> 01:00:26,160 the distance between his family and us, so he would be more relaxed. 469 01:00:26,160 --> 01:00:34,160 SCREECHING, ROARING 470 01:00:37,160 --> 01:00:38,200 Mpungwe! 471 01:00:40,680 --> 01:00:44,480 He cannot see where we are, so we're moving forward. 472 01:00:44,480 --> 01:00:47,920 The team doesn't realise that they're crossing the boundary, 473 01:00:47,920 --> 01:00:51,720 so that's the reason why he's coming and then he's charging. 474 01:00:51,720 --> 01:00:53,480 This is very dangerous. 475 01:00:53,480 --> 01:00:56,320 SCREECHING, ROARING 476 01:01:04,920 --> 01:01:06,840 SCREECHING 477 01:01:09,560 --> 01:01:11,320 BARKING 478 01:01:13,480 --> 01:01:16,840 SCREECHING, ROARING 479 01:01:21,960 --> 01:01:23,440 Oh, my God! 480 01:01:26,720 --> 01:01:31,600 Mpungwe has tried to pull my left foot. 481 01:01:40,720 --> 01:01:45,560 It's absolutely remarkable that he decided not to hurt me 482 01:01:45,560 --> 01:01:47,040 because he could... 483 01:01:49,240 --> 01:01:50,400 ..if he wanted to. 484 01:01:53,800 --> 01:01:58,840 I think that moment was very meaningful. 485 01:02:04,400 --> 01:02:08,440 I have proven to Mpungwe that I'm man enough to be his friend. 486 01:02:12,280 --> 01:02:13,320 Game on! 487 01:02:21,640 --> 01:02:24,160 Today is a special day. 488 01:02:24,160 --> 01:02:29,560 Kahuzi-Biega is hosting its largest group of tourists in years to 489 01:02:29,560 --> 01:02:34,320 visit the park's only fully habituated gorilla family. 490 01:02:35,560 --> 01:02:39,640 And I've been invited to join the group to see how a fully 491 01:02:39,640 --> 01:02:45,280 habituated silverback would behave amongst the tourists. 492 01:02:48,520 --> 01:02:52,880 - Are you excited about today or would you rather be filming Mpungwe? 493 01:02:52,880 --> 01:02:57,240 - I must say, you know, truly, honestly, I'm half-half. 494 01:02:57,240 --> 01:03:02,080 My head, at the moment's programmed just to get close to Mpungwe. 495 01:03:02,080 --> 01:03:10,080 But I will equally be excited to be close to an habituated group. 496 01:03:11,120 --> 01:03:12,320 HE CHUCKLES 497 01:03:17,480 --> 01:03:21,120 - The tourism sector can make much money. 498 01:03:23,200 --> 01:03:27,240 Virunga, Uganda, Rwanda - they have the same product, gorillas. 499 01:03:29,600 --> 01:03:31,440 Tourism can help the gorilla 500 01:03:31,440 --> 01:03:35,760 because this can help the Kahuzi to promote...to be promoted. 501 01:03:36,920 --> 01:03:38,600 Don't rush, don't rush. 502 01:03:41,040 --> 01:03:45,800 So, this is Mr Bonane with some of the children. 503 01:03:46,840 --> 01:03:47,960 - Hello, Bonane! 504 01:03:49,320 --> 01:03:51,280 - Oh, wow, fantastic! 505 01:04:01,920 --> 01:04:08,240 - Obviously, wildlife filming and tourists doesn't quite go together! 506 01:04:14,080 --> 01:04:22,080 - In the mid-'80s to early '90s, we had 7,000 tourists a year. 507 01:04:23,480 --> 01:04:29,080 That was before the war. Today, 150 a month. 508 01:04:29,080 --> 01:04:33,280 The park has only one gorilla group to visit, 509 01:04:33,280 --> 01:04:37,760 but the small income from the Bonane group, it doesn't go far, 510 01:04:37,760 --> 01:04:41,480 so it's very important to have a second group. 511 01:04:49,400 --> 01:04:51,160 - Yeah, he's OK. 512 01:04:51,160 --> 01:04:52,200 Yeah. 513 01:04:58,000 --> 01:05:02,200 - There's a huge difference between Mpungwe's group and Bonane. 514 01:05:02,200 --> 01:05:04,280 The contrast is enormous. 515 01:05:05,480 --> 01:05:07,240 Mpungwe wouldn't tolerate this. 516 01:05:09,800 --> 01:05:12,440 - We can say bye-bye to Bonane! 