Timecoded Script
Big Dream Little Bears
By
Howard J Jackson
Audrey Low
Howard J Jackson
Audrey Low
© Wildhoop Productions
2012
01:00:00:00 Black.
01:00:00:22 MUSIC IN
01:00:01:00 - 01:00:05:09 ON-SCREEN TEXT:
Wildhoop Productions
01:00:05:09 Orangutan in tree
01:00:07:05 - 01:00:12:03 LOWER THIRD:
SABAH
Borneo
01:00:07:17
NARRATOR
Borneo sun bears live high up in the trees. They're the rarest, least studied and smallest bear on the planet.
01:00:16:22 - 01:00:23:06 LOWER THIRD:
DAY 8
of the Borneo sun bear rescue program
01:00:16:22 Audrey and Wong walk through jungle
01:00:18:13
AUDREY
So Wong, this is a very special bear on your t-shirt?
01:00:20:20
WONG
Yeah, it is. This little bear, actually she doesn't have a name and everybody calls her the little one. One day I was walking her and she looked at me and I got my camera and snapped this thing.
01:00:33:00 - 01:00:42:03 UPPER THIRD:
"Little One"
01:00:33:23
WONG
Two months after I took that picture, she was killed by another big male bear,
01:00:34:24 - 01:00:42:03 LOWER THIRD:
killed Christmas Day
10 years earlier
01:00:39:02
WONG
and I said to myself, I'm going to make this ... make her ... make her well-known ... tell the story. I hope that one day many people can know about sun bears and ... yeah ... sorry
01:01:02:16
NARRATOR
Since the little one was killed on Christmas Day 10 years ago,
01:01:05:10 LOWER THIRD:
Sydney, Australia. 2 weeks earlier.
01:01:06:20
NARRATOR
Siew Te Wong has become Malaysia's foremost sun bear expert and has devoted his life to the dream of saving these little bears from extinction.
01:01:18:16 - 01:01:25:20 TITLE:
BIG DREAM Little Bears
01:01:26:04
NARRATOR
I don't know much about sun bears. Wong and I started communicating on Skype soon after I completed my field studies on the indigenous tribes of Borneo.
01:01:30:03 LOWER THIRD:
Dr Audrey Low, Sydney -Australia
01:01:36:08
NARRATOR
We've never met in person.
01:01:37:08 Wong and Audrey on Skype.
AUDREY
Hello, how are you?
01:01:37:20 LOWER THIRD:
Siew Te Wong, Montana -USA.
01:01:38:13
WONG
Good, good.
01:01:41:12
AUDREY
So, the bear moving date. So how does it feel after all these years?
01:01:45:17
WONG
Well, it feels good, you know, I have been working hard towards this day for the last six years, and then it's finally happening.
01:01:53:03
AUDREY
Have they been known to kill each other?
01:01:55:02
WONG
It may happen. And of course, you know, we may lose a bear from a very bad bear fight.
01:02:00:14 Audrey walks to Taronga Zoo.
NARRATOR
The first part of Wong's dream is about to be put in motion, so on the spur of the moment, we decide to pack our film gear and join him. Before we take off I need to do a crash course in sun bears.
01:02:12:06 Sun bear, pull back to Lesley and Audrey interview.
LESLEY
They weigh up to sixty to seventy kilograms, these are the Malayan sun bears.
01:02:15:15 LOWER THIRD:
Lesley Small, Taronga Zoo
01:02:16:19
LESLEY
The Bornean sun bears are a little bit smaller again. So they are the smallest of all the bears.
01:02:22:10
AUDREY
Yeah, you have really high regard for Wong.
01:02:24:10
LESLEY
Yeah, well I think once people realize the amount of work that he's done and what he sacrifices, you know with all the leeches and the mosquitoes, and the living conditions that he's had to endure, and he's doing it to try and save the species.
01:02:38:22 Sun bear dissolve to plane take off.
NARRATOR
Like most kids growing up in Malaysia, I was taught Borneo was an undeveloped place, full of jungles and wild animals, and these were all seen as negatives.
01:02:50:03 Plane wing.
NARRATOR
It was only after I moved to Australia, my growing interest with Borneo turned into a fascination. And it was only after my doctoral studies up-river in the jungle, my fascination turned into a passion to help a group of Malaysians fighting a last ditched battle to save Borneo's irreplaceable trees and wildlife.
01:03:11:17 Night, plane lands dissolve to moon.
NARRATOR
I don't know much about sun bears but I do know I'm tired of feeling powerless, and at least I can play some small part in someone else's big dream.
01:03:14:00 - 01:03:18:09 LOWER THIRD:
Sepilok, Sabah - Borneo
01:03:24:15 Ant on tree branch.
NARRATOR
Big dreams begin with baby steps. And the first step is to release the twelve bears Wong and his crew have rescued and to finally give them a home where they can climb to the tops of the highest trees.
01:03:37:14 Wong's 4x4 drives in.
WONG (OS)
I'm here
01:03:39:02
AUDREY (OS)
My god, you're finally here. Bear hug.
01:03:45:00
WONG
Bear hug.
01:03:48:07
WAI PAK
Long way.
01:03:48:00 LOWER THIRD:
Wai Pak Ng, Borneo Sun Bear Conservation Center
01:03:48:18
AUDREY
Yeah, yeah, you must be exhausted.
01:03:50:21
NARRATOR
Wong's enthusiasm tends to sweep people up in it.
01:03:54:06
NARRATOR
Ourselves included, and in the morning we'll be joined by a small crew of bear experts who have volunteered their time to dart, move, train and then release the bears. Problem is, they have only ten days to do it.
01:04:12:00 Moon behind tree.
