HERD

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Transcript

A herd of shaggy Belted Galloway cattle is delivered to a neighboring pasture in the Catskills and instantly inspires a new film. The filmmaker's growing fascination with the complex forces that propel the animals through one season to the next leads him to reflect on the modern idea of animal personhood.

The cows graze and chew their cud, new calves are born, the mothers diligently safeguard their offspring while the bull dominates the herd. Like humans, cows have distinct characteristics: some are giddy, some private, others wise and placid. Cows are sentient, and after centuries of domestication, do humans really have dominion over these complex animals? These questions have been asked for centuries: Aristotle believed that animals are purely instinctual whereas Pythagoras believed that reincarnation moves souls from humans to cows.

Michel Negroponte's essay film is equal parts rumination, observation and meditation. HERD reveals the cow's essence and challenges us to think differently about our fellow living animal beings.

"Cows are fully sentient, deeply emotional, very chatty, inquisitive, and playful socially intelligent animals with unique personalities and mothers who love their children. They aren't unfeeling objects whose only purpose in life is to wind up in human mouths. Herd is one of the best educational films I have ever seen on these most remarkable bovine beings. I hope it is shared widely to a diverse audience who can learn about the incredible rich and deep lives of future burgers, steaks, and veal. If Herd doesn't change peoples' meal plans, nothing will." —Marc Bekoff, Ph.D, Professor Emeritus of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Author, The Emotional Lives of Animal

"In Herd, Michael Negroponte follows a year in the life of a herd of Belted Galloway cattle. From bucolic summer days to rainy and snowy days, he lets the cattle tell their story of individuality, relationships, and collaboration. Intercut with an eclectic selection of archival footage, the film allows us to ponder our complex relationship with this sentient being." —Daniel T. Blumstein, Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California-Los Angeles

"Negroponte creates an unexpected intimacy with this herd of belted Galloway cattle. By following them closely for several seasons, he gifts us a glimpse of the intelligence and society of an animal too often demeaned." —Christopher Preston, Professor of Philosophy, University of Montana, Author, Tenacious Beasts: Wildlife Recoveries that Change How We Think About Animals

"A captivating essay film and a masterpiece of creative non-fiction filmmaking." —Sabrina Artel, Trailer Talk, WJFF Radio

"Excellent documentary...An insightful and creative film that truly delves into the relationship humans have with animals, on both a physical and spiritual level." —Jesse Einhorn, New Jersey Stage

"The animals are sentient with a social hierarchy and a desire to support and protect other members of their herd...Negroponte's essay film is equal parts rumination, observation and meditation." —Kathryn Broughton, Berkshire Style

"Reflective...Allows the audience to meditate on their similarities with our fellow animals." —Remy Commisso, Chronogram

"By inviting audiences to slow down and reconnect with the natural world, Herd serves as a timely reminder of the interconnectedness of all living beings." —Natalia Zukerman, Lakeville Journal

"Cows are often portrayed as comparatively dumb and insensible livestock. This meditative, atmospheric film tells a different story: it allows us to (yes) ruminate on the complex life cycles and deep, proto-moral interactions that cows share with their young, with their herds, and with us." —Andrew Chignell, Laurence S. Rockefeller Professor, University Center for Human Values, Princeton University, Co-Editor, Philosophy Comes to Dinner: Arguments About the Ethics of Eating

"Herd is a luminous revelation of the human-ness of cows and the cow-ness of humans. This film presents a subtle but profound moral challenge to the brutal and unthinking ways we treat these beautiful, loving, and interesting animals." —Roger S. Gottlieb, Dean's Professor of Philosophy, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Author, Morality and the Environmental Crisis

Citation

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Main credits

Negroponte, Michel (film director)
Negroponte, Michel (screenwriter)

Other credits

Music, Beo Morales.

MARC Record See Worldcat record

Keywords

animals,herd,bullfrog films,video essay,documentary essay film,sentience,animal consciousness,animal personhood,animal rights,animal behavior,animal intelligence,Catskills,belted galloway,agriculture,cattle farming,cattle ranch,cattle,livestock,cows,cow,domestication; "HERD"; Bullfrog Films

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[heavy thudding]

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[throat singing]

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[heavy thudding]

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[cow lowing]

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Come on, mother.

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Come on, babies.
Oh, there's another mother.

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-Hi, mother.
-That's a baby.

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Alright ... Hi.

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[cow lowing]

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-Ohh!

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[clanking and cows lowing]

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-Ohhhh!

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-Welcome ... welcome.

