Fauna (2023) - full transcript

“I believe that truth has only one face:
that of a violent contradiction.”

SPAIN MOVES TOWARDS
A CORONAVIRUS VACCINE

We want to see her
with the microscope, right?

Okay, let me try this.

The classic shot
with the microscope.

I've got it.

Over here.

Hello, Julia.
For the EFE Agency:

What animals do you use
and which are for the covid vaccine?

We work a lot with pigs, but also birds,

both chickens and wild birds,



and ruminants, calves,
goats, sheep...

We've worked
with dromedaries, llamas, alpacas...

And for the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine,

the animal models we use
are transgenic mice and hamsters.

Feel free to film anything.

All the images have to be approved
by Management,

but I'm sure there will be no problem
because it's all perfectly normal.

Hello Xavi.
We're in a level 3 biocontainment lab.

How do you ensure nothing gets out?

All animals that come here,

once we're done with them:

necropsy and incineration
or alkaline hydrolysis.

Nothing gets out of here.
Except people.

Decompressing chamber.



Ok, I'll open now. Thanks.

Wait for confirmation
before opening.

Go ahead.

- Hi there!
- Goats...

Come on.

Out you get.

Roll up...

Come on.

Out you get.

Over there, ladies. Come on.

They keep moving.
I can't get a good shot.

The other day
I did a story with this same herd.

I got more than 100 likes.

Well, I'm gonna make a TikTok
that's better than your story.

- I'm going to use an awesome music.
- No way!

I feel sorry for them.

Why?
They're outside all day.

- I think we'll get some rain.
- Yes, a lot.

If we can trust that phony guy on TV,
we'll get some rain.

I bet we will, just wait..

The sheep know.

- Want some of this?
- No.

- Really?
- No.

- I'll have some.
- Sausage?

- It's good.
- I'm on a diet.

- A diet breakfast.
- Try it.

Ok, ok.

Do you want an apple?

Remember when they built the lab
on that field?

- It was a big field.
- We could take the sheep there.

I think it was a mistake.

I thought those things
had to be located out of the way.

Me too. I was surprised
when they built it here,

so close to the farm.

But I guess...

- They know best.
- That's a whole other world.

It's nothing like ours.

But well...

It's like we're in the stone age
and they're in outer space.

Opposite poles.

I remember when I was a boy,
maybe you do too,

when they landed on the moon,

That was something...

It was hard to believe.

- Did you see it?
- Yes.

It was the age of the explorers,

they said that we were going to live
on other planets,

that in the year 2000
we'd only need to eat a pill.

They got that right,
I take a lot of pills.

But those are painkillers.

They upped my prescription.
Now I take 10 pills a day.

- You're catching up.
- Getting close...

If you weren't in pain,
you wouldn't have to take pills.

That's true.

I remember,
I wanted to be an astronaut.

And an explorer, and...

But at home, my father had a flock

and as a child I'd be out with sheep,

As it should be.

Well, try telling city folks that now...

Tell a 13-year-old kid
to go and shepherd, and he'd...

- Thirteen, you say?
- Or even eight!

When I was eight, it was the cows.

Brisa!
Over there.

Age takes its toll...

- Is that it?
- This is the last one.

Life's changing a lot.

Yeah.

- It was different before.
- It certainly was.

They've grown bigger
because they're in flasks.

What cells are they?
I'm not sure, but...

They're Vero, but CCL-81.

They put a lot in
so there'd be a full flask.

- Because they're already...
- They're CCL-81.

- Ok, but they're Vero cells.
- Yes, but they're high-passage.

So maybe they're dying off.

Let's hope the next candidates work,

because this one didn't.

But did the animals
have an immune response?

Yes, they produced antibodies.

- Neutralising antibodies?
- Yes.

They neutralised the virus.

But once they were infected

we saw that having antibodies
wasn't enough to protect them.

Not the lung,
or the nasal turbinate...

They respond just like
unvaccinated infected animals.

In other words,
this vaccine isn't working.

Outer door closed.

We are letting the animals in.

Hey, pig!

- 735.
- Yes.

- Do you need fencing?
- Coming?

Get them all out.

- I'll take your clogs and your boots out.
- Thanks.

We'll dry the boots in the autoclave, okay?

They're wet.

How was your weekend?

