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Trailer
About The Film
The Animal Thing charts the struggles of animal rights pioneer and theologian Andrew Linzey, as explored by his filmmaker son. This is the story of a man who spoke out as a progressive voice in the Anglican Church, a polarizing force at the University of Oxford, and as a tireless campaigner for animal rights, on a range of issues from fox hunting and seal clubbing, to vivisection. Today, Andrew considers himself a failure. But despite the immense price he has paid for confronting the cruelty of animal exploitation, Andrew has also had an enormous and, until now, largely unheralded impact on the modern animal movement.
"We have to move away from the idea that animals are things, tools, machines, commodities, resources here for our use to the idea that as sentient beings they have intrinsic value, dignity, and rights."
ANDREW LINZEY
“While interviewing Joyce Tischler, a trailblazing animal rights lawyer, she said, 'Animal people are often broken people.' As soon as she said that, I realized she might as well be describing my dad.
“Most people who know my father, Andrew Linzey, regard his life as a great success. But Dad sees his life rather differently, as a series of failures. Now in his 70s and with his health deteriorating, I wanted to finally tell his story: to explore his ideas and hopefully prove that he’s not a failure.”
Adam Linzey
Director of The Animal Thing
The Animal Thing is a film made by Andrew’s son Adam, and his filmmaking partner, Jesse Fox.
It is a multi-year labor of love. You can find more of their work at www.adamandjesse.com
“Andrew Linzey had the blessed gift of being able to sense in the air the stirrings of a new attitude among human beings toward nonhuman animals, and in the course of a lifetime's dogged advocacy to play a large part in actualizing that change of attitude. He is owed the thanks of billions of his fellow creatures, even though by the nature of things they will never hear of him.”
JM Coetzee, Nobel Laureate for Literature
"The Animal Thing is a moving and inspiring insight into Andrew Linzey's extraordinary lifetime of theology and advocacy for animal liberation. He's paid a heavy personal price, as all great pioneers do. Undeterred, as this film highlights, he remains steadfast in his powerful work against the abuse of animals. Bravo!"
Peter Tatchell, Human Rights Campaigner
Andrew's work is ongoing. To find out more, visit the the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics.
