PREHISTORIC MOTHERS - the evolutionary origins of maternity

In Production:

Documentary by Anja Krug-Metzinger

Only very narrowly the original population of Homo sapiens escaped extinction. Today, the once much more successful chimpanzees are threatened with extinction, while the human population has grown to 7.8 billion. Our amazing ability to reproduce sustainably now threatens the long-term survival of many species - including our own. Why are we now living in the Anthropocene - rather than in a world that resembles a planet of apes? For researchers, this has been something of a missing link. The film takes us to current research projects in primatology, archaeology, anthropology and cognitive science and takes us on an adventurous journey to prehistoric mothers who raise their children cooperatively, thus "kick-starting" the process of becoming human. In the cooperative breeding of young lies the central evolutionary origin of the human mind and emotions. Without the cooperative breeding of children by our ancestors, the species Homo sapiens would never have existed.

Photos Great Apes: Jutta Hof
World Distribution: NEW DOCS