517 01:05:12,440 --> 01:05:14,800 - Bye-bye! - Yeah, yeah! 518 01:05:14,800 --> 01:05:16,800 - HE CHUCKLES 519 01:05:16,800 --> 01:05:20,120 Bonane is so habituated to the human presence. 520 01:05:22,720 --> 01:05:24,720 I have a bit of apprehension, you know. 521 01:05:25,920 --> 01:05:29,520 As much as I really would love to be this close to Mpungwe... 522 01:05:31,280 --> 01:05:34,440 ..in a way, it makes them a bit vulnerable, 523 01:05:34,440 --> 01:05:37,880 not being able to distinguish who's good, who's bad. 524 01:05:39,840 --> 01:05:45,920 This journey started like a simple idea - following the habituation, 525 01:05:45,920 --> 01:05:49,760 but it gets deeper than that, you know, as you're progressing with it. 526 01:05:53,280 --> 01:05:54,760 GUNSHOT 527 01:05:56,360 --> 01:05:58,200 NEWS REPORTER: - The United Nations' mission 528 01:05:58,200 --> 01:06:00,880 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo says 130 529 01:06:00,880 --> 01:06:05,840 civilians were killed by M23 in the villages of Kishishe and Bambu. 530 01:06:07,320 --> 01:06:11,160 The M23 movement, a largely Tutsi former rebel group, 531 01:06:11,160 --> 01:06:12,640 denied its role in the massacre. 532 01:06:15,520 --> 01:06:16,760 - Oh, fucking hell! 533 01:06:20,520 --> 01:06:23,320 No-one in this country wants to see these things again. 534 01:06:26,440 --> 01:06:28,240 I know it's not far from where I am. 535 01:06:30,520 --> 01:06:35,680 And I do not want this war to spread across the country again. 536 01:06:48,320 --> 01:06:54,560 SHOUTING 537 01:06:57,160 --> 01:07:01,160 HE ADDRESSES THEM 538 01:07:01,160 --> 01:07:02,200 HE SHOUTS 539 01:07:31,520 --> 01:07:32,840 - I knew each one... 540 01:07:34,120 --> 01:07:35,160 ..by name. 541 01:07:38,880 --> 01:07:41,720 The habituated groups, they're used to seeing people every day - 542 01:07:41,720 --> 01:07:44,400 they don't run, they don't hide at all. 543 01:07:46,480 --> 01:07:51,080 But unhabituated groups, when they hear a little noise, you know, 544 01:07:51,080 --> 01:07:52,600 they're ready to hide. 545 01:07:55,640 --> 01:08:00,800 If, once again, fighting continues to be extended to this area, 546 01:08:00,800 --> 01:08:04,400 the remaining population of gorillas will, like, go away. 547 01:08:06,840 --> 01:08:08,760 Yes, absolutely. 548 01:08:21,840 --> 01:08:25,520 I cannot reject the idea of habituating. 549 01:08:25,520 --> 01:08:30,560 I support it 100% because, when the communities have income, 550 01:08:30,560 --> 01:08:34,000 they prevent each other not to harm the gorillas in their habitat. 551 01:08:39,960 --> 01:08:44,040 - The history of this place, you know, it was a hunting ground. 552 01:08:46,360 --> 01:08:49,640 Mpungwe, from a very young age, maybe when he was a baby, 553 01:08:49,640 --> 01:08:54,200 he's been witness to some of the upheavals in the past. 554 01:08:55,960 --> 01:09:00,240 He's got that in his instinct, you know, to be cautious of humans. 555 01:09:03,280 --> 01:09:07,280 GROWLING 556 01:09:09,720 --> 01:09:15,800 As soon as we arrived, we heard a roar, so he's definitely around. 557 01:09:17,160 --> 01:09:18,520 Time is ticking. 558 01:09:21,680 --> 01:09:23,960 I've got less than ten days now, 559 01:09:23,960 --> 01:09:28,640 and Mpungwe has obviously been close enough to touch me. 560 01:09:28,640 --> 01:09:32,240 But the ultimate test is to see 561 01:09:32,240 --> 01:09:36,200 whether I could be seven metres from him without him charging. 562 01:09:39,240 --> 01:09:42,080 GROWLING 563 01:09:42,080 --> 01:09:46,560 To be honest, though, I'm starting to feel a bit uncomfortable 564 01:09:46,560 --> 01:09:52,680 seeing what habituation has done to the other silverback. 