Communicating Science Effectively Through The Voice of Animals in Natural History Films

Abstract

Traditionally humans have been used to narrate natural history films and to communicate the science contained in those films. A variation on this pattern can be found in natural history films where the film is narrated from the point of view of the animal involved. In these films the animal’s ‘voice’ narrates the film usually in the first person. Through an analysis of three films narrated in this manner, one of them being the creative component of this thesis, the effectiveness of the science communication involved is evaluated.

A set of criteria are established to ascertain the nature and amount of science communicated in each of the films. The effectiveness of that communication is then evaluated on the basis of the delivery mechanisms employed i.e. the quality of the character invented and the quality of the story. The effectiveness of the communication is also evaluated in terms of the accessibility of the information.

While all three films were found to contain a considerable amount of scientific information there was a variation in the effectiveness of the communication of that information which are largely attributable to flaws in the nature and presentation of the character created to narrate the story and the quality of the story itself.

The creative component of this thesis consists of a twenty five minute film titled: 'Raised for Rewards … a sheepdog’s life’. It was created to convey to a general audience the nature and training of a sheepdog and as a vehicle to communicate appropriate natural history information regarding sheepdogs to such an audience.