01:04:12:10 - 01:04:15:13 LOWER THIRD:
DAY 1
The team
01:04:13:23
NARRATOR
Vuthy cares for over a hundred bears in Cambodia. There's not much he doesn't know about bears and electric fences.
01:04:16:07 LOWER THIRD:
Vuthy Choun, Free the Bears - Cambodia
01:04:21:08
AUDREY (OS)
Hello
01:04:22:00
WONG
Sleep well everybody? Vuthy?
01:04:23:00
AUDREY (OS)
Yeah
01:04:23:03
NARRATOR
Wong, a Malaysian native has only ten days before he has to return to the US to complete his doctorate.
01:04:30:18
WONG (OS)
Alright, let's eat breakfast.
01:04:30:19
NARRATOR
Maria's come from Oakland Zoo, California to assist with any medical emergencies.
01:04:33:00 LOWER THIRD:
Maria Trenary, Oakland Zoo California
01:04:36:24
NARRATOR
And Wai Pak has been running the sanctuary for the last two years while Wong has been away.
01:04:42:12
NARRATOR
An already nervous crew aren't too pleased to hear Wai Pak was attacked only a few days ago.
01:04:48:17
VUTHY
And I heard that the bear bit Wai Pak's leg.
01:04:51:20
AUDREY
It didn't bite, it just clawed, right? Or did he bite?
01:04:54:20
WONG
Scary
01:04:56:15 Wong's 4x4 drives up to old bear house
NARRATOR
But not as scary as what we do to them. The bears have been rescued from appalling situations. But with no where to put them, this temporary quarantine station has housed them for six years.
01:05:09:23 Elephant feeding.
NARRATOR
They share the space with a young pygmy elephant saved from a poacher's snare.
01:05:17:04
WONG (OS)
Do you remember me?
01:05:18:16 Series of bear photos.
NARRATOR
All twelve bears share a similar story, disappearing forests, their mothers killed, and if they're lucky the cub is rescued by Wong. Poachers hunt them for the illegal pet trade, so-called medicines, and for their human-like feet to be served up on a platter as a delicacy.
01:05:36:19
WONG (OS)
Do you remember me?
01:05:38:15
NARRATOR
Wong hasn't seen his bears for two long years.
01:05:43:04
WONG (OS)
Hey, you remember me?
01:05:48:15
WONG
She might come and grab me. She smells me.
01:05:54:14 Pull back from elephant through cage.
WONG (OS)
So speak softly, and walk quietly, and no big movements.
01:05:59:04 Wong, Audrey and Maria enter old bear house.
WONG
They see strangers, they are still wary of strangers. And don't go close. Sometimes they want to play, they might catch you in surprise.
01:06:08:05
NARRATOR
Inside the three large males live in the shadows. They're solitary animals and Wong holds grave fears for when they are put together for the first time.
01:06:18:09
WONG
In the wild, the biggest threats to a young bear is other bears. Bears kill bears. Big bears kill small bears.
01:06:24:06
WONG
This is Suria?
01:06:29:05
WONG
Hey. She's small.
01:06:31:18
AUDREY
She's so cute. So how old would she be?
01:06:36:12
WONG
Maybe one to two... one and a half years old.
01:06:39:18
NARRATOR
The females have already been put together in preparation for the big move, but without her mother to protect her, Suria's playful nature has caused friction with the older females. A lonely little figure, she's been forced to live in solitary confinement.
01:06:54:08
WONG (OS)
Ok, we'll go to the new site.
01:06:55:23 David takes photo of Wong at new bear house.
DAVID
OK, one, two, three.
01:06:58:22
WONG
OK, this will go to my blog tonight.
01:07:00:11
NARRATOR
Wong has spent the past six years raising funds to build this forest enclosure. Newly completed, he's seeing it for the first time.
01:07:08:16 Wong closes fridge door.
WONG
Do we have electricity or not? No, not yet.
01:07:10:18
NARRATOR
No electricity is a big problem.
01:07:13:15
WONG
There's still a lot of work needs to be done.
01:07:15:02
NARRATOR
But the project moves on regardless.
01:07:18:07 Rain starts falling.
WONG
Alright, real rain here.
01:07:24:14 Wong points out trees to Audrey.
WONG
What we are afraid of is this kind of rain. With wind, branches will start dropping.
01:07:31:06
NARRATOR
The electric fence wire runs on solar, but there's six kilometers of it, and it only takes one fallen branch to knock the whole thing out.
01:07:41:21 A caterpillar struggles in a puddle, cut to Wong.
WONG
OK, the rain's stopped. Let's go into the forest.
01:07:47:22 Walking through forest.
WONG (OS)
Jungle cruising. So everyday, one person has to make sure that the fence is OK, no leaves on the hot wire. Not sure this will work, but this is the best that we can come up with.
01:08:00:20
WONG
Don't grab this thing. Keep a minimum contact...
01:08:03:15
NARRATOR
This is the first time anyone has let loose a group of tree-dwelling bears into a forest protected only by an electric fence.
01:08:13:23
WONG (OS)
And this is bear habitat - period. Multi-layers of big trees. Monkey business ... fight.
01:08:23:01
NARRATOR
The big dream is to reintroduce any bear, who shows they still have the instinct back into the jungle, to reproduce with the ever dwindling wild bear population. But these twelve bears haven't touched the earth since they were orphaned cubs.
01:08:38:12
MARIA (OS)
Are some of the twelve releasable?
01:08:40:10
WONG (OS)
Yeah, the girls are releasable, I think. Someone like Suria, small. I think they'll be happy compared to what we had, compared to the small cages. I think we should give them a chance and this would be a perfect place to evaluate whether they still have the instinct with them or not. Yeah, that's our hope.
01:09:00:21
WONG
That is a hornbill.
01:09:04:02
NARRATOR
Annemarie, the last member of the bear team has flown in from China and brings her expertise in the dangerous process of merging these solitary animals into a group.
