Pamela Glintenkamp
Pamela Glintenkamp is a video and audio producer, editor, and writer specialising in wildlife conservation, arts and culture, and film history.
She has a lifelong passion for wildlife and conservation. As a filmmaker, Glintenkamp has created content for a range of organizations including Elephant Havens (Botswana), The Elephant Listening Project (Cornell University, NY) the Institute of Zoology (UK) and the Zoological Society of London.
She has also worked as an oral historian, producing films for the Lucasfilm Archive, and Stanley Kubrick Archive.
Glintenkamp’s independent creative work has been funded by Arts Council England and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting in the US.
As a Fulbright Scholar, Glintenkamp studied History of Design at the V&A Museum in London. Her interests in arts and culture have lead to video and audio projects for organizations such as the National Gallery, Washington, National Portrait Gallery, London and the Music Center of Los Angeles County.
Glintenkamp is the author of Industrial Light & Magic: The Art of Innovation, an oral history exploration of the technological achievements of ILM, the visual effects company founded by George Lucas.
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ARTIST: Peter Gabriel
CREATOR: Pamela Glintenkamp
SONG: In Your Eyes FROM: So
ARTIST: Peter Gabriel
CREATOR: Pamela Glintenkamp
SONG: In Your Eyes FROM: So
Video info:
This film uses footage I shot at Botswana’s only elephant orphanage, the charity Elephant Havens. There, the emotional connection between orphaned elephants and the handlers who raise them is profound. In the film, I’ve paired the song lyrics with imagery that expresses this extraordinary relationship. The film also explores the process of each young elephant growing more confident and independent - as they become ready to be released to the wild. The push and pull between emotional connection, and independence is expressed by the song lyrics and the imagery. The evolution of the individual is reflected in the last section of the film. Here, we see elephants interacting with each other (rather than handlers), preparing for their eventual return to the wild.
The lyrics and imagery together explore a number of themes:
- Seeking sanctuary and refuge - the elephants finding safety and care.
- Emotional vulnerability and trust - baby elephants learn to trust their human caregivers.
- The healing power of compassion - the nurturing relationship between handlers and their charges.
- Seeing beauty in another being - expressed by the interspecies bond between elephants and handlers.
- Individual development - Orphans developing into independent individuals who will ultimately return to their natural state in the wild.
Musically, the song features African-influenced percussion rhythms as well as call-and-response vocal patterns between Peter Gabriel and Senegalese musician N’Dour. In editing the film, I’ve tried to choreograph imagery of movements of the elephants with the rhythms.
The profound relationship between elephants and handlers at Elephant Havens reflects the transformative work that takes place there. More information about Elephant Havens can be found at: www.elephanthavens.org
Song info:
In Your Eyes is a track taken from Peter Gabriel's album So, released in May 1986.
Words and music by Peter Gabriel. Produced by Daniel Lanois and Peter Gabriel.
Published by Real World Music Ltd. / Sony Music Publishing.