“A life-changing film.”
Dr. Sylvia Earle
A gripping exposé of the polar bear fur trade, revealing how conservation, politics and commercial interests collide in ways the public was never meant to see.
Trade Secret follows three unlikely allies on a mission to protect polar bears from international commercial trade. Filmed over six years across nine countries, the film exposes the sanctioned sale of hundreds of polar bears each year on the global market. But as the investigation deepens, it uncovers a disturbing truth: those entrusted with safeguarding the species may be entangled in their continued commercialisation. The film raises urgent questions about how we protect vulnerable species in a world where the lines between protection and exploitation have become blurred.
Synopsis
“It is a superbly crafted work - powerful, urgent, and deeply moving. It sheds light on a matter of global importance, and it does so with both journalistic integrity and cinematic finesse.”
Wolfgang Knöpfler,
Producer of ‘The Ivory Game’ and ‘Sea of Shadows’.
“A breathtaking masterpiece and unflinching exposé - confronting humanity’s betrayal of the wild and the devastating cost of losing a species forever.”
Kartiki Gonsalves
Academy Award winning director of ‘The Elephant Whisperers’
Awards + Honours
Opening Film at Wildscreen
Winner GOLDEN PANDA award for Best Production and the award for
Best Independent Film
Bristol, UK
Trade Secret has received a nomination for the International Green Film Award by the Cinema for Peace. Gala Awards 16th February in Berlin, Germany
Hamptons International
Compassion, Justice & Animal Rights Award Winner - presented by Zelda Penzel
Hamptons, USA
Audience Award Winner
Climate Film Festival New York
International Premiere opened by Dr. Sylvia Earle. Also winner of Visionary Award.
New York City, USA
Change Award Winner
Adelaide Film Festival, Australia
AFF describes the film as “a meticulously composed exposé…Trade Secret avoids sensationalism in favour of clear-eyed, forensic storytelling. Calm and quietly damning.”
World Premiere
Sheffield DocFest, UK
Trade Secret received its first press with a review from NowThen Magazine - describing it as: “riveting.. unflinching storytelling.”
Investigative Film Nominee
Jackson Wild, Wyoming
Abraham Joffe also took part in a panel titled “Investigative Journalism: Courage in the Search for Truth" moderated by Andreas Crostas.
Centrepiece Film at Double Exposure Investigative Film Festival Washington DC, USA
Professor David E. Guggenheim moderated a post screening discussion with Abraham Joffe, Iris Ho and Costas Christ.
FIPADOC
Human rights in motion award Award Winner - Biarritz, France
SIMA AWARDS Finalist
Which celebrates outstanding achievements in social impact storytelling, from around the world.
Upcoming Screenings
Xposure International Photography & Film Festival, held annually in Sharjah, UAE, is one of the region’s leading visual storytelling events celebrating environmental and humanitarian filmmaking. Following Trade Secret’s UAE Premiere, an encore screening has been sheduled for 3rd February. Wildlife investigative journalist Adam Cruise will speak after the film.
Encore Screening February 3rd
XPOSURE FESTIVAL
February 3rd 2:00PM, Sharjah, UAE
Trade Secret will have its Australian East Coast Premiere at Sydney’s largest documentary festival - Antenna. The screening on the 8th of February at the Ritz in Randwick will be followed by a live Q+A by director Abraham Joffe. A second screening will follow at the Dendy in Randwick on the 13th of February.
ANTENNA DOC FESTIVAL
February 8th and 13th SYDNEY AUSTRALIA
WILD + SCENIC, USA
Trade Secret will screen as part of the 2026 Wild & Scenic Film Festival, one of the world’s leading environmental film festivals, taking place February 19–23, 2026 in Nevada City and Grass Valley, California. Known for inspiring environmental activism through film, Wild & Scenic provides a powerful platform for Trade Secret, an investigative feature that challenges audiences to confront the hidden forces shaping wildlife conservation and what meaningful protection for our planet demands.
Feb 19th-23rd CALIFORNIA
SEDONA FILM FESTIVAL
Trade Secret will screen at the Sedona International Film Festival on Sunday, February 22 at 10:00am at Alice Gill-Sheldon Theatre, and Tuesday, February 24 at 4:00pm at Harkins Theatre 1. One of the longest-running and most respected independent film festivals in the United States, Sedona is known for its engaged audiences and strong support for films that explore social, environmental, and political issues.
February 22nd and 24th
OSLO, NORWAY
Trade Secret will have its Norwegian Premiere on Thursday 26th February 2026 in Central Olso at the SAGA KINO with a live conversation with Director Abraham Joffe.
February 26th 6:30 PM
Trade Secret will have its Svalbard Premiere at the Longyearbyen Kulturhus Cinema on Friday 27th February. Screening will follow with a live conversation with Director Abraham Joffe.
February 27th 7:00 PM
LONGYEARBYEN, SVALBARD
TROMSØ, NORWAY
Trade Secret will have its Tromsø Premiere at the Aurora Kino on Saturday 28th February.
February 28th 6:00 PM
LOS ANGELES, USA
Trade Secret will screen at the CREDO 23 Film Festival in LA on Saturday 28th February.
February 28th
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