The Elephant Queen

The Elephant Queen, co-directed by British wildlife documentary filmmakers Victoria Stone and Mark Deeble, was shot over four years in Kenya's Tsavo East National Park, following a 50 year old matriarch elephant named Athena and her family's struggle through drought. The film is narrated by BAFTA winner Chiwetel Ejiofor. Apple acquired the film's global rights in September 2018 after its screening at the Toronto International Film Festival, one of Apple's first feature documentary acquisitions before the launch of Apple TV+. The film went live with the service's launch on November 1, 2019. Who it's for: anyone curious about a wildlife documentary its makers spent four years living to film, one of a streaming platform's earliest acquisitions to launch alongside the service itself. Who it's not for: viewers wanting a fast cut, short nature documentary, since the film follows an elephant family's life at a slow, observational pace.