Filmmaker: Nicky Chalk

Alfred Bama works at the Limbe Wildlife Centre, a sanctuary for young primates and great apes orphaned by the illegal bush-meat trade.

He has hand-reared nearly all of the apes from infancy.

It is both a deep and touching relationship with the gorillas perceiving him as a father and part of their group.

"Great Apes as well as other endangered species in Cameroon are facing possible extinction as a result of rapid deforestation and bush-meat hunting," Nicky Chalk, the film's director explains.

"Out here bush-meat, including gorillas and chimpanzees, is a popular delicacy but over-hunting in recent years means that there are very few of these animals remaining in their natural habitat.

"Knowing all of this can make you feel very pessimistic about the future of wildlife in this country which is why meeting Bama was so wonderfully reassuring.  He is passionate about his gorillas and his country and he gave me hope that it is still possible to save them."

Nicky followed Bama on his adventure and the film was nominated as a finalist at the Wildscreen Film Festival 2008, widely regarded as the most prestigious wildlife film festival in the world.

"All I can really hope for is that through Bama people around the world can see what unique and incredible animals gorillas are and how much we all need to make it a priority to save them from extinction before it's too late," Nicky says.

Watch part one of Bama's Journey

Watch part two of Bama's Journey

Bama's Journey aired on Al Jazeera on Thursday July 31 at the following times GMT: 1000 and 1900.

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