One Lucky Elephant explores what happens to elephant retiring from the circus **** 4 stars

By Jennifer Huber

One Lucky Elephant, finding a home after leaving the circus

HOLLYWOOD, CA (Hollywood Today)  7/24/2010 – “We as humans have been fascinated with the magical inter-species bond that can exist between man and animal since the beginning of time” says One Lucky Elephant writer-producer Cristina Colissimo.  “Today, the popularity of YouTube videos, like the emotional reunion of a lion and the two men who raised him, are a testament to this.  I think David and Flora’s story taps into this desire.”

One Lucky Elephant shares the story of the father/daughter relationship between David Balding, a circus producer, and circus elephant Flora.  The story starts the moment David realizes Flora no longer enjoys performing in his circus and continues as he searches for a permanent place for her to live out the rest of her days comfortably and happily.

“We wanted to tell the story of Flora’s journey back to Africa, but that plan took a detour which potentially put the production of this film in jeopardy” says Colissimo.

The story of the bond shared between David and Flora is extremely touching.  It is also very entertaining to see the mischievous personality Flora displays throughout filming.  The care and love the filmmakers put into telling this story is evident.

Behind the scenes, the filmmakers helped find solutions to financial and location snags, sometimes at the cost of their own production.  “By 2008, Jordana and I had raised close to $200,000 for Flora, but not a penny for the film”.

One Lucky Elephant indulges our fascination with elephants and captures a loving bond that transcends the animal/human divide. One Lucky Elephant premiered at the Los Angeles Film Festival.

One Lucky Elephant

Running Time: 83 minutes

http://www.oneluckyelephant.com/