Primate Cinema: Apes as Family \ Rachel Mayeri (2011)

Los Angeles-based video artist Rachel Mayeri has worked with primates for years, studying how they respond to different types of media and what genres (wildlife documentaries, hospital dramas, animation) interest them. Mayeri was commissioned by The Arts Catalyst to work with our closest primate cousin, the chimpanzee. Billed as the first movie made expressly for chimps, Primate Cinema: Apes as Family followed a young female as she befriends a wild group of foreigners. Premiering at AND in 2011, this Wizard of Oz for chimps was made in collaborative with Edinburgh Zoo, and comparative psychologist Dr Sarah-Jane Vick as part of her study of chimpanzee cognition and behaviour.

Rachel Mayeri is a Los Angeles-based artist working at the intersection of science and art. Her videos, installations, and writing projects explore topics ranging from the history of special effects to the human animal.