I had to work here at the lab, so...

- Seriously?
- I had a weekend shift.

- So you're off next weekend.
- But then I went for a vermouth.

So it wasn't all bad.
You worked but you had your vermouth.

My weekend vermouth is sacred.

I'm starting yoga this afternoon.

I'm starting yoga.

- This yoga thing...
- What?

Can you do it?
I think I'm too anxious.

That's the point,

it teaches you to relax.

- They show you how to breathe.
- I don't think I'd have the patience.

I wanted to do some exercise

but something low impact.

So, we'll see.

I prefer more active things.

I like salsa, bachata...

I asked an old neighbour

if they offered dance at her gym.

She said no,
but that they do have yoga

and she loves it.

Hello?

Okay.

I'll be right down.

- What is it?
- I don't know,

but whatever it is
shouldn't be inside the premises.

We have to do a visual inspection
of all surfaces and joints,

particularly floors and connections,
to check for any gaps.

- Have you found anything?
- No.

- And the seal?
- It's all good, it's intact.

Does it hurt?
Is that as far as you can go?

Look down.

Any pain?
Turn to the right.

That's it.

Does this hurt?
Turn to the left.

This hurts too, right?

Now I'm going to move your hip.

- Does it hurt when I do this?
- It hurts inside.

- And this too?
- Yes.

- Okay.
- It's the same pain.

Does this hurt?
Sorry.

Does this hurt?

- And this?
- Yes, in the back.

The skin looks good
and you have less lesions.

My wife applies cream every day.

You can't go further?

Ok. Straighten up and try again.

- Is that it?
- Yes. That's all.

Okay, good. Let's try something else.
Just relax.

How are things at home?

Good, but she also has a long illness,

she was diagnosed with fibromyalgia,
chronic fatigue and epileptic seizures.

So you can't just say,
"I'm home, I'll rest now."

I get home and I have to help out,
of course.

So that means more effort,
more of a burden...

Does this still wake you up?

Yes, the pain often wakes me.

It takes its toll.
It hurts more, it's getting harder.

And sometimes my hands seem to falter.

The fact is that you have
a serious affectation of this joint.

I always tell you
that you can't overuse it

because your job
puts a lot of strain on you.

You have to slow down
quite a bit, Valeriano.

These are chronic illnesses,
there's no treatment,

so you need to rethink things.

It's hard, because I've been doing
this job since I was 14.

It's not easy,
you can't slow down in my job.

- And can't you make changes?
- It's the only thing I know how to do.

Some people do one thing
and don't know how to do anything else.

There's so much inflammation
that I have to adjust your medication.

We're talking about second line drugs,
which are much more powerful.

For the time being, try to rest.

We'll do an MRI and then we'll see.

- I'll make dinner, okay?
- Okay.

- Just a small serving for me.
- The same as usual, right?

- No, less.
- Okay.

How did it go at the doctor's?

It was okay.

They might do some tests.

It was fine.

He told me a few things,
but it's fine.

If he told you a few things
and it's fine, you won't go back.

No, the doctor said I do have to go back.

So you're not well.

Not completely, but it's okay.

You have to do what he says.

Or things will get worse.

IN GRATITUDE TO ALL THE ANIMALS

THAT HAVE ALLOWED US
TO TRAIN AS PROFESSIONALS.

WE WISH WE COULD GIVE BACK
EVERYTHING THEY GAVE US.

What's the role of a veterinary
in research into human diseases?

Why is it necessary to use animals
and why are they important?

This graphic shows

the various stages of research.

From the moment a virus is detected,

the first samples are collected

to work out what it is,
whether or not it's a new virus,

then sequencing, replication...

If we want to design a vaccine

we do bioinformatic predictions

and select the best hypothesis

and then comes the stage
of testing on animals

with a pathology
similar to that of humans,

which tell us whether a product
is safe and effective.

Then we move on to clinical trials
with people.

Have we come any closer to finding
alternatives to the use of animals

in these two years of covid research?

The last two years
aren't the best example,

because it's true that many laboratory
animals have been used

to test all the vaccines, antivirals...

At the scientific level,
there has been a lot more work,

but for the time being,

we hope that in the near future
this will change,

developing an organism...

similar to a living organism,

is still a long way off.

We are letting the animals in.

Check that no parasites or insects get in.

