@helene_fr : “The highlight of my trip was definitely the two-day excursion to Kidepo Valley National Park. I needed that excursion as I was still looking to film the ever elusive pangolin, and I was also looking for a main character for my video, someone who would speak for the whole story. After a trip full of surprises (the road was quite bad and our car broke down at some point), we arrived at the rangers’ headquarters and were assigned a soft-spoken ranger who kindly agreed to be filmed and interviewed. As it was nearing 4pm and I was getting worried about the falling light, we set off right away in search of pangolins. The park’s landscape was surreal: the light was soft, the sky was cloudy and the grass was making a delicious background noise, I thought I was in a Terence Malik movie. I got great soundbites from Denis, our ranger. At night I camped in a tent, which was a unique experience given that we were in the middle of Africa and so close to South Sudan. We set off the next morning at 6.30 am, still looking –unsuccessfully- for pangolins, but I got great shots and I was satisfied anyway. Sometimes luck strikes and you find great characters and everything becomes much easier.”

#IWMFfellows were on the ground in Uganda in September 2016. Check out iwmfontheground.tumblr.com to see more of IWMF reporting trips in Africa and Latin America. Follow the link in our bio to check out open opportunities with the IWMF.