565 01:09:52,680 --> 01:09:55,120 GROWLING 566 01:09:55,120 --> 01:09:58,960 SCREECHING, ROARING 567 01:10:02,120 --> 01:10:05,680 SCREECHING 568 01:10:10,360 --> 01:10:12,480 He really doesn't want to be filmed today. 569 01:10:14,160 --> 01:10:16,440 He's not tolerating any... 570 01:10:16,440 --> 01:10:17,640 ..any movement. 571 01:11:02,440 --> 01:11:04,960 Despite his scary presence... 572 01:11:06,000 --> 01:11:09,960 ..he's still very vulnerable cos he's looking, you know, 573 01:11:09,960 --> 01:11:11,120 he's not quite sure. 574 01:11:12,720 --> 01:11:16,000 He just wants to care about his family. 575 01:11:49,840 --> 01:11:52,040 SCREECHING 576 01:11:52,040 --> 01:11:54,000 ROARING 577 01:12:06,280 --> 01:12:07,680 SCREECHING 578 01:12:13,760 --> 01:12:18,080 He's standing there - the babies, everybody else, is behind him. 579 01:12:57,560 --> 01:12:58,600 I feel for him. 580 01:13:00,720 --> 01:13:01,960 I really feel for him. 581 01:13:04,960 --> 01:13:08,840 If I carry this camera like this, if you see it from a distance, 582 01:13:08,840 --> 01:13:11,360 it looks like I'm carrying a gun. 583 01:13:11,360 --> 01:13:13,360 That's perhaps what he is thinking. 584 01:13:16,560 --> 01:13:19,840 And every time I'm pointing the camera, he always hides himself. 585 01:13:24,240 --> 01:13:26,600 Maybe he's always going to stay like this, huh? 586 01:14:07,360 --> 01:14:10,720 - I've sort of noticed that you seem a bit withdrawn, 587 01:14:10,720 --> 01:14:12,160 a bit more sort of distant. 588 01:14:12,160 --> 01:14:13,840 And I just wondered what, if anything, 589 01:14:13,840 --> 01:14:16,440 is sort of going on for you emotionally? 590 01:14:19,560 --> 01:14:26,040 - I just wish I knew a little bit more about what I was getting into. 591 01:14:28,160 --> 01:14:33,600 Mentally, it's starting to feel a little bit exhausting because... 592 01:14:35,720 --> 01:14:39,240 ..I have two minds fighting each other. 593 01:14:40,680 --> 01:14:45,680 One is to see the gorillas being habituated. 594 01:14:48,720 --> 01:14:53,080 And one is to have Mpungwe remaining Mpungwe, like, 595 01:14:53,080 --> 01:14:56,600 remaining wild for the sake of his family. 596 01:14:59,960 --> 01:15:02,880 Despite the fact I'm trying hard to get close to him 597 01:15:02,880 --> 01:15:07,080 and just see if he will accept me as an individual, 598 01:15:07,080 --> 01:15:11,200 I would like for Mpungwe to be cautious of humans. 599 01:15:15,120 --> 01:15:18,400 Because, if a gorilla can't distinguish a good person 600 01:15:18,400 --> 01:15:22,320 and a bad person, that is a huge concern for me. 601 01:15:24,120 --> 01:15:27,200 But when they have a wild instinct... 602 01:15:28,880 --> 01:15:33,440 ..if there was to be an intruder then, from a distance, 603 01:15:33,440 --> 01:15:38,080 Mpungwe would be able to protect the rest of his family and go away. 604 01:15:41,320 --> 01:15:43,600 I feel like I have an... 605 01:15:43,600 --> 01:15:49,360 ..a really genuine connection with him and the rest of his family. 606 01:15:50,800 --> 01:15:55,680 And I'm starting to see a lot of elements around Mpungwe 607 01:15:55,680 --> 01:15:58,640 are connected to my own family. 608 01:16:01,240 --> 01:16:04,000 The sad thing with my family is that, 609 01:16:04,000 --> 01:16:10,120 when the patriarch left, that sort of role wasn't passed on to anyone. 610 01:16:11,880 --> 01:16:13,680 Then we all sort of... 611 01:16:15,640 --> 01:16:17,400 ..scattered around. 