Although Twelve Nights (十 二夜), a recently released documentary on the plight(困境) of stray dogs, scored well
in the nation’s box office, it also generated dismay among some animal shelter
workers, who said the film misleads the public about their work.
The documentary was produced by writer Giddens
Ko (柯景騰), also known as
Jiu Ba-dao (九把刀), and most of the filming took place at an animal shelter in
Changhua County’s Yuanlin Township (員林).
It purported to reveal the shelter’s rundown,
poor conditions, as a result of its limited resources. The title of the film
refers to the practice of putting stray animals to death if they have not been
adopted within 12 days.
The New Taipei City (新北市) Government’s Agriculture
Department earlier this week booked a theater for three consecutive(連續的) evenings and invited animal
control staff under its jurisdiction to watch the documentary.
After the viewing, some staff said that
although they supported raising public awareness for stray animals’ plight,
they felt a number of scenes were badly handled and filmed in a shoddy(劣質的) way.
They felt dismayed after watching the film,
and felt they were maligned, and that the public would be misled about their
working duties.
One animal control worker said the film
depicted shelter employees treating the animals in a rough, and sometimes
violent manner, leading the public to question their work.
“We were upset after watching it,” said Chen
Mei-hsiu (陳美秀), an animal control worker at New Taipei City’s Banciao District
(板橋) animal shelter
for more than five years. “Most shelter workers have kind hearts and take good
care of the stray animals. We are being vilified in this film.”
“The film is made in a haphazard way. Much of
it was not based on real situations. It has given the public the wrong impression
about animal control workers,” said Huang Yu-hsiang (黃榆翔), a 20-year veteran worker
at a shelter center in Zhonghe District (中和).
Chang Li-chen (張麗珍), deputy director of New Taipei City’s Animal
Protection and Health Inspection Office, said that most animals under her
department’s care remain at the shelter for more than 30 days, and public
adoption is actively encouraged.
“One of our officers asked me if our office
can make a documentary entitled, ‘30 Nights,’ to respond to this film,” she
said.
“Films always try to have a visual impact to
entice viewers. However, this one strays too far from reality. It is very
unfair to the staff who take good care of the animals,” she said.
In response, Ko said the documentary’s
director had applied to film at a number of animal shelters, but most of them
refused or demanded the producer to sign an agreement to allow the shelters to
check and review the film before release.
“We also applied to New Taipei City for permission to film, but we were
refused,” Ko said. “I sincerely hope the conditions in New Taipei City’s shelters are much better than at
the one shown in the film.”
He said the documentary is not meant as an
attack on animal shelters, adding that “the supervisors and veterinarian Hung (洪) at the Yuanlin animal
shelter also hope to improve the conditions, that’s why they agreed to allow us
to film there.”
“Animal shelters are helping to solve a
difficult problem that our society has long neglected. They are not the
documentary’s target of criticism,” he said. “Our criticism is aimed at the
people who have created this problem: The pet owners who abandoned these
animals.”
