Kylee Pitts

12/8/2022

FLM-240

Animals in film

Babe, Marley & Me, We Bought A Zoo, and Dr.Dolittle, these are just a few of the most

popular movies, featuring some amazing performances by animals. Animals in film, is always a

hit when it comes to who is viewing it; it’s amazing and so interesting to see the different sides

of these animals and how well they are able to perform. There are many different aspects when

it comes to putting an animal in film; their safety, achieving the perfect shot, the trainers &

handlers, and veterinarians when applicable. With all this taken into consideration we know the

most important aspect of animals in film is their safety which is a legality and can shut a whole

movie down if protocols and regulations are not followed correctly.

Unfortunately, the worst has happened on many occasions when filing with animals,

and that is why there are such strict rules in place to keep these animals safe and out of harms

way. In the very popular film “Zookeeper” from 2012 a giraffe died while on scene due to eating

a tarp that was placed over his cage (National Humane Education Society, 2015). In another

popular movie from 2012, “The Life of Pi”, the main character, Richard Parker, the tiger, nearly

drowned after a scene filmed in a water tank (Baum, 2013). One of the worst scenes to take the

life of an animal was the 1925 film “Ben-Hur” took the lives of a stuntman and 5 horses due to

the directors “laxed” view of on-set safety (Rizov et al., 2020). Though many of these movies
did not follow the proper regulations they still somehow received the credit that “no animals

were harmed in the making of this movie” (Baum, 2013).

In 1940 television and production companies began to endorse a high standard of

animal care in the guidelines for the safe use of animals in filmed media (American Human

Society, 2015). Almost all sets that have an animal present, there is an American Humane

Association safety representative also present. The safety representative is present to ensure

that guidelines and standards are upheld and ensuring that the film coordinators are not

putting an animal in risk. They also remain on set to remain a witness in the unfortunate

instance that an animal does get harmed (American Human Society, 2015). These animals on

set are not referred to as props, but as performers. This means that they are to be treated as

performers and protected as performers; unfortunately, without the safety representative

there that does not always happen, as stated in the above paragraphs.

The basic principles for safe use of animals in film is just that… basic; treat the animal

with basic humanity and respect, which every set should be doing without the laws. Some of

these guidelines include not physically harming or killing and animal for the use of film

(American Human Society, 2015). Sedation, general anesthesia, and surgical procedures for the

sake of a film (American Human Society, 2015). Animals are not props; American Humane

Association will not allow any animal to be treated inhumanely for a performance (American

Human Society, 2015). Just like humans there are rules in place to make sure the performers

are not overworked and have adequate time to rest. Animals are not allowed to be used in

films with extreme heat or cold, they must have adequate time in between sets and scenes;

animals should not be around anywhere there is alcohol being consumed (American Human
Society, 2015). Though these are just a few, they represent the guidelines and how simple they

are.

Let’s move on to the “No animals were harmed in the making of this movie” credit…

How does one receive it and when is it taken away? If it is taken away, is the film cancelled?

This credit was given as an award and is a trademark by the American Humane Association. The

first movie this award was given to was “The Doberman Gang” in 1972 (No Animals Were

Harmed, n.d.). According to certain sources, American Humane Associations film division was

due to the 1939 film, “Jesse James”, a blindfolded horse was ridden off a cliff resulting in the

horse’s death. This specific situation caused much controversy and then began the

brainstorming of the trademark. This trademark is often used as a parody within cartoons and

obviously computer-generated scenes. Following this credit often follows with “scenes showing

harm to animals were simulated” – especially as computers have advanced and we often no

longer need to use live animals throughout the entire movie (No Animals Were Harmed, n.d.).

Though this credit is an award and trademarked, it is often “BS”, many movies that have

harmed an animal, still often get the credit at the end of the movie. In 2008, the movie

“Chronicles of Narnia” still received the credit even after 14 horses sustained injuries on set.

