（Photo/www.xgll.com.cn）
The new Chinese documentary "Mystery Monkeys of Shangri-La" has made its North America debut in New York, marking the 45th Earth Day, and will be broadcast in PBS on April 29, the producer Xi Zhinong told Xinhua in an interview on Thursday.
This film tells a true story about a family of Yunnan snub-nosed monkeys living in the highest forests in the world.
"The images have the power beyond our imagination. We have to bring the power of images to touch people's hearts, and therefore we can talk about conservation and other efforts," Xi said.
He has assembled a team consisting of two cameramen, a scientist, three rangers, and six porters to shoot the film. The crew first followed a small troop of eight families, each comprised of a male, several females and their young.
But their focus narrowed to just one family when they spotted two newly born babies -- two half-brothers. One baby monkey has ideal childhood and is well protected, while the other one struggled after his mother abandoned him. Their story becomes the heart of the film.
For two years, the crew followed the brothers, enduring extreme weather, to shoot the stories of this monkey family, especially story of the half-brothers who make their way in the world by very different paths.
This is the first time the snub-nosed monkeys have been so thoroughly filmed, Xi said.
"China is one of the countries with great biodiversities and also become one of the places where some species have been under threats," he said.
He recalled that back in the 1980s, when China started introducing many amazing works from overseas about the wild life and nature, he began to dream about one day he could use that tool to do something.
"With the film tonight, I think I have realized some part of that dream after 30 years' efforts," he said.
