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The rainforests of Australia’s East Coast are an impenetrable tangle of tall trees, vines and creepers, populated by animals that are hardly ever seen. The incredible density of vegetation provides the many creatures that live there with ideal hiding places. Into this rich habitat comes brilliant natural history cinematographer John Young. His goal is not only to capture on film the beauty and majesty of the Australian rainforest, but also to show the life patterns of it’s elusive inhabitants. A major target for John’s camera lenses is the most unique of forest canopy dwellers, The Tree Kangaroo. The only two species to be found in Australia exist in two small pockets of rainforest. After waiting patiently they eventually emerge, and John gets the footage he so desperately wants. However, the big prize for John is the extremely rare Red Goshawk which John has never seen, let alone filmed. Finally, after ten years of searching, on an isolated ridge, on the edge of the far north Queensland rainforest, John finds two pairs and their nests, and we see wonderful footage of one of the rarest and least known raptors in the world.

This production not only depicts the beauty of the rainforest and some of the world’s rarest animals, but it also shows the skill and dedication, the enormous patience, bravery and obsession of the wildlife photographer. It portrays the daring and dangerous methods that John undertakes to film these “Ghosts of the Forest”.