612 01:16:19,440 --> 01:16:22,320 I'm in England, my sister is in Paris, 613 01:16:22,320 --> 01:16:27,440 my brother is in South Africa, some are back in the Congo - you name it. 614 01:16:27,440 --> 01:16:30,800 That's why it's quite hard, you know, 615 01:16:30,800 --> 01:16:36,640 for me cos I don't feel connected to my brothers and sisters any more. 616 01:16:38,720 --> 01:16:43,440 No-one was there to maintain this very... 617 01:16:45,040 --> 01:16:49,520 ..important value in our family, in my culture. 618 01:16:51,840 --> 01:16:56,680 And I would love for Mpungwe to have plenty of time to pass 619 01:16:56,680 --> 01:16:59,880 that legacy on to his son... 620 01:17:01,240 --> 01:17:05,080 ..so that Mpungwe's family doesn't end up like my own 621 01:17:05,080 --> 01:17:07,320 and then that legacy carries on. 622 01:17:09,200 --> 01:17:12,400 I would have loved to be that sort of silverback who would 623 01:17:12,400 --> 01:17:18,000 keep my brothers and my sisters, my cousins and my kids all together. 624 01:17:21,200 --> 01:17:24,640 I kind of wanted to be like my grandad, you know, 625 01:17:24,640 --> 01:17:25,800 having the entire... 626 01:17:27,120 --> 01:17:29,480 ..the entire tribe, you know, around. 627 01:17:33,440 --> 01:17:35,720 But I've never quite achieved that. 628 01:17:39,720 --> 01:17:41,880 COCK CROWS 629 01:18:22,720 --> 01:18:23,760 Mm. 630 01:18:29,640 --> 01:18:30,680 Mm-hm. 631 01:19:47,360 --> 01:19:52,160 Conservation is not black and white. It's very complex. 632 01:19:53,840 --> 01:19:56,280 John and Lambert, 633 01:19:56,280 --> 01:19:59,640 they really are fighting hard for the gorillas to thrive. 634 01:20:03,400 --> 01:20:07,600 And I think the symbiotic relationship is going the right way. 635 01:20:15,960 --> 01:20:17,800 I've got less than a week to go. 636 01:20:18,840 --> 01:20:21,440 I wanted to cement the whole thing around 637 01:20:21,440 --> 01:20:25,280 this close proximity with Mpungwe. 638 01:20:25,280 --> 01:20:29,160 Going home and not being able to accomplish that would feel 639 01:20:29,160 --> 01:20:31,640 almost like a bit of a failure. 640 01:20:32,720 --> 01:20:33,800 Simple as that. 641 01:20:36,840 --> 01:20:41,880 It's not just a wildlife project. 642 01:20:41,880 --> 01:20:46,640 To me, gorillas are exceptional. 643 01:20:46,640 --> 01:20:47,920 We share so much. 644 01:20:49,800 --> 01:20:54,760 So, if I can be known for anything, I'd love it to be for this. 645 01:21:15,280 --> 01:21:16,320 Look at that! 646 01:21:29,280 --> 01:21:30,320 Look at that. 647 01:21:32,120 --> 01:21:33,160 That's Tuliya. 648 01:21:35,240 --> 01:21:41,920 I've never come across a gorilla this distance, never. 649 01:21:56,360 --> 01:21:57,400 Look! 650 01:21:58,600 --> 01:22:02,080 We are surrounded of Mpungwe's family. 651 01:22:04,720 --> 01:22:08,640 This whole place is peppered with gorillas. 652 01:22:08,640 --> 01:22:10,560 HE CHUCKLES 653 01:22:10,560 --> 01:22:12,200 We are fully accepted. 654 01:22:25,920 --> 01:22:31,960 This is one of the sons. He must be around six. And he wants to play! 655 01:22:36,000 --> 01:22:37,040 Your turn. 656 01:22:42,240 --> 01:22:44,560 HE CHUCKLES 657 01:22:44,560 --> 01:22:45,600 Oh! 658 01:22:48,600 --> 01:22:53,200 Mpungwe's not far. The son always hangs around his dad. 659 01:23:20,680 --> 01:23:23,520 When I got here, I had one thing on my mind - 660 01:23:23,520 --> 01:23:25,360 learning about habituation. 661 01:23:26,680 --> 01:23:29,720 Throughout the process, you start to learn about a lot of things, 662 01:23:29,720 --> 01:23:30,760 you know. 663 01:23:35,000 --> 01:23:39,440 This is how we sometimes find ourselves in circumstances 664 01:23:39,440 --> 01:23:43,000 that you weren't planning or projecting. 