Princess of the Beavers is a documentary about the efforts of a father and his daughter to protect the wildlife of Altay Prefecture in Xinjiang, in China’s northwest. In the course of following the pair for over a year, the documentary explores the sometimes difficult relationship between the local human and animal populations. Chu Hongjun, the father, is the director of the Kalamaili Ungulate Nature Reserve. He has been actively involved in wildlife conservation for 28 years. Chu Wenwen, his daughter, is a 24-year-old wildlife photographer. Since her childhood, she has been capturing on film the various animal inhabitants of northern Xinjiang, among which her favourite are the Sino-Mongolian beavers. The beavers, which have been around since the time of the dinosaurs, are today an endangered species. An integral part of the ecological environment along the Ulungur River, where their population is only around 500, they are listed as a first-class national protected wildlife species in China. In the face of increasing damage to, and encroachment on, the beavers’ living environment, Wenwen has taken over from her father, the responsibility for their protection.