{"id":7160,"date":"2021-05-21T14:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-05-21T21:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/?p=7160"},"modified":"2021-05-21T14:57:33","modified_gmt":"2021-05-21T21:57:33","slug":"the-dark-hobby-a-compelling-documentary-exposing-the-ugly-truth-of-the-aquarium-hobby","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/2021\/the-dark-hobby-a-compelling-documentary-exposing-the-ugly-truth-of-the-aquarium-hobby\/","title":{"rendered":"The Dark Hobby * A Compelling Documentary Exposing the Ugly Truth of the Aquarium Hobby"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignleft size-full is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/thedarkhobby.poster.jpg?resize=137%2C206&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-7165\" width=\"137\" height=\"206\"\/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><em>The Dark Hobby<\/em> is an expos\u00e9 of the devastation to species and reefs caused by the aquarium trade. This adventurous saga follows a band of Hawaiian Elders, conservationists and scientists who stop at nothing to protect marine wildlife. They file a lawsuit against the State of Hawai&#8217;i to halt the collection of reef creatures, a fight that goes all the way to the Supreme Court. KIDS FIRST! Film Critic Dominic D., comments, \u201c<em>The Dark Hobby<\/em>, a compelling new documentary film, exposes the ugly truth behind a hobby practiced by so many people globally &#8211; the aquarium hobbyist. This film sheds light on the secrets of wildlife trafficking through the corrupt commercial extraction of our most precious species occupying the world\u2019s coral reefs.\u201d See his full review below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Dark Hobby (2021)<br>By Dominic D., KIDS FIRST! Film Critic, Age 11<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>How can we fix what we don\u2019t know is broken?&nbsp; How can we make change for something if we can\u2019t see what is wrong?&nbsp; The answer is simple\u2026we can\u2019t unless we are aware that a problem exists. Hidden under the surface of our oceans within some of the riches habitats on the globe, there IS a problem and we must take immediate action to save our natural world before it disappears. <em>The Dark Hobby<\/em>, a compelling new documentary film, exposes the ugly truth behind a hobby practiced by so many people globally &#8211; the aquarium hobbyist. This film sheds light on the secrets of wildlife trafficking through the corrupt commercial extraction of our most precious species occupying the world\u2019s coral reefs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/-I4jAKRGepw?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Aquariums are certainly beautiful and enjoyable for humans, but they come at a huge cost to other living things involved in this \u201chobby\u201d industry. <em>The Dark Hobby<\/em> highlights some alarming statistics within this captive industry that are sure to shock those that admire these artificial habitats. The film takes us to Hawaii\u2019s Kona Coast where Robert Wintner, the film\u2019s executive producer and long time marine activist, educates us on the dismal journey of marine life from capture to captivity. Several other activists and research scientists offer additional evidence on this ever so cruel hobby. Plucked from their natural habitat, 99% of marine wildlife die within the first year of captivity &#8211; only to be replaced following their death. The continuous demand to replace aquarium life drives many \u201caquarium collectors\u201d into the business, causing great devastation to marine ecosystems. <em>The Dark Hobby<\/em> refers to fish keeping as a \u201cglobal travesty demanding the world\u2019s attention\u201d and this film is sure to change minds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/6MdXo-MCnDk?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignright size-full is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/thedarkhobby.b.jpg?resize=225%2C126&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-7164\" width=\"225\" height=\"126\"\/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><em>The Dark Hobby<\/em> takes us underwater to some of the richest marine habitats in the world. This exclusive footage is outstanding and beautifully captured by the film\u2019s cinematographers. The Hawaiian ecosystems shown in this documentary are so diversified and viewers get a firsthand look at what could be lost if we continue to allow wildlife to be stolen.&nbsp; The scenes with including Native Hawaiians speaking out to save their culture are especially powerful and a great addition to the film.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The message in\u00a0<em>The Dark Hobby <\/em>is about the need to open our eyes and think critically about all that is involved in human entertainment<em>.<\/em>\u00a0 Humanity can be driven at times by greed and selfishness, which can cloud reality.\u00a0 Humans are taking away marine life\u2019s most prized possession &#8211; their freedom &#8211; and this film gives us the information and education we need to speak out about giving that freedom back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignleft size-full is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/thedarkhobby.c.jpg?resize=239%2C119&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-7163\" width=\"239\" height=\"119\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/thedarkhobby.c.jpg?w=319&amp;ssl=1 319w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/thedarkhobby.c.jpg?resize=300%2C149&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 239px) 100vw, 239px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>I give&nbsp;<em>The Dark Hobby <\/em>5 out of 5 stars and recommend it for ages 8 to 18. Adults, especially animal activists, will also love this documentary.&nbsp;<em>The Dark Hobby <\/em>makes its debut May 21, 2021 on a variety of digital platforms. Please spread the word, it\u2019s critical that this film\u2019s message be heard.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Dark Hobby is an expos\u00e9 of the devastation to species and reefs caused by the aquarium trade. This adventurous saga follows a band of Hawaiian Elders, conservationists and scientists who stop at nothing to protect marine wildlife. They file a lawsuit against the State of Hawai&#8217;i to halt the collection of reef creatures, a fight that goes all the way to the Supreme Court. KIDS FIRST! Film Critic Dominic D., comments, \u201cThe Dark Hobby, a compelling new documentary film, exposes the ugly truth behind a hobby practiced by so many people globally &#8211; the aquarium hobbyist. This film sheds light on the secrets of wildlife trafficking through the corrupt commercial extraction of our most precious species occupying the world\u2019s coral reefs.\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[15],"tags":[3292,3290,1783,144,3291,1166,3289,3294,3293,3288],"class_list":["post-7160","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-feature-film-reviews","tag-animal-advocates","tag-aquarian","tag-by-kids-for-kids","tag-marine-life","tag-marine-survival","tag-movie-reviews","tag-reef-life","tag-robert-wintner","tag-snorkel-bob","tag-the-dark-hobby"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paS5I2-1Ru","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7160","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7160"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7160\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7168,"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7160\/revisions\/7168"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7160"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7160"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7160"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}