- Good!
- Out you get.

Go on.

Come on, little one!

There's a bit of dirt,
but I haven't found any cracks.

Good.
Well, clean it up a bit.

Scratch the surface
and check underneath.

That insect that turned up,
do we know what it was?

It seems to be a firefly larva,

but it doesn't make sense
for a bug to be in the cubicle.

We have to ensure
nothing can get through the building.

The obvious source
is the animal entrance.

Sometimes,
when I get a bit of downtime,

I come here to pull up plants
and seedlings growing near the building,

because it's not good
to have them around when you're working

in these kinds of facilities.

You have to separate yourself
from nature

and keep it out,
nature must never get it.

This is all okay.

- How's things?
- Good.

My back is better this year.

- Really?
- Yes.

So that's good.

I've already got four hernias,
I'm going for the fifth.

Out you go.

You have to speed up your transitions,
and you're holding it wrong.

- Here's your next one.
- That's great.

I brought you a black sheep.

I got it from Banyoles,

from a farmer who breeds black sheep.

How romantic...

- It's brown, not black.
- It's a black sheep.

Depends how you look at it.

Look, she's a beauty.

She's all yours.

Make her look nice.

Hurry up, I'm hungry!

Are you seeing bigger flocks lately?

How can they be bigger with these prices?

Lamb is...

People pay less than 40 years ago.

People don't eat lamb anymore,
that's the problem.

And around here it's always
more cars and more houses,

more cars, more houses...

Well, they'll have to eat houses and cars.

The other day we were talking
about the shepherds in the area:

the youngest is 60 years old.

And 90 % are in their seventies.
Why don't they retire?

Because it's the only thing they know,
and they're sick and obsessed.

- And you're not?
- No.

The daily pill.

I have to take it, or else...

- We're not young anymore...
- That's life.

That's life.

10 million vaccine doses
adapted to the new variants

will soon arrive in Spain.

They're scheduled to be given
in the first half of September

as a fourth booster dose

starting with over-80s
and in residential aged care.

The health ministry
is reasonably optimistic

about facing autumn and winter.

How did it go today?

The shearer came
and we did some shearing.

I'm exhausted.

And I'm...

I'm sore all over, and...

I can't do it anymore.

I can't do what I used to do.

But the doctor said
you can't lift sheep any more.

- Can't a student do it?
- No way. The students don't want to.

Shepherding is dying out.

We're an endangered species.

So far, so good.
No smoke is getting in.

This window is okay.

All good.
Nothing's getting in.

I need some help here.

The stench is awful.

For the course I'm doing,
I have to bring scissors.

- What course?
- Experimenter.

- How are you finding it?
- It's really interesting.

Did you know
that calves have hierarchies?

They have to go out
in hierarchical order.

I knew that pigs had hierarchies,
but not calves.

And their immune system
is worse than that of pigs.

- Really?
- Yes.

It's a good course,
next Monday we're doing birds.

It does sound interesting.

And then in January
there's the practical component,

slaughtering and all that,

but they won't teach me anything
I don't already know.

Because you're so clever!

No, because I've been doing it
for 16 years.

I know.

Alright, let's put this one in first,
because it's fuller.

You have to be careful,
hold on to it to keep it steady.

Sometimes,
with sheep, for example,

we can't load 300 kg,

because sheep have wool,
so they're bulkier than pigs.

- They take up more space.
- Yes.

Grab it here instead, pointing down.

Hold it here, okay?

And when you tip it over,
hold on to the bin.

Now it's set to inject 23% potash,

which is what's required
to break down the pig flesh,

and 180 minutes of hydrolysis,

so it dissolves completely.

Today's class will focus
on an animal welfare assessment protocol.

It's used for certification
of animal welfare.

Do you know what that is?

We did it in the first class,
you should know.

What we do is take a protocol
that has been scientifically validated,

an objective protocol...

- This will take ages.
- At the pace they're going...

How many of you would like to work
on a sheep or goat farm one day?

Or with livestock in general.

Hands up.

No one?

It's ok, they won't bite.

Come on, they're just students.

Come on!

Come on, girl!

It has to be the whole batch.

That's it.

You can start assessing.

Whatever.

No mastitis or lesions.

Body condition, I don't know.

Let's write this one down,
you can see the anus.