01:09:15:17 LOWER THIRD:
Annemarie Weegenaar, Animals Asia - China & Vietnam
01:09:15:17
ANNEMARIE
Are you excited?
01:09:16:19
WONG (OS)
Oh yeah, very, very excited.
01:09:21:03
AUDREY (OS)
Suria
01:09:21:04
NARRATOR
Suria's lapping up a bit of attention.
01:09:23:09
AUDREY (OS)
Hey, baby. She's so cute, I think she's my favourite.
01:09:28:20
AUDREY (OS)
Suria
01:09:31:00
WONG (OS)
Oh, there's a wound. See the wound?
01:09:35:08
WONG
Vuthy, Vuthy, don't ... you've got a different smell. Slowly, slowly, easy...
01:09:41:15
ANNEMARIE
It's alright, little one
01:09:43:11
WONG
Easy...easy
01:09:44:17
NARRATOR
None of the bear crew, other than Wong and Wai Pak have worked together before. The thought of losing one of these precious bears is foremost in their minds. As always, images of the little one are a constant reminder that things can go wrong.
01:10:02:06
ANNEMARIE
If a bear then gets introduced to the electric fence, then they go Whoa!
01:10:05:14
VUTHY
When we blow dart the bears, we leave the place quiet.
01:10:08:21
ANNEMARIE
You don't let them in the area all together right?
01:10:09:20
VUTHY
No, we let one at a time.
01:10:11:16
ANNEMARIE
Yeah
01:10:12:10
VUTHY
They will jump on each other
01:10:13:12
ANNEMARIE
They'll fight
01:10:15:06
WAI PAK
I hope that I can finish before you all go
01:10:18:15
WONG (OS)
One group
01:10:19:12
WAI PAK
One group until they go into the forest
01:10:22:06
ANNEMARIE
When are you leaving, Vuthy?
01:10:23:20
VUTHY
13th
01:10:24:19
WONG
I'm leaving on the Tuesday too
01:10:26:08
NARRATOR
Time's so short, Wai Pak's getting worried he may be left to release the bears all by himself.
01:10:31:10
WONG (OS)
And who takes pictures?
01:10:33:13
WONG
Audrey
01:10:35:15
NARRATOR
And just like that I'm made part of the bear team, so I need to go to Sandakan for a medical. As their newly appointed team photographer I'll be getting a lot closer to the bears than I'd thought. I'm a little bit nervous.
01:10:39:24 - 01:10:44:21 LOWER THIRD:
DAY 2
24 hours to go
01:10:49:19
NARRATOR
In the 1930s, Sandakan was the world's largest exporter of timber, but that was only the start of the problems for the sun bears and the other unique animals of the Borneo rain forests.
01:11:01:24
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Now the forests are largely cleared, it devotes itself to palm oil.
01:11:10:03
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
With only twenty-four hours before the big move, it seems to take forever to complete the mandatory health checks for working in the Sepilok orangutan forest.
01:11:20:01
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
The orangutans are vulnerable to the same diseases as humans.
01:11:20:17 LOWER THIRD:
Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Center
01:11:24:16
WONG (OS)
I've never trained a bear in electric fence.
01:11:28:22
CECILIA
If you can document all this
01:11:30:03
WONG
The time I stay here is very very short. And then we try to have at least one group of bears go into the forest before I leave
01:11:30:03 LOWER THIRD:
Dr Cecilia Boklin, Head Vet
01:11:37:12
CECILIA
Just two weeks Wong, less than two weeks
01:11:38:19
WONG (OS)
Yeah, I know ... no choice
01:11:41:04
CECILIA
Yeah
01:11:44:08
WONG (OS)
This is a natural forest. Obviously it is not 100 percent bear proof, it is bear proof by electric fences.
01:11:50:18
WONG
If the bear decides to climb then they are still contained, and hopefully not this side ... then it's bye bye, I'm free, yeah
01:12:07:24
VUTHY (OS)
Free the bears
01:12:09:04
WONG
Yeah, free the bears
01:12:10:03
VUTHY
Free the bears
01:12:13:22
WONG
Alright, tomorrow is the day, hey.
01:12:18:10
WONG (OS)
This is the right thing to do for sun bear conservation in Sabah, it is moving to a new era for real.
01:12:28:14
WONG
Bear fight, I need to go up there.
01:12:32:06
WONG
I need to get in there, cannot see a thing from here.
01:12:36:16
WONG (OS)
Don't go too close, today they are very stressed out.
01:12:47:15
WONG (OS)
It is Bermuda. That kind of behavior is a stressed bear, the pacing ...
01:12:52:04
WONG
Yeah, tomorrow is very unpredictable and I'm very excited and at the same time things may go wrong ...
01:12:59:24
NARRATOR
And they do. Vuthy has seen a serious problem with the electric fence, and even worse, they found the bears can open the outside doors and could easily escape. There's a frantic scurry of last minute welding. And there's a third potentially even more serious problem ... Suria. They'll have to dart Suria today.
00:13:01:21 - 01:13:06:00 LOWER THIRD:
DAY 3
The dart man.
01:13:20:22
WONG
Her wound is getting ...
01:13:22:17
AUDREY (OS)
Yeah, she was scratching it
01:13:24:07
WONG (OS)
Today there's a hole, you can see through inside the stomach cavity, the skin's already punctured. It's a very deep scratch, poke through her skin.
01:13:37:13
NARRATOR
The time has come.
01:13:39:20
AUDREY
Suria, hey now. Who beat you up?
01:13:44:13
NARRATOR
Elis preps his gear and the mood changes.
01:13:51:20 LOWER THIRD:
Elis Tambing, Head ranger.
01:13:52:23
NARRATOR
The bears know him. They get very tensed.
