Eg and the Elephants

1 Writer

Additional Project Info

Eg & the Elephants explores a new, hybrid genre that combines family films with social justice. Synopsis: Eg and the Elephants interweaves three time frames to tell the story of an interracial family and their uncanny gift as elephant whisperers. Present: Eg's grandmother GEORGIA (70, Caucasian) reveals a family secret after her husband dies about his father's biological father, BERT (70+ African American). Eg persuades his father (NEIL, 50 light-skinned African American) to travel to the elephant sanctuary in Tennessee to see one of the two elephants (POPPY) who used to live across the street from them at Chicago's Lincoln Park Zoo. The other elephant (LOLA) supposedly died en route, but Eg can still 'communicate’ her due to his gift as an elephant whisperer. Eg orchestrates a surprise reunion between his father and his grandfather (BERT, 70) who haven't seen one another for forty-five years. Eg and Bert have an instant connection, while Neil is still upset and unresolved. Eg learns that DAMON REYNOLDS (70) a heartless billionaire kidnapped Lola and plans to kill her at his birthday Safari. Bert is a renowned artist and has been commissioned to do a sculpture of Damon, which gives them access to his sprawling property. Neil learns the truth about what really happened when he was a child and agrees to leave Eg with Bert so they can visit the elephant sanctuary, unaware of Eg’s real plan. Eg persuades Bert to help him kidnap Lola and reunite her with Poppy at the sanctuary. Past (1970s): Bert and Georgia (in their 20s) fall in love while living on a commune in Tennessee where their love child, Neil was born. Georgia and Neil (5) leave for New York to visit her dying father. Bert promises to join them. Damon inherits the sprawling property and shuts down the commune. Bert travels to New York to be with his family, but gets arrested and thrown in jail for over seven years for a crime he didn't commit. He’s a poor, African American man with no resources. Georgia searches for him, but never finds him. She marries someone else and moves away. Distant Past (1930s): Eg has a recurring dream about an African boy, UMBUTU (11) with a rare, baby white elephant (ISABELLE) and feels a connection to the boy. All of this finally makes sense when Bert reveals the story of his own father, an elephant whisperer who came to America when his white elephant was captured by hunters. During act three, the three stories converge and the whole truth emerges about his past, his undying love for Georgia, and the forgiveness that his father has been searching for. Eg and Bert succeed in kidnapping the elephant with help from some friends and reunite her with her sister at the elephant sanctuary. In the end, Bert and Georgia are finally reunited.