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[cow lowing]

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[cow sneezing]
[insects chirping]

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[film reel whirring]
[crowd cheering]

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[military drumming]

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[military band music]

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[cows lowing]
[insects chirping]

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[heart beating]

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[tabla and sitar music]

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[crows cawing]
[insects chirping]

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[blue jay calling]

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[wind howling]
[bells tolling]

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[cow lowing and dog barking]
[bells tolling and clanking]

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[cowbells clanking]

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[insects chirping]
[birds calling]

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[cow snorting]

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[cows lowing]

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[cows lowing]

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[film projector
clanking and whirring]

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[droning tanpura music]

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[tractor engine revving]

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[cows groaning and lowing]

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[cow lowing]
[metal clanking]

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-Get that other rope on somehow.

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All right, take it easy.
Take it easy.

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We don't wannna get air in there.

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-Yeah, I understand.

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[indistinct chatter]

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-Push it right in, now.
Push it right in.

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-I'm doin' it.

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[ice and snow pattering]

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[rhythmic booming]
[wind whistling]

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[wind whistling]
[piercing tones]

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[cow lowing]

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[cow grunting]

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[calf calling]

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[calf calling]

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[ice and snow pattering]

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[heart beating]

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[distressed cow lowing]

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[ice cracking]

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[heart beating faintly]

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Music - “Home on the Range”

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♪ Oh give me a home ♪

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♪ Where the buffalo roam ♪

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♪ Where the deer and the antelope play ♪

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♪ Where seldom is heard ♪

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♪ A discouraging word ♪

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♪ And the skies are not cloudy all day ♪

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♪ Home, home on the range ♪

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♪ Where the deer and the antelope play ♪

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♪ Where seldom is heard ♪

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♪ A discouraging word ♪

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♪ And the skies are not cloudy all day ♪

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♪ How often at night ♪

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♪ When the heavens are bright ♪

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♪ By the light from the glittering stars ♪

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[gunfire]

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♪ Have I stood here amazed ♪

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♪ Asked as I gaze ♪

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♪ If that glory exceeds that of ours? ♪

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♪ Home, home on the range ♪

00:26:43.901 --> 00:26:49.901
[gunfire]
[cattle hooves thundering]

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[cows lowing]

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[water splashing]

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[bird calling]

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[thunder rumbling]

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[cow lowing]

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-With man only a step
ahead of his enemy,

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new weapons are being devised
in the research laboratories.

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Herbicides to stamp out weeds and brush
after even before they emerge.

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Insecticides to control
destructive insects.

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Modern weapons to stop the
invaders dead in their tracks.

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Is there a potential hazard
to man and animal?

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Safety to man, to animals,
to crops, to wildlife,

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to fish, to beneficial insects,
to our total environment.

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Safety is always the watchword
in our use of pesticides.

00:34:31.530 --> 00:34:33.930
[cow lowing]

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[thunder rumbling]
[ice and snow pattering]

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[crows cawing]

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[cow lowing]

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[cow lowing]

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[cow lowing]

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[metallic bang]

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[rain pattering]

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[train horn blaring]

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[thunder rumbling]
[ice and snow pattering]

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[melodic whistling]

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[woman singing]

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[wind howling]

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[wind howling]

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[birds chirping]

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[cow snorting]

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[film projector whirring]

00:43:04.450 --> 00:43:05.999
[throat singing]

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[throat singing]
[cows lowing]

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[cows lowing and vocalizing]

00:43:36.095 --> 00:43:40.005
[cows lowing]

00:43:52.898 --> 00:43:55.998
[engine puttering]
[cows lowing]

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[cows lowing]
[cowbells clattering]

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[auctioneer chanting]

00:45:57.999 --> 00:46:00.999
[rain cascading]

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[sitar music]

00:47:14.999 --> 00:47:18.999
[thunder rumbling]

00:47:19.000 --> 00:47:20.998
[cow grunting]

00:47:35.004 --> 00:47:38.004
[cows lowing]

00:48:38.507 --> 00:48:41.507
[thunder rumbling]
[cow lowing]

00:48:55.101 --> 00:48:57.401
[cow lowing]

00:49:08.999 --> 00:49:10.999
[calf lowing]

00:49:40.999 --> 00:49:43.199
[insects chirping]

00:51:30.899 --> 00:51:32.875
[cow lowing]

00:51:35.999 --> 00:51:37.999
[cow lowing]
[birds chirping]

00:52:01.374 --> 00:52:03.274
[bowling ball rolling]

00:52:04.909 --> 00:52:06.199
[bowling pins crashing]

00:52:44.999 --> 00:52:48.899
[wind howling]
[ice and snow pattering]

00:53:06.050 --> 00:53:09.150
[thunder peeling]

00:53:20.999 --> 00:53:22.890
[calf lowing]

00:55:05.075 --> 00:55:08.575
[insects chirping]

00:55:57.050 --> 00:56:00.040
[trailer rattling]

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[trailer door creaking]
[cows lowing]

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[cows lowing]

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[cows lowing]

00:57:11.999 --> 00:57:13.999
[cow lowing]

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[cows lowing]

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-What a gentleman.

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[cows lowing]

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[woman singing]