Ghost Elephants Documentary Explores Mystery Of Angola’s Elusive Giants With Werner Herzog

In the mist-covered highlands of Angola, deep within its forests, a mystery endures: the elusive ghost elephants of Lisima, the potential living descendants of the largest land mammal ever recorded. Steve Boyes, conservation biologist and leader of the National Geographic Okavango Wilderness Project, is determined to prove their existence.

In order to find these elusive elephants, Boyes and fellow National Geographic Explorer Kerllen Costa have teamed up with three KhoiSan master trackers - Xui, Xui Dawid, and Kobus - to succeed where advanced technology could not.

Directed, narrated and written by legendary filmmaker Werner Herzog, Ghost Elephants is a lyrical tale of survival, reconnection and the enduring power of ancient knowledge in the face of modern loss. The film premiered at the Venice Film Festival, where Herzog received the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement.

Complementing the film is the coffee table book “Okavango and the Source of Life” by Steve Boyes, releasing in tandem with the documentary. The book expands the journey beyond the screen, featuring more than 100 striking photographs, detailed maps, and Boyes’ personal reflections from years of grueling expeditions to the Angolan headwaters of the Okavango.

It documents the same remaining waterways, communities and fragile ecosystems explored in the film, conveying the physical and emotional toll of navigating a wilderness long closed off by war. With a foreword by Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex and portraits of local traditional knowledge keepers, the book offers an intimate and visually rich companion to the cinematic experience. “Okavango and the Source of Life” is available for preorder now.

Ghost Elephants is directed, narrated and written by Herzog. It is produced by Herzog for Skellig Rock, Inc. and Ariel León Isacovitch for The Roots Production Service. Sobey Road Entertainment is the producing partner with Brian Nugent, Andrew Trapani, Emerson G. Farrel, David Sze, David B. Kirk, Terrence Battle, Richard Sneider, Christopher White and Casey Graf as executive producers.

For National Geographic Documentary Films, Carolyn Bernstein, executive vice president of Documentary Films, and Tim Horsburgh, vice president of Documentary Films, are executive producers. For more info, visit www.ghostelephants.com.