01:13:57:22
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
It seems as if they're wondering which one of them it will be.
01:14:03:02
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Bears hate being darted. Really hate being darted.
01:14:09:10
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Suria starts to run but there's no where to go.
01:14:31:16
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
When the females attacked Suria, her injuries seemed only superficial. Now, it's clear they're very serious indeed.
01:14:42:017
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
She's little and she's wounded but still she fights the drug with every ounce of strength.
01:14:53:07
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
It takes a long time.
01:14:59:08
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
It's only when the crew carry her out you see how tiny she is. 25 kilos.
01:15:12:00
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
It's particularly heartbreaking to rescue and nurse an orphaned cub back to health, only to have it killed by another bear. Wong feels this only too acutely. The whole program, his whole life, is based on that experience.
01:15:32:02
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Mixing the bears together is central to the project. The first time they try it and it turns out like this. There's a lot of worried faces.
01:15:44:16
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
For Wong, seeing Suria, the smallest of these bears wounded so badly, is only too reminiscent of the death of the Little One.
01:15:58:09
MARIA (OS)
Beautiful job Dr Cecilia.
01:16:10:13
ANNEMARIE (OS)
Yeah, this is a good idea because you could pull the towel away if you had to.
01:16:19:13
AUDREY
Wow, that was pretty traumatic. I'd never seen that before. I'd never even seen a dog being sedated before. I just handled it and kept taking photos. Whoo, two more to go.
01:16:35:00 Elis darts Om at old bear cage.
01:16:47:02 Wong and the bear team carry him down the road.
NARRATOR
Now it's Om's turn. A big male.
01:16:55:24
MARIA
Head.
01:16:58:11
NARRATOR
He remains semiconscious throughout the whole process.
01:17:02:20
WONG
Baculum, sixty five.
01:17:05:00 Overlapping dialogue.
NARRATOR
When you hear the call 'head-up' you back away.
01:17:07:17
MARIA
He's waking up.
01:17:09:01
WONG
Head-up.
01:17:10:22
VUTHY
Head-up, head-up.
01:17:13:15 Wong comes out of cage.
WONG
Thirty minutes. He's sixty kilos. The biggest bear I ever handled. He was up all the time. And he was under dosed. The dosage is for forty kilo. He's sixty.
01:17:28:22 4x4 pulls up. Wong get out.
WONG
Water for everybody.
01:17:37:18 Wong points at an orangutan.
NARRATOR
A bit of light entertainment helps relax the tense atmosphere.
01:17:42:19
NARRATOR
This orangutan has seen the commotion and come down from the forest.
01:17:48:18
NARRATOR
The workers are wearing headscarves...so he needs one two. Like the bears, the orangutans in this forest are rescued orphans. They're wild but after being brought up by humans they have no fear of people at all.
01:18:04:03 Wong walks past.
WONG
Good time.
01:18:07:24
NARRATOR
It's going to be interesting when they and the local macaques realize twelve bears are sharing the forest with them and what they'll do when the electric fence gets turned on. All we know at this stage is they make filming very hard. You can't put anything down, even inside, or they'll take it.
01:18:30:07 Wong stands with doctor Cecilia.
WONG
In 2006 I found out I'm allergic to sun bears. And every time I come here I start sneezing.
01:18:40:00 Cut to Wong working on bear.
WONG
Wow, my allergy.
01:18:42:09
ANNEMARIE (OS)
Bear allergy?
01:18:43:03
WONG
Yeah, bear allergy. No one's even heard of it.
01:18:46:04 Cut back to Wong and Dr Cecilia
WONG
So I cannot hug sun bears...but whatever I need to do. I need to do.
01:18:53:08
NARRATOR
Ah Chong is the third and last for the day. He's a handful.
01:18:59:11
ANNEMARIE (OS)
Um, Vuthy, can you help.
01:19:03:05
NARRATOR
No sooner is one crisis averted, another one occurs.
01:19:06:08
ANNEMARIE (OS)
Is there anyone available to keep an eye on Suria?
01:19:10:07
VUTHY (OS)
Get the vet!
01:19:11:20
WONG
Did she vomit?
01:19:13:05
VUTHY (OS)
Yeah, I think we need to open the door.
01:19:14:16 Dr Cecilia leaves just as the bear crew scramble to help Suria.
NARRATOR
Suria's woken and she's throwing up.
01:19:17:16
VUTHY (OS)
If she vomits we get her upside down...
01:19:19:06
NARRATOR
Very dangerous for a half conscious bear. But they can't just open the cage and go inside. Even a bear this size can easily kill you.
01:19:27:12 Overlapping dialogue Dr Cecilia rushes up stairs.
CECILIA
Anyone will stay to monitor? Who will stay?
01:19:30:06
WONG (OS)
Here we've got no power.
01:19:33:07
VUTHY (OS)
Her temperature's up very high.
01:19:36:19
CECILIA (OS)
Call me anytime.
01:19:40:04 Cecilia leaves.
NARRATOR
With no electrical power, all we can do is stay with her until the sun sets. And then hope she makes it through the night.
01:19:26:20 New day. Audrey checks on Suria.
01:20:01:04
NARRATOR
First thing in the morning we check in on little Suria. She's made it but she's a very unhappy looking bear.
01:20:02:07 - 01:20:06:18 LOWER THIRD:
DAY 4
Little Suria
01:20:15:30
NARRATOR
The project rolls on.
01:20:20:12 Wide shot, crew carries another bear down road.
NARRATOR
A long power lead has been borrowed so more last minute work can continue. Everyone looks exhausted.
01:20:31:19 Wong struggles with bear on table.
WONG
Audrey, I need close up pictures of canine...teeth.
01:20:37:02
NARRATOR
My doctorate in Borneo art hasn't really prepared me for shooting photos of agitated bears from a few inches away.
