The film was a modest success in the late-night cable and VHS markets. Naturally, distributors wanted a sequel.
Before we decode the "Sahara 19" enigma, we must understand the man at the center of it. is not a household name like David Attenborough or Jane Goodall, but within niche cinematography circles, he is something of a folk hero. Active primarily from the late 1980s through the early 2000s, Damato specialized in high-altitude and extreme-desert aerial cinematography. joe damato queen of elephants 2 sahara 19
The footage that Damato captured, which has never been publicly released in full, is described by those who claim to have seen raw dailies as "the saddest three minutes in natural history." The camera shows Sahara 19 approaching the skeleton of a much smaller elephant—likely her last calf. She wraps her trunk around the skull, lifts it gently, and carries it for over a mile before setting it down by a dry acacia tree. The film was a modest success in the
series. By the mid-90s, he had moved almost exclusively into the hardcore video market, frequently creating erotic parodies or "reimaginings" of classic adventure stories like is not a household name like David Attenborough
According to the legend of , Damato was flying his gyrocopter at 200 feet when he spotted the herd. But Sahara 19 was alone. Her 18 other elephants had perished or strayed. She was walking in a perfect circle near an abandoned salt mine.
: Much of the production for this installment took place in Tunisia . Technical Breakdown Sahara (Video 1998)