Movies like “Zookeeper, Marmaduke, Our Idiot Brother, and The Hobbit” received these credits

due to loopholes within the guidelines. Since these animals were not directly injured or killed

due to work or during shooting, they were able to receive the recognition (No Animals Were

Harmed, n.d.), which in my opinion, was not deserved. Animal deaths & injuries within the film

industry is often covered up when not many people saw the incident. The American Humane
Association has covered multiple deaths and injuries on Hollywood sets that have later surfaced

and left employees, jobless (NPR, 2013).

Many people, like PETA strongly believe that no animals should be used in film;

especially animals that do not have regular contact with humans. For example monkeys, lions,

snakes, bears …. They believe it is cruel to use the kinds of animals in films due to their lack of

human interaction and the possibility of someone getting hurt (Animals in Movies and on

Television: Cruelty Behind the Scenes, 2022). PETA states that these animals are also ripped

away from their mother as young as possible so they can become accustomed to the

“Hollywood life”. PETA has set up undercover investigations for film and TV where they have

documented terrifying findings. These wild animals are denied the maternal care needed for

proper development; shortly after they suffer without proper food or veterinary care, kept in

dreadful conditions, and whipped to keep behavior in check (Animals in Movies and on

Television: Cruelty Behind the Scenes, 2022). After these poor animals have been used their

entire life and treated, less then favorable, once they hit a certain age and trainers no longer

have use for them, they are frequently dropped off on the side of the road, or to “seedy” zoos

(Animals in Movies and on Television: Cruelty Behind the Scenes, 2022).

So much more can be done for these animals; not only should the film industry be

treating these animals the same as they treat their human performers, but they should also be

giving them a great “after film life”. These animals have spent their entire lives literally working

for the pure entertainment of humans, they deserve to stay with their moms until they are

readily independent. Animals should never be injured to keep them ready to film, they should

be given constant love when being used for film. We also need to find a system for these
animals when they are no longer fit for film. Dropping them at zoos or on the side of the road is

extremely unacceptable. These animals need a specific area to live out their lives as a wild

animal – without being a wild animal. Due to the amount of time these animals spend in human

care they could not properly care for themselves in the wild. Zoos have also been protested due

to the background of abuse and neglect those animals also receive.

It’s no secret we all love a good movie featuring the cute monkeys and dogs, along with

the large cats and ferocious bears. Thankfully due to the amazing advancements in technology

we no longer need to constantly use animals for film; and it should stay that way. There should

have to be criteria you must meet, in order to use live animals in movies or television. To many

animals have been injured or worse, lost their lives due to humans’ carelessness on the set of

movies and TV and there is no longer a need to keep these live animals on site. When humans

are injured or killed while on the set of a film, the film is immediately suspended, and an

investigation is done. The animals are referred to as performers and should be treated so and

held to that same standard.

 Reference Page

American Human Society. (2015a). Guidelines for the Safe Use of Animals in Filmed Media.

humanehollywood.org.

Animals in Movies and on Television: Cruelty Behind the Scenes. (2022a, November 30). PETA.

https://www.peta.org/issues/animals-in-entertainment/animals-in-film-tv/

Baum. (2013a, November 25). Animals Were Harmed. The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved

December 9, 2022, from

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/animals-were-harmed-

hollywood-reporter-investigation-on-set-injury-death-cover-ups-659556/

National Humane Education Society. (2015a, December 23). Animals in Film and Television -

National Humane Education Society. National Humane Education Society - National

Humane Education Society. https://www.nhes.org/animals-in-film-and-televison/

No Animals Were Harmed. (n.d.-a). TV Tropes.

https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/NoAnimalsWereHarmed

NPR. (2013a, November 26). Report: Humane Association Covered Up Animal Abuse On

Hollywood Sets. NPR.org. https://www.npr.org/2013/11/26/247392855/report-humane-

association-covered-up-animal-abuse-on-hollywood-sets

Rizov, V., Robinson, T., Rabin, N., Tobias, S., Hawthorne, M., Adams, S., Dyess-Nugent, P.,

Semley, J., Keller, J., & Gilmer, M. (2020a, May 7). Yes, animals were harmed: 21 films

and TV shows that killed or hurt animals. The A.V. Club. https://www.avclub.com/yes-

animals-were-harmed-21-films-and-tv-shows-that-ki-1798230791