Georgian conservationist in lens of director Saxon Bosworth's new documentary
A still from Like an Animal, the latest documentary by Saxon Bosworth that takes a look at Nika Kerdikoshvili and his story of transformation from a hunter to a conservationist. Image: Saxon Bosworth
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Young Georgian conservationist Nika Kerdikoshvili is the focus of the lens of film director Saxon Bosworth, who recently released Like an Animal (Ცხოველივით), his latest work featuring natural surroundings of the country and those working to safeguard it.
Coming in the heels of Guardian of Machakhela, where he featured a ranger in western Georgia's national park, the new work centres on Nika Kerdikoshvili, a young environmentalist striving to contribute to conservation efforts for the Caucasian tur.
In his notes on the release, the director said his latest production was a story of a "remarkable, one-of-a-kind man, who devotes and risks his life to protect and learn more about the Caucasian Tur - a wild high mountain goat".
In the documentary, Kerdikoshvili, a former hunter, talks about his closeness to animals in eastern Georgia's Lagodekhi protected area, his introverted nature and rejection of busy social life for the work on saving the animal whose numbers have been dwindling in recent years due to poaching.
He also introduces basic facts about the park's biodiversity and its status as a location featuring an extensive range of fauna found across Georgia, before talking about the animal most of his work is dedicated to.
Kerdikoshvili tells the director he likes to see the turs - who are a part of the Georgian highland folklore and perceived as inseparable from the narrow, rocky paths tracing the mountains along the Caucasus range - facing "the same challenges as me" in the beautiful but harsh environments, especially during times of food shortage in winter.
He also goes into the role of nature in his personal peace, explaining how the environments he now works in changed the anxiety he had to deal with in urbanised social space during his time as a student, while also detailing a hunting story that changed his approach and made him switch his life's dedication.
Bosworth's new documentary can be viewed on the Découvrir La Vie platform featuring multimedia stories of travel inspiration.