Tale of the Tides
Movie · Documentary

A multi award-winning film from Mark Deeble and Victoria Stone, narrated by Ian Holm. This is the extraordinary story of Nature’s battle for the shore seen through the eyes of Africa’s least-known animals. In Africa, a fable explains the creation of the tides. Their daily rhythm ensures that all the shore’s animals can visit to feed, but none can stay very long. The film follows the fortunes of a cast of animals that use the shore, over a cycle of the tides. It is set on the remote storm beaches and in the mangrove forests of northern Kenya. As the tide falls, a hyaena feeds on a shark, a caracal hunts monkeys and an octopus strands itself to catch crabs. Crabs are the currency, and everybody eats them from giant monitor lizards, to predatory grouper, crab plovers and mudskippers. As the tide comes in, giant whale sharks enter the mangroves to feed, moray eels fight with octopus, and predatory snappers and squid hunt in the drowned forest. The fable explains that in return for their place on the shore, crabs must pay a price and in the climax, a storm wrecks millions of swimming crabs. They are a sacrifice to the gods and a feast for all the other animals.

2019 · 50m
Starring Ian Holm
Director Mark Deeble, Victoria Stone

Trailers

  • Tale of the Tides
    Tale of the Tides
    Documentary

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Cast & Crew

  • Ian Holm
    Self
  • Mark Deeble
    Director
  • Victoria Stone
    Director
  • Mark Deeble
    Producer
  • Victoria Stone
    Producer
  • Mark Deeble
    Writer
  • Victoria Stone
    Writer

About

Tale of the Tides

Documentary

A multi award-winning film from Mark Deeble and Victoria Stone, narrated by Ian Holm. This is the extraordinary story of Nature’s battle for the shore seen through the eyes of Africa’s least-known animals. In Africa, a fable explains the creation of the tides. Their daily rhythm ensures that all the shore’s animals can visit to feed, but none can stay very long. The film follows the fortunes of a cast of animals that use the shore, over a cycle of the tides. It is set on the remote storm beaches and in the mangrove forests of northern Kenya. As the tide falls, a hyaena feeds on a shark, a caracal hunts monkeys and an octopus strands itself to catch crabs. Crabs are the currency, and everybody eats them from giant monitor lizards, to predatory grouper, crab plovers and mudskippers. As the tide comes in, giant whale sharks enter the mangroves to feed, moray eels fight with octopus, and predatory snappers and squid hunt in the drowned forest. The fable explains that in return for their place on the shore, crabs must pay a price and in the climax, a storm wrecks millions of swimming crabs. They are a sacrifice to the gods and a feast for all the other animals.

Information

Studio
Flat Dog Productions Ltd
Released
2019
Run Time
50 min
Rated
G
Region of Origin
United Kingdom
© Flat Dog Productions Ltd 2002

Languages

Original Audio
English
Audio

English (United Kingdom) (AAC)

Subtitles

English (CC)

Accessibility

Closed captions refer to subtitles in available languages with the addition of relevant non-dialogue information.
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Select a country or region

Africa, Middle East, and India

  • Armenia
  • Azerbaijan
  • Bahrain
  • Botswana
  • Brunei Darussalam
  • Cape Verde
  • Egypt
  • Eswatini
  • Gambia
  • Ghana
  • Guinea-Bissau
  • India
  • Israel
  • Jordan
  • Lebanon
  • Mauritius
  • Mozambique
  • Namibia
  • Niger (English)
  • Oman
  • Qatar
  • Saudi Arabia
  • South Africa
  • Sri Lanka
  • Tajikistan
  • Turkmenistan
  • Uganda
  • United Arab Emirates
  • Zimbabwe

Asia Pacific

  • Australia
  • Cambodia
  • Fiji
  • 香港 (廣東話–繁體)
  • Indonesia (English)
  • 日本
  • Lao People's Democratic Republic
  • 澳門 (廣東話–繁體)
  • Malaysia (English)
  • Micronesia, Federated States of
  • Mongolia
  • New Zealand
  • Philippines
  • Singapore
  • 대한민국
  • 台灣
  • Thailand
  • Turkmenistan
  • Vietnam

Europe

  • Armenia
  • Österreich
  • Belarus
  • Belgium
  • Bulgaria
  • Cyprus
  • Czechia
  • Denmark
  • Estonia
  • Finland
  • France (Français)
  • Deutschland
  • Greece
  • Hungary
  • Ireland
  • Italia
  • Latvia
  • Lithuania
  • Luxembourg (English)
  • Malta
  • Moldova, Republic Of
  • Nederland
  • Norway
  • Poland
  • Portugal (Português)
  • Россия
  • Slovakia
  • Slovenia
  • España
  • Sverige
  • Schweiz
  • Türkiye (English)
  • Ukraine
  • United Kingdom

Latin America and the Caribbean

  • Anguilla
  • Antigua and Barbuda
  • Argentina (Español)
  • Bahamas
  • Belize
  • Bermuda
  • Bolivia (Español)
  • Brasil
  • Virgin Islands, British
  • Cayman Islands
  • Chile (Español)
  • Colombia (Español)
  • Costa Rica (Español)
  • Dominica
  • República Dominicana
  • Ecuador (Español)
  • El Salvador (Español)
  • Grenada
  • Guatemala (Español)
  • Honduras (Español)
  • México
  • Nicaragua (Español)
  • Panamá
  • Paraguay (Español)
  • Perú
  • St. Kitts and Nevis
  • Trinidad and Tobago
  • Venezuela (Español)

The United States and Canada

  • Canada (English)
  • Canada (Français)
  • United States
  • Estados Unidos (Español México)