Led by women, guided by orca—this is a film about resilience, legacy, and what it means to lead.
From the San Juan Islands to the fjords of Norway, two women bound by loss follow the ocean’s matriarchs—learning not just how orcas lead, adapt, and pass down knowledge, but how to use that wisdom to reshape the future. Through groundbreaking research and fearless action, they fight to protect these whales and redefine what it means for both species to thrive.
Together in partnership
The Matriarch Movement: Global Action for Women and the Wild
Matriarchs is just the beginning.
This project is the launchpad for a global campaign that reimagines what conservation can look like—one that is inclusive, emotionally resonant, and deeply rooted in lived experience. Through The Matriarch Movement, we are creating a platform that empowers women and girls across the globe to step into leadership roles in protecting our planet.
Our impact campaign includes:
Community science expeditions that connect people to the wild through hands-on conservation.
Storytelling labs and mentorship programs that give women the tools to share their own environmental journeys.
Public screenings and workshops that build awareness, inspire action, and foster intergenerational dialogue.
Global partnerships with organizations already doing the work—especially those led by women, Indigenous communities, and underrepresented voices.
We’re not waiting for change. We’re building it—through film, yes, but also through networks of support, healing, and action.
When you support Matriarchs, you’re not just helping us finish a film. You’re helping ignite a worldwide movement where grief becomes growth, storytelling becomes stewardship, and women lead the way forward—for the ocean, for wildlife, and for each other.
where it all began
Matriarchs began as a film project focused on the Southern Resident orca—a critically endangered population of just 75 individuals (at the time of filming) struggling to survive in the Pacific Northwest. We set out to create a film, 75: The Story of the Southern Resident, to raise awareness about their challenges: vanishing salmon, increasing vessel traffic, and pollution and toxins that affect the overall health of these imperiled orca. As we spent time with researchers and advocates, we came to understand the profound social structure of these whales—led by elder females who guide their pods with wisdom, memory, and care. They are, quite literally, matriarchs of the sea.
Then we met the women behind The Seabirds, a group founded by ocean lovers and grief survivors who were finding healing, purpose, and power through their connection to the ocean. Their journey echoed what we had learned about the orca—grief, resilience, and leadership carried by women.
We realized these stories weren’t separate. They were reflections of one another. And together, they offered something rare: a deeply human, deeply wild story about loss, recovery, and the courage to lead. Matriarchs became not just a film, but the spark of a global campaign to uplift women in conservation—and reconnect us all to the wild.
A team of researchers hope to understand the implications of a diminishing population of Southern Resident killer whales in the Salish Sea due to a lack of sufficient prey base, Chinook Salmon. Recent tragic events have gained worldwide attention, and biologists are determined more than ever to save them. For locals who’s national heritage has relied on these very waters for their own survival, losing Southern Resident killer whales to extinction would be an ominous warning of what’s to come.
Reel Earth Films is a registered 501(c)3 nonprofit organization recognized by the IRS under Tax ID: 88-3896598. Your gift is tax-deductible.