01:20:44:01
AUDREY
I'm out of here.
01:20:47:05 Cream in bear's eye.
NARRATOR
There's half conscious bears, vomiting bears, struggling bears, workers hammering and welding fumes permeating everything in thirty five degree (Celsius) heat with not so much as a fan.
01:21:03:23 Blood sample.
NARRATOR
Things lighten up into a bit of relieved lowbrow humor when Bermuda, the most ferocious bear, comes off without a hitch.
01:21:11:09 Wong measuring bear penis.
WONG
Circumcised?
01:21:12:19
ANNEMARIE (OS)
No, Ah Chong has the longest.
01:21:14:16
WONG
Ah Chong has the longest?
01:21:18:24
ANNEMARIE (OS)
He has 74mm, Bermuda is 72mm. And Om is 65mm.
01:21:26:21
WONG
Well, sure, Om is the youngest.
01:21:31:24 Audrey watches Suria try to climb the tyre.
AUDREY (OS)
Hey baby. Oh no.
01:21:37:17
NARRATOR
Suria can hardly stand but that tyre just looks like too much fun to resist.
01:21:49:00 Wong puts his head under tap.
AUDREY (OS)
How'd it go?
01:21:50:13
WONG
This is new to me, I've never run an operation like this.
01:21:55:15
AUDREY
You plan as much as you can and you get the input from all the experts, but something unexpected happens.
Overlapping dialogue.
01:22:00:24
WONG
Yes, like yesterday morning, I was thinking the bears might search for the weak point and...and they escape. Which is, you know, not good.
01:22:09:21
WONG (CONT'D)
This is not a dog, this is not a cat. This is a bear, it's a dangerous animal. Anything can happen. Anything can happen. Yeah. And if escaped bears get into some problem with people then it might not be good. So this is something we absolutely don't want to happen.
01:22:26:24
AUDREY
So yeah, well, I guess if anything happens, the first call is Elis, yeah?
01:22:31:03
AUDREY (CONT'D)
The dart man.
01:22:31:08
WONG
The dart man. The last person we want to call is "Elis come and dart our escaped bear".
01:22:37:17 Quick cuts. Vuthy runs. CU dart. Wong carries bear.
WONG (OS)
The need is very, very desperate, you know, we are losing the time right now with all the deforestation going on in this region.
01:22:45:02
AUDREY (OS)
Are you getting much support at all?
01:22:47:02
WONG
It's difficult to get money but as long as we have a dream, it all starts from a dream and work hard to achieve the dream.
01:22:56:09 Wide shot hut to CU ant.
NARRATOR
Dreams have been hard to come by with a crowd of squirrels stampeding inside my ceiling every night. One comes surprisingly close. Then we see what all the fuss is about.
01:23:12:13 Audrey at laptop. The squirrel squawks in tree.
NARRATOR
This black and yellow mangrove snake has been slipping into the roof and giving the little guys a terrifying time in the dark.
01:23:23:11
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Guess we're all in for another long night.
01:23:27:14 Audrey behind wire screen in rain.
AUDREY
Today's the last day. We're going to move four bears and then this old bear house, which has been home to the bears for six years, is going to be empty.
01:23:29:21 - 01:23:34:00 LOWER THIRD
DAY 5
Touching a bear
01:23:36:19 Maria and crew go into new bear house.
AUDREY (CONT'D OS)
Today we're going to touch the bears. I actually lay awake at night thinking about it.
01:23:43:05
ANNEMARIE (OS)
No hug. Hug the bear.
01:23:45:03
AUDREY
(laughs)
Really?
01:23:47:00
ANNEMARIE (OS)
Yeah, they need photos, so...
01:23:48:21
WONG (OS)
Oh yeah, we need photos. And then a picture of a sun bear has to have me in it. Put your hand more, more.
01:23:59:01 Audrey touches the bear.
WONG (OS)
The head over here otherwise you don't know this is a bear.
01:24:00:24
AUDREY (OS)
Yeah.
01:24:01:17
WONG (OS)
Otherwise it looks like a wombat from Australia.
01:24:04:07 Wide shot of 4X4 drives away with Annemarie and David.
NARRATOR
After working dawn to dusk, three days straight, suddenly it's bear number twelve and this part of the dream is successfully completed.
01:24:16:00 Quick cuts: flag, ants, butterflies to bear crew at breakfast.
ANNEMARIE (OS)
If you see them behaving completely stressed or very, very aggressive...
01:24:16:14 - 01:24:20:18 LOWER THIRD
DAY 6
Zap
01:24:20:21
WONG (OS)
And they are trying to kill each other...
01:24:22:23
ANNEMARIE (OS)
Then you have to really rethink.
01:24:25:04
NARRATOR
It would be good to have Annemarie stay but she needs to get back to the grisly task of rescuing bears from bile farms in China.
01:24:33:20 Annemarie disappears behind the bus.
WONG (OS)
Okay, that's the plan.
01:24:36:00
ANNEMARIE (OS)
Action.
01:24:37:05
WONG (OS)
Action.
01:24:38:20 CU Hand held electric meter.
NARRATOR
Electric fence training day. Sun bears can climb the highest fence in a couple of bounds so it's crucial they understand the electric wire and keep away.
01:24:48:21
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Suria is still very weak so she'll be the last to be trained and the last to get her chance at freedom.
01:24:56:20
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Predictably, only Jelita is brave and curious enough to investigate.
01:25:02:17
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
The current runs on a pulse so there's a 50/50 chance she'll get away with a light sniff and not be zapped.
01:25:11:03
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
She touches.
01:25:20:07
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
It's excruciating to watch.
01:25:23:04
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Another touch.
01:25:28:22
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Again.