665 01:23:47,160 --> 01:23:50,120 You know, we live, we learn, we battle with stuff, you know. 666 01:23:51,640 --> 01:23:55,600 Well, certainly me, battling with myself and watching Mpungwe, 667 01:23:55,600 --> 01:23:57,400 reminding me of certain things. 668 01:24:02,440 --> 01:24:06,160 When you grow up with a grandad who you've never seen crying 669 01:24:06,160 --> 01:24:07,440 or anything like that... 670 01:24:09,400 --> 01:24:15,560 ..you know, in moments of sadness, he always was steady, you know. 671 01:24:18,080 --> 01:24:20,320 I just wanted to copy my grandad, you know... 672 01:24:22,160 --> 01:24:23,400 ..to be like him. 673 01:24:25,640 --> 01:24:27,160 Very dominating. 674 01:24:29,320 --> 01:24:35,160 But watching Mpungwe being himself made me 675 01:24:35,160 --> 01:24:37,120 realise that I'm not a silverback... 676 01:24:39,040 --> 01:24:41,920 ..that I've been putting on a facade of looking like one of those 677 01:24:41,920 --> 01:24:43,440 but, within the family, 678 01:24:43,440 --> 01:24:46,920 I'm definitely not a dominating or a controlling figure... 679 01:24:52,120 --> 01:24:54,360 ..which is one thing I have to face, you know. 680 01:24:57,880 --> 01:25:00,520 Just face not being a silverback. 681 01:25:00,520 --> 01:25:01,560 HE CHUCKLES 682 01:25:18,680 --> 01:25:19,960 Today is my last day! 683 01:25:21,520 --> 01:25:27,480 It would be really nice just to say a really good, peaceful goodbye... 684 01:25:30,200 --> 01:25:33,160 ..to finish this incredible journey I've had. 685 01:25:36,440 --> 01:25:41,400 My only apprehension about that is that he might not be in a good mood. 686 01:25:43,760 --> 01:25:49,640 To end it on a really brutal note would be really 687 01:25:49,640 --> 01:25:51,240 heart-wrenching for me. 688 01:26:09,600 --> 01:26:17,120 SCREECHING 689 01:26:20,640 --> 01:26:23,760 Might be not a very smooth goodbye. 690 01:26:36,720 --> 01:26:39,800 I think this is the best we're going to get from Mpungwe today. 691 01:26:45,680 --> 01:26:48,040 Watching Mpungwe has taught me quite a lot. 692 01:26:50,680 --> 01:26:54,400 I think the biggest lesson - put family first. 693 01:26:54,400 --> 01:26:57,800 I've reached the point now where I started to feel it really 694 01:26:57,800 --> 01:27:01,000 heavily, you know, going away for a long time. 695 01:27:04,400 --> 01:27:06,920 I would love to spend... 696 01:27:08,560 --> 01:27:11,200 ..as much time as possible with my family. 697 01:27:15,520 --> 01:27:17,720 Look! He's looking! 698 01:27:19,720 --> 01:27:21,840 It's as if he knew today is my last day. 699 01:27:27,240 --> 01:27:29,240 HE CHUCKLES 700 01:27:29,240 --> 01:27:31,040 I know you, Mpungwe, now, I know you. 701 01:27:37,200 --> 01:27:38,400 HE GASPS 702 01:27:42,640 --> 01:27:43,880 Did you see that? 703 01:27:47,160 --> 01:27:48,680 HE CHUCKLES 704 01:27:48,680 --> 01:27:49,840 Oh, look at that! 705 01:28:00,680 --> 01:28:04,200 LAMBERT CHUCKLES 706 01:28:06,720 --> 01:28:08,200 LAMBERT CHUCKLES 707 01:28:08,200 --> 01:28:13,080 I got what I wanted. I can go back now. Honestly, I'm a happy man. 708 01:28:13,080 --> 01:28:16,640 That is a goodbye. It couldn't be better than that! 709 01:28:16,640 --> 01:28:17,880 HE CHUCKLES 710 01:28:20,560 --> 01:28:24,280 - Is there anything you would say to your grandfather now? 711 01:28:24,280 --> 01:28:26,440 - I would just tell him that I looked up to him 712 01:28:26,440 --> 01:28:32,600 and I wanted to make him proud, but we live in a different era now. 713 01:28:32,600 --> 01:28:34,120 I wouldn't be like him. 714 01:28:37,800 --> 01:28:43,360 If I'm who I am, it's because of a lot of support from my wife, 715 01:28:43,360 --> 01:28:45,480 and from my kids, as well.