Animal 1, the vulva is visible
but not the anus.

Animal 2, the anus and vulva
are visible.

This one has good milk.

Sorry.

See? It's good milk.

This one has a very short tail.

- Does it have mastitis?
- No.

Okay.

What did you write down
for body condition?

I'm getting worse every day.

I don't know any shepherd
without bone problems.

Naturally.

The future looks pretty bleak.

I've heard they're setting up
schools for shepherds.

Yes, and with all this forest clearing...

And new technologies...

I saw on TV
that you can use a tablet,

you put collars on the animals,
and it's like an electric shepherd.

You don't have to do anything.

- Just a collar to the sheep or cow...
- It's based on frequencies.

You enter into the tablet
the area you want them to graze in

and they can't go outside it.

I heard about that.

The problem is dogs, as usual.

If a dog gets in, you're in trouble.

And when the herd gets nervous
it doesn't care about electric shocks.

Then you're in trouble.

So?

Is the livestock ready for the labs?

I'll do it next week,

when the research is due to start.

It's something about a virus,
or a vaccine...

Have you worked out
how that bug got in?

No, not yet.

It probably got in
through the animal entrance.

Probably, stop worrying.

I'm off to yoga.

See you.

Press this valve,
and then this one, okay?

And it's ready for cleaning.

You can use this
if you want to move the hoist.

What I do is move this.

Lift it all the way up

and bring it over here.

When it's here,

lower a little bit
to clear the pipes, ok?

And bring it all the way down.

- See?
- Ok.

Open the door and collect the waste
from yesterday's hydrolysis.

We do it with a shovel.

- The tags stay whole, see?
- They don't burn.

They don't dissolve.

These are the bones.

- See?
- Wow!

MOLECULAR BIOLOGY

Looking at the antibodies,

this is the virus
in the respiratory mucosa.

- Can I see the vaccinated ones?
- Yes.

There's less virus.

In this nasal turbinate you can clearly see
that there's less virus.

In other words, they still get infected,
which correlates with the weights.

We can see that there's some infection,
they could still transmit the virus,

but there's a drastic reduction
of the virus in the nasal turbinate.

What about the lungs?

The weight goes down
because they can become infected

but they don't develop
serious illness.

And the weight tells us that they recover
in the course of the experiment.

But it's clear that there's no virus.

I've looked at the MRI

and there's a lot more swelling
where you complain of pain.

It's actually worse now.

Just to give you an idea,
you have more fluid in this joint,

which is causing the swelling.

That's why you feel more pain
and your blood work has changed.

You can't keep doing
this kind of load-bearing work,

especially with this inflammation
in your joints.

My serious recommendation

is to stop.

Look, see?

At first.

I couldn't do this.

I couldn't even move my hands.

See now?

Over time,

you don't feel better,

but you can do things

because you start
getting used to the pain.

Yes, but it's hard. Sometimes...

you know that this
is very difficult for me.

Remember when we were young,

everything was going well.

But now, with this illness,

it's getting harder and harder
and I know I have to stop.

So...

I have to make the decision

to stop working.

Remember the first time
I went to see you shepherding?

Of course.

You were wearing white pants
and I thought, "poor thing."

The thing is...

that I was scared.

I thought, "Oh my God,
I'm meeting a man,

or a boy, really,

who I hardly know.

I'm going to the countryside,

who knows what will happen."

But I was brave,

I trusted my instinct,

and I went there.

My father said he saw me.

"You did?"

"Yes, you were wearing white,
he was well-dressed.

Is he really a shepherd?".
And I assured him that you were:

"I'll bring him here,
he's a shepherd, yes."

I remember the first time
we went to see your father.

He was so serious.

"So, what are your intentions?".

And I was scared of the sheep.

"Well, my intention is to marry her."

- Did you check them today?
- Yes, this morning.

We took their temperature yesterday

and none of them had fever,
they were all fine.

Perfect.

- How old are they?
- About two months.

VETERINARY CERTIFICATE
FOR TRANSPORTATION OF LIVE ANIMALS

Ok, let's sign the documents.

One for me, one for you.

- How's the vaccine?
- The trials went very well.

Now we're starting on other things,
that's why we need the animals.

- How are you going?
- Well, I might not see you again,

because my illness is worse
and I'll probably stop doing this.