01:25:35:07
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
She's running out of luck.
01:26:00:19
WONG (OS)
(laughs)
They all are on the basket. On shock on the nose then they all, whoom, everyone on top.
01:26:07:18 Maria, Wong and Vuthy outside.
WONG
Nobody wants to come out already. Interesting stuff.
01:26:17:21 MC at wedding.
WEDDING MC
The winner gets 200 Ringgit.
01:26:20:02
ANNOUNCER(OS)
200 Ringgit.
01:26:35:05 Dancers at wedding.
NARRATOR
Some of the benefits of eco-tourism are beginning to trickle down into the local economy. It paid for this wedding where we're staying. International interest might be the bears biggest hope.
01:26:52:24
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Sabah culture is foreign even to mainland Malaysians. A mix of indigenous tribes, Malay, Chinese with Indonesian and Filipino immigrants and a large dose of Western culture thrown in.
01:27:17:20 Two bears play inside cage.
01:27:18:15
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Today's big event...
01:27:19:05 - 01:27:23:09 LOWER THIRD:
DAY 7
Om & Ah Chong
01:27:20:04
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
...will be mixing Om and Ah Chong together. The big males could tear one another apart. But this part of the plan comes off without a hitch. They play for hour after hour. It's a good sign.
01:27:39:21 Bears run through door.
NARRATOR
Vuthy's optimistic they'll all come out before he goes on Tuesday.
01:27:43:13 Vuthy at wire window.
VUTHY
Tomorrow we let out two and then Monday we let out two more. So four Monday, finished.
01:27:48:22
WONG (OS)
Just now, Cerah, she got zapped.
01:27:51:22
VUTHY (OS)
Zap, zap, zap.
01:27:52:21
WONG (OS)
How many? Three times.
01:27:54:01
VUTHY (OS)
Yeah, three times.
01:27:55:15
WONG
She learned her lesson.
01:27:57:16
VUTHY
Big lesson for her.
01:28:05:06 Wai Pak blows whistle. Bears climb.
NARRATOR
Once the bears go out they need to come back at night. The whistle means food.
01:28:11:22
VUTHY (OS)
Suria, the sick one. Only her I remember. She's sick.
01:28:19:15
NARRATOR
Time to build the ramp to bridge the cages to the earth.
01:28:24:12
NARRATOR
Money, and therefore the simple things are in short supply. Hammers, nails, even the electricity is borrowed.
01:28:31:24
WAI PAK (OS)
This is Borneon iron wood.
01:28:34:08
VUTHY (OS)
Took about 20 minutes to make one.
01:28:37:15
WONG
Too short.
01:28:38:23
WAI PAK(OS)
Now we need a hammer.
01:28:40:22
WONG (OS)
The wood is our hammer.
01:28:43:06 CU Drill. Wong hammers in stake.
NARRATOR
But tomorrow is the day Wong has dreamt about for ten years.
01:28:46:04
WONG (OS)
Drill bit not long enough, not big enough.
01:28:47:05
NARRATOR
So they improvise.
01:28:50:23 Quick cuts, insect, birds, Audrey walking.
01:28:51:02 - 01:28:55:06 LOWER THIRD:
DAY 8
A giant step
01:28:59:13
NARRATOR
This is it. Some of these bears haven't touched soil in six years.
01:29:04:01
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
The macaques see the food and are already plotting their way inside.
01:29:09:04
AUDREY
This is the door. The bear's going to walk down, and touch the earth, right about there. The first time it touches the earth.
01:29:16:09
WONG (OS)
The fence is on now, Audrey. So you've got to be extremely careful.
01:29:23:19
NARRATOR
Once again four females are given the chance but only Jelita is interested. It's all a bit overwhelming. Appropriately, a honey bee is first to greet her.
01:29:42:18 Jelita sniffs the air, a bee buzzes by.
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Sun bears climb at the first hint of danger. There's nowhere to go out there other than up the fence. She hasn't seen the sky in so long she's more interested in looking up than down at freedom.
01:30:01:23 Jelita looks at the sky.
WONG (OS)
Hey, Jelita.
01:30:06:12
NARRATOR
We wait. And wait. And wait some more.
01:30:12:16 Wong, Wai Pak and Vuthy at fence.
WONG
Well maybe we continue tomorrow morning. Yeah?
01:30:20:23 Wong alone at fence.
WONG
Well I said we'll have to do plan B.
01:30:29:16
NARRATOR
Wong's disappointment is palpable. But he keeps an optimistic exterior.
01:3O:36:20 Dissolve to orangutan in forest.
01:30:38:05
NARRATOR
With Jelita staying put, Wong takes the opportunity to check the fence perimeter.
01:30:44:11
NARRATOR
It's the first time we've had a chance to really talk since the program began eight days ago.
01:30:49:20
WONG
I am very lucky, very fortunate to be one of the few people in the world who actually has the chance to see wild sun bears, how they live in the wild...
01:31:00:23
WONG (CONT'D)
...and I want to bring that experience ... I want to share that experience with other people as well, because it is so special. They are like chimpanzees, they spend a lot of time high on top of the trees. Not many people know about it.
01:31:15:07
WONG (CONT'D)
...And this is a very good opportunity, a good showcase to show people the secret lives of sun bears.
01:31:23:16
WONG (CONT'D)
...This forest is one of the places with the highest biodiversity on earth. It is priceless and it's very important to all species on earth including humans.
01:31:36:01 - 01:31:40:05 LOWER THIRD:
DAY 9
Club bear
01:31:39:01
NARRATOR
Welcome to Club Bear.
01:31:42:08
AUDREY (OS)
Lawak likes her ass under the shower.
01:31:44:01
NARRATOR
Last chance before Vuthy and Wong go.
01:31:49:02
NARRATOR
After years of sensory deprivation they have sensory overload.
