Bill McShea, Wildlife Ecologist for the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, will speak about the dangers of assigning human emotions to wild animals before the film.

10:30-11AM: Doors open for the theater
11AM: Presentation on “The Shape of Human-Wildlife Conflict Within Smithsonian Research” by Bill McShea, followed by feature presentation of Grizzly Man

Pieced together from Timothy Treadwell’s actual video footage, Werner Herzog’s remarkable documentary examines the calling that drove Treadwell to live among a tribe of wild grizzly bears on an Alaskan reserve. A devoted conservationist with a passion for adventure, Timothy believed he had bridged the gap between human and beast. When one of the bears he loved and protected tragically turns on him, the footage he shot serves as a window into our understanding of nature and its grim realities.