Shot by renowned Portuguese wildlife filmmaker Joao Cosme, “Wilder Côa” is a visually stunning documentary portraying nature and rewilding in Portugal’s Greater Côa Valley. A recent premiere in Lisbon attracted an audience of more than 200 guests, helping the Rewilding Portugal team raise the profile of the landscape and their ongoing efforts.
Capturing hearts and minds
In the rewilding space and beyond, the art of storytelling holds a paramount role in captivating audiences and inspiring positive action. Documentaries, in particular, have emerged as a powerful medium that transcends simple entertainment – shaping perspectives, igniting discussions, and fostering societal change. A new, visually stunning documentary on rewilding in the Greater Côa Valley in Portugal has helped the Rewilding Portugal team build engagement and increase support for rewilding, both at a national and international level.
“Wilder Coa”, which was shot by renowned Portuguese wildlife filmmaker Joao Cosme, premiered in Lisbon’s Pavilion of Knowledge (Pavilhão do Conhecimento) on November 22. The event was completely sold out, attracting an audience of 215 people. A second showing on the subsequent day saw another 180 people view the documentary. The premiere was also live-streamed on YouTube, attracting more than 1000 viewers, many from outside Portugal. The documentary was narrated by Ana Varela, a well-known Portuguese actress.
Forging meaningful connections
The audience of the premiere comprised people with a wide range of backgrounds – from politicians and representatives of public organisations, through to NGO members and Rewilding Portugal donors and supporters. The event kicked off with a dinner, where guests enjoyed a variety of products from members of the Wild Côa Network – a nature-based business network launched by Rewilding Portugal in 2021.
“While many of the audience members were followers of Rewilding Portugal on social media, most had never visited the Greater Côa Valley,” says Fernando Teixeira, Rewilding Portugal’s Head of Communication and Enterprise. “The premiere was their first direct contact with Rewilding Portugal, which is probably one of the reasons that the event sold out so quickly. The Wild Côa Network products acted as great culinary, regional, and cultural ambassadors.”
Roundtable discussion
After the dinner and an introductory speech from Rewilding Portugal Executive Director Pedro Prata, attendees enjoyed the screening of the documentary. This was followed by a roundtable discussion, with a panel comprising Pedro Prata, Joao Cosme, Pedro Rocha, and Joao Soutinho, President and Co-founder of VERDE, a Portuguese NGO with whom Rewilding Portugal has increasingly close connections. They discussed various topics, including the evolution of rewilding in the Greater Côa Valley over the last five years and the rewilding vision for the landscape, as well as how large landowners can support rewilding, how leaving livestock carcasses in the field can support scavengers such as vultures, and the role of documentary filmmaking in building awareness of and support for conservation.
“Documentaries can really help to promote our natural heritage in Portugal,” said Joao Cosme during the discussion. “There is a lot of coverage of wildlife and conservation on social media, but if documentaries such as Wilder Côa air on television the content and messages they contain will reach a wider audience. It is really important to let as many Portuguese people as possible know about the amazing species we have in our country. Most people don’t even know we have vultures!”
Positive feedback
The feedback from people who attended the premiere and subsequent screening was overwhelmingly positive.
“I found the documentary fascinating,” says Andreia Santos, who works for Turismo de Portugal. “It really highlighted the amazing diversity of animals in the Greater Côa Valley. It was so inspiring to see and learn about the essential role of each species, and how rewilding is helping to protect and enhance the wild nature of the landscape.”
“I loved this production,” says Mária Brás, a supporter and patron of Rewilding Portugal. “I didn’t even recognise the landscape as Portuguese. I was thrilled to see this rewilding work being carried out in my country, and I’m even happier that I decided to support it financially through Patreon.”
Rewilding Portugal collected feedback from nearly 50 premiere attendees after the event. The vast majority felt the documentary helped them better understand rewilding and the rewilding efforts being carried out by Rewilding Portugal, while nearly three-quarters said it had worked as a call to action – to follow and financially contribute to Rewilding Portugal’s work, and to visit the Greater Côa Valley and the individual rewilding areas within it.
Invaluable support
Rewilding Europe’s work in our rewilding landscapes is supported by a wide range of highly valued partners. We would particularly like to acknowledge those providing core funding – notably the Ecological Restoration Fund, the Dutch Postcode Lottery, WWF-Netherlands, and Arcadia. Their longstanding support plays a critical role in enabling us to deliver and scale up rewilding impact.
The Wilder Côa documentary was funded by Rewilding Europe and Rewilding Portugal, with additional support from the LIFE WolFlux initiative.