01:32:06:00
NARRATOR
Suria's recovering well but can only watch on.
01:32:11:18
NARRATOR
The females have company, the boys are still best friends. But for her own protection, once again, Suria finds herself in isolation.
01:32:26:01
WONG
Hello, yeah this is Wong. Yeah, I'm leaving tomorrow.
01:32:31:23
NARRATOR
Vuthy decides to lay a tempting spread of food just out of reach. Then toss bananas ever closer.
01:32:41:18
NARRATOR
First one, right in the eye.
01:32:45:10
WONG (OS)
Yeah, looks like Plan A didn't work.
01:32:50:12
NARRATOR
Not a complete failure, Suria's learnt how to squeeze her rump into the water bowl.
01:33:00:19
WAI PAK (OS)
How long?
01:33:01:07
VUTHY (OS)
The shortest one week.
01:33:02:20
WAI PAK
Longest?
01:33:03:15
VUTHY
Ten years.
01:33:07:17
VUTHY
Bye bye.
01:33:17:17
WONG (OS)
Don't drink too much.
01:33:19:11
NARRATOR
With a revised estimate it may take ten years for the bears to go out, Vuthy's gone. And we lose another vital member of the bear team.
01:33:30:09
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Sun bears are renown for their strength. Compare an experienced man with a sharp machete with this.
01:33:40:14
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Opening a coconut is something a young bear has to learn. It all looks a bit too difficult. Suria will have to wait for another day.
01:33:54:13
WONG (OS)
Audrey, say when.
01:33:56:07 - 01:34:00:11 LOWER THIRD:
DAY 10
Plan B
01:33:56:11
NARRATOR
Day ten. Wong's last. The facility handover ceremony is good natured and brief.
01:34:03:20
WONG (OS)
So, anything, Wai Pak is my right hand, my left hand and my soul.
01:34:08:15
WOMAN OFFICIAL
Congratulations. New project manager.
01:34:13:01
WONG
Well, to be frank, I'm a little bit disappointed because I was so confident that the bears will come out and explore the forest. But I understand that they are not coming out because in the wild they'd probably still stick around with their mother.
01:34:26:12 Bears tumble inside cage
WONG (OS)
Hey, time to feed them. It's 4 o'clock already.
01:34:28:21 Whistle
01:34:30:21
NARRATOR
Om and Ah Chong decide to fight at the very moment Wong is leaving.
01:34:35:00 Bears fighting.
01:34:38:23
WONG (OS)
Don't fight, don't fight. A line has been crossed. Dear, oh dear.
01:34:48:00
NARRATOR
Just as a not so gentle reminder.
01:34:51:00
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Then it's time to go.
01:34:56:05
AUDREY
Have a great trip
01:34:59:11
NARRATOR
Wong will be returning to Sabah permanently from snowy Montana in six months. He'll have to keep dreaming until then.
01:35:08:09
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
We're starting to worry the bears won't come out while we're still here.
01:35:11:24
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Maria's staying until the end of the month but otherwise as Wai Pak feared, now it's only he and David, who will be left to run the new facility and to set the bears free.
01:35:28:07
WAI PAK
Suria was sent to a plantation by a villager. She is also the first bear that I rescued. She is doing so well now.
01:35:37:19
WAI PAK (CONT'D)
When we first got her, they kept her in a small cage, very small and she could hardly stand up. So the first time we put her into a bigger cage like this, she fell down, from this height, fell down. Basically because she didn't have any muscles.
01:35:56:07
AUDREY
Do you think they killed her mother?
01:35:58:00
WAI PAK
The villagers claim that they found her abandoned by her mother, which is a very common excuse. It's the same as orangutans. They always say that the mother abandoned the baby, but for sun bears, the babies have to learn from their mothers for up to two years.
01:36:15:24
AUDREY
So if Suria was in the wild she would still be with her mother now?
01:36:19:14
WAI PAK (OS)
Yes!
01:36:20:13
AUDREY (OS)
She's very cute. The smallest bear.
01:36:24:16
WAI PAK
They can still cause a lot of damage. Look at their claws, I dare not go into the cage without bars or safety. This is the closest I can get. We still have bars between us, right? Look at their strong claws.
01:36:46:01 Wide shot palm oil plantation
01:36:47:07
AUDREY (OS)
I'm standing in the middle of a palm oil estate.
01:36:50:15
AUDREY
So this is it. This is the problem for the sun bears and the orangutans. Not quite the towering dipterocarps that the sun bears and the orangutans are used to but this is what the economy is based on in Sabah and Sarawak.
01:37:03:10
AUDREY (OS)
Jobs, all the way down the line, truck drivers, people who work in the palm oil mills, people who work in the estates. Many people owe their livelihood to this, and at the same time one in ten products in the supermarket in the West has palm oil in it.
01:37:22:16
NARRATOR
West Malaysia was covered with rubber plantations, and then they got rid of rubber and started planting oil palm and then it just spread through out the country, from West Malaysia to East Malaysia, and a lot of Sabah and Sarawak.
01:37:39:22
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
The ultimate aim of the program is to release the bears who've learnt the skills to survive back into the wild. But traveling the seventy kilometers from Sepilok to the Kinabatangan River you don't see any wild. Only endless palm oil.
01:37:58:19 LOWER THIRD:
Kinabatangan River
01:37:59:01
NARRATOR
The Kinabatangan has always been a major gateway for people and trade into the interior.
01:38:11:22
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
It's only when you reach it, you see habitat.
01:38:15:23
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
The trees are teaming with proboscis monkeys and macaques. Unnaturally so. The animals are all squeezed into a narrow band of land along the shore. Pygmy elephants, orangutans, clouded leopards, all competing for the same small patch of earth.
