National Geographic Documentary Films and Picturehouse Announce First Trailer and Theatrical Release of WILD LIFE from OscarⓇ Award-Winning Filmmakers Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin

WILD LIFE Is Set To Premiere Theatrically Nationwide, Beginning on April 14 in New York City, Washington, D.C., and more.

The Highly Anticipated Conservation Documentary Will Have Its Broadcast Debut on National Geographic Channel on May 25 and Streams Next Day on Disney+

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VIEW TRAILER LINK HERE

Today, National Geographic Documentary Films and Picturehouse announced that WILD LIFE, the latest documentary film from Academy Award^Ⓡ-winning directors Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin (“Free Solo”), will open in theaters nationally this April. Following the theatrical release, the film will have its broadcast debut on National Geographic Channel on May 25 and will stream next day on Disney+. The film had a surprise screening at the 2022 Telluride Film Festival and will screen as part of the 2023 SXSW Film Festival on March 12, 2023.

With this announcement, National Geographic Documentary Films and Picturehouse released the first trailer for WILD LIFE, which spotlights former Patagonia CEO and president and co-founder of Tompkins Conservation, Kristine Tompkins, on an epic, decades-spanning love story as wild as the landscapes she has dedicated her life to protecting. After falling in love in midlife, Kris and outdoorsman and entrepreneur Doug Tompkins left behind the world of the massively successful outdoor brands they’d helped pioneer — Patagonia, The North Face and Esprit — and turned their attention to a visionary effort to create National Parks throughout Chile and Argentina. WILD LIFE chronicles their journey to effect the largest private land donation in history.

The film spans decades of entrepreneurial and conservation work and serves as a stunning look into the unbelievable professional and personal highs and lows of Kristine’s life. Shot all across the wilderness of Chile, in conjunction with archival footage, the film is ripe with lush cinematography and poignant moments. The film also chronicles Kris and Doug’s close relationship with Yvon Chouinard, the founder of Patagonia, and Kris’ time working in the early days of his climbing gear company, Chouinard Equipment, which quickly evolved into the conscious outdoor adventure brand that we know today as Patagonia.

Kristine Tompkins stated, “Jimmy and Chai have honored Doug’s and my life’s work in a profound, moving way. I am grateful. I can only wish that WILD LIFE offers a semblance of hope and reminds anyone who sees it that whoever you are and wherever you live you can make a difference in this world. Our work at Tompkins Conservation — restoring the planet by creating parks on land and sea and rewilding — is constant and ongoing.”

Chin and Vasarhelyi noted, “As filmmakers, we have always loved telling stories about human potential and the power of the human spirit. We love examining what humans can achieve when they commit to the impossible. Kris and Doug lived extraordinary lives, leaving everything behind to find meaning and love. Through their journey, they created the biggest private land handover in history, protecting almost 15 million acres of land against insurmountable odds. Conservation at this level and scale changes the world. We are so excited to share this story.”

Picturehouse will open WILD LIFE theatrically in select cities, beginning on April 14 in New York City and Washington, D.C., with the San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, Austin, Denver, Boulder, Portland, Seattle, Miami, Bozeman and Salt Lake City dates to follow.

National Geographic Documentary Films previously released the Academy Award-, BAFTA- and seven-time Emmy^Ⓡ Award-winning film “Free Solo” and the Academy Award-nominated and Emmy-winning film “The Cave.” In 2022, they released Oscar- and BAFTA-nominated “Fire of Love,” two-time Sundance Award-winner “The Territory,” critically acclaimed “Retrograde” as well as the short film “The Flagmakers,” all of which were shortlisted for a 2023 Academy Award. In 2021, they released BAFTA nominees “The Rescue” and “Becoming Cousteau,” and three-time Emmy Award winner “The First Wave.” Other critically acclaimed films under the banner include “Fauci”; “Torn”; Ron Howard’s “Rebuilding Paradise” and Emmy-nominated “We Feed People”; Sundance Audience Award winners “Science Fair” and “Sea of Shadows”; Emmy winners “LA 92” and “Jane,” both of which were included in the top 15 documentaries considered for an Academy Award in 2017; and Dupont Award winner “Hell on Earth: The Fall of Syria and the Rise of Isis.”

About National Geographic Documentary Films

National Geographic Documentary Films is committed to bringing the world premium, feature documentaries that cover timely, provocative and globally relevant stories from the very best documentary filmmakers in the world. National Geographic Documentary Films is part of a joint venture between The Walt Disney Company and the National Geographic Society. Our diverse films reach millions worldwide across National Geographic channels (National Geographic Channel, Nat Geo WILD, Nat Geo MUNDO) and direct-to-consumer platforms Disney+ and Hulu. Furthering knowledge and understanding of our world has been the core purpose of National Geographic for 135 years, and now we are committed to going deeper, pushing boundaries, going further for our consumers … and reaching millions of people around the world in 172 countries and 43 languages every month as we do it. Recent films include the Academy Award ® and BAFTA nominated “Fire of Love,” three-time Emmy Award winner “The First Wave,” two-time Sundance award-winner “The Territory,” BAFTA nominees “The Rescue” and “Becoming Cousteau”, and Academy Award ® and BAFTA winner “Free Solo.” For more information visit films.nationalgeographic.com, or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.

About Picturehouse

Picturehouse is a Los Angeles-based film marketing and distribution company led by CEO Bob Berney and COO Jeanne R. Berney. The company acquires, markets and distributes global content across all platforms. Originally formed in 2005 as a joint venture between Time Warner's HBO Films and New Line Cinema, the Picturehouse brand has a long history of storied excellence. For more information visit picturehouse.com, or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and LinkedIn.

About Little Monster

Little Monster Films is an Academy®, BAFTA®, and multiple Emmy® Award-winning production company founded by Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin. Our mission is to capture humanity at its best, aiming to reflect a diverse world both in front of and behind the camera. We present grounded narratives with intensity and depth while showcasing the extraordinary among us who push the limits of human potential. Our most recent film THE RESCUE won the People’s Choice award for best documentary at the Toronto International Film Festival, was nominated for a BAFTA, and won three News & Documentary Emmys. Previously, our groundbreaking film FREE SOLO was awarded a BAFTA and the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature in 2019. The film also received seven Emmy awards. Our film RETURN TO SPACE landed on Netflix’s Top 10 upon release and was nominated for an Emmy. EDGE OF THE UNKNOWN WITH JIMMY CHIN, a ten-part series of transformative stories from the world's greatest adventurers, premiered on Disney+ this fall. Upcoming projects include a National Geographic docuseries called PHOTOGRAPHER; and NYAD, a scripted biopic starring Annette Bening and Jodie Foster for Netflix.

About Tompkins Conservation

Founded by the late Douglas Tompkins and cofounded by Kristine Tompkins, Tompkins Conservation is protecting and restoring wild beauty and biodiversity by creating national parks, bringing back species through rewilding and fostering regenerative economies via its offspring organizations, Rewilding Argentina and Rewilding Chile. For more than three decades, the nonprofit has protected approximately 14.8 million acres of parklands in Chile and Argentina through the creation or expansion of 15 national parks in those countries, in addition to two marine protected areas of 30 million acres. Through active rewilding, the organization is bringing back over a dozen species that are in critical numbers, endangered or locally extinct. In 2015, a kayaking accident in Patagonia took Doug's life. The couple is amongst the foremost conservation philanthropists in history.

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