01:38:34:16
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Orangutans can't swim. Occasional ropes and bridges have been strung across tributaries so they won't be trapped.
01:38:44:11
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Good willed people both local and from around the world are trying to help anyway they can but it's a rear guard action at the moment, just holding the line until hopefully one day more help arrives.
01:39:04:07
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Large crocodiles lurk waiting for animals to make the crossings.
01:39:09:17
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
And if you're traveling inland along one of the endless tributaries feeding the river you get 500 meters before this again.
01:39:22:01
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Palm oil that stretches further than the imagination.
01:39:30:10
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Back in Sepilok, Suria has the best seat in the house. The only perch that can see inside and out.
01:39:38:01
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
They've given up on Jelita and decided that Om, a strong male, will jump at the opportunity for freedom.
01:39:45:16
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Today the macaques have decided to make their move. They've obviously figured out the bears are never coming out. Easy to get in, jump to tree and shimmy down. Getting out won't be so easy. They'll have to climb the electric fence.
01:40:04:00
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Suria watches enviously. It's a smorgasbord.
01:40:11:18
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
More to follow. The babies too.
01:40:17:00 Sound of electric shock!
01:40:19:13
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
A painful lesson learned, but they'll be back.
01:40:23:07 - Moon
01:40:23:07 - 01:40:27:11 LOWER THIRD:
Day 28
Still waiting
01:40:25:12
AUDREY
Still waiting. Om is pulling the outside inside, he's got all the branches. He's very happy with his leaves and branches.
01:40:36:09
AUDREY (CONT'D)
...He's stripping them and rolling in them but he's not coming out. He'll get the food from outside, sneak it in.
01:40:45:21
AUDREY (CONT'D)
...In fact the monkeys have started coming, the macaques because they know there's plenty of food out here. That got him a little bit interested but not interested enough to come out. So we're still waiting.
01:40:58:10
AUDREY (OS)
And Ah Chong, the biggest bear would rather lose weight than go into that electric training pen again. He will not move from that cage and he's trapped all the young female bears so they can't get out. So he's causing a bit of a traffic jam.
01:41:11:04
AUDREY
A little bit over it.
01:41:14:00
AUDREY
They've been kept in cages for so long they don't quite know what to make of the outside. But they'll get there. It could take up to a year. We've got a day, but we're optimistic.
01:41:28:04
WAI PAK
Om
01:41:30:00
NARRATOR
Suddenly, Wai Pak has had enough and decides to go in.
01:41:40:00
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
After telling us he couldn't go in with little Suria for fear of being ripped to pieces, he now goes in with Om.
01:41:50:08
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
It's frightening to watch.
01:41:55:18
WAI PAK
Om, Om.
01:42:11:14
WAI PAK (CONT'D)
Yum. I lost.
01:42:19:00
WAI PAK (CONT'D)
I also have one.
01:42:32:15
NARRATOR
This time we hope Om doesn't come out.
01:42:38:08
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Om can open a coconut with a single bite. You don't want to imagine what he could do to Wai Pak.
01:42:51:22
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Thankfully that particular plan didn't work either.
01:43:05:07
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Back to his interior forest.
01:43:12:00
WAI PAK
Guess what Wong told me?
01:43:14:07
AUDREY (OS)
OK, what?
01:43:15:03
WAI PAK
OK, he's shown green light to let me go into the pen with Suria. (Laughs).
01:43:25:09
WAI PAK (CONT'D)
I'm excited because this is the first time I will be playing with the bears and the baby bears. Wong said I can do that.
01:43:33:21
AUDREY
OK
01:43:38:07
WAI PAK
(Laughs). OK, let's go, I can't wait already.
01:43:45:14 Wai Pak testing electric fence.
01:43:47:06
NARRATOR
Wai Pak's dedicated his life to the bears but he's never had the opportunity to play with one. He's almost bursting with excitement.
01:43:56:21
NARRATOR
The electric cable's come loose again, but no matter...
01:43:59:19
WAI PAK
It just disconnected, I don't know...
01:44:08:12
AUDREY (OS)
So the macaques have learned the electric fence.
01:44:10:11
WAI PAK (OS)
Yes.
01:44:11:06 Sound of electric shock. Wai Pak moaning in pain.
01:44:13:02
WAI PAK
Ow! My whole body!
01:44:15:09
NARRATOR
Pity the humans haven't.
01:44:16:17
WAI PAK
Whoo!
01:44:18:19
AUDREY (OS)
Ow!
01:44:19:11
WAI PAK
Under my shoulders. Wow. It's like I have no energy. Wow!
01:44:34:00 Wai Pak hand feeding Suria.
01:44:37:09
NARRATOR
A playmate.
01:44:50:10
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Suria looks bewildered.
01:44:52:00
WAI PAK (OS)
That is macaque. You know macaque?
01:44:55:11
NARRATOR
The macaques get very interested.
01:45:03:00
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
The first bear Wai Pak ever rescued.
01:45:15:24
WAI PAK
Can I hug you? Can I lift you down? Suria.
01:45:27:00
NARRATOR
Touch down.
01:45:30:07
WAI PAK (OS)
Suria.
01:45:31:06
NARRATOR
No. Back to the safety of the cage.
01:45:50:15
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
Finally.
01:45:55:09
NARRATOR (CONT'D)
If only Wong was here to see this.
01:45:59:12
WAI PAK
No, no, no, no.
01:46:02:00
WAI PAK (CONT'D)
Maybe switch off the electric current.
01:46:05:13
AUDREY
It's off, it's off.
01:46:06:17
WAI PAK (OS)
OK.
01:46:09:02
WAI PAK (CONT'D)
So where do you want her to go?
01:46:12:06
AUDREY (OS)
I think she decides, huh?
01:46:15:13
NARRATOR
She's so ex