For many, D.A. Pennebaker will forever be known as the man who created the documentary Dont Look Back, which followed Bob Dylan during his 1965 tour in England. For others it will be his film Monterey Pop which included seminal performances by Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin, among many others. And for others it is The War Room, which he filmed with collaborator and wife Chris Hegedus, and which made stars out of James Carville and George Stephanopoulos, the strategists for Bill Clinton’s first Presidential campaign.

Actually, the issue of which film in their long canon of award-winning documentaries strikes deepest is not really important. What is important right now is that the filmmaking couple will be on the Vineyard, Wednesday, August 24 with their latest film Unlocking the Cage, as part of The Martha’s Vineyard Film Festival. The couple has a long history with the Vineyard and will be available for a Q&A after the film.

Unlocking the Cage follows the journey of animal rights activist Stephen Wise in his quest to gain legal rights for non-human animals, in particular chimpanzees. The movie is described as a courtroom thriller as Mr. Wise does battle in the legal arena for those with no voice, at least human that is, of their own. The film tracks Mr. Wise and his team’s efforts to argue on behalf of four chimpanzees caged in New York State to be afforded the same legal rights as imprisoned human beings would receive.

Unlocking the Cage screens on Wednesday, August 24, at 8 p.m. at the Chilmark Community Center as part of The Martha’s Vineyard Film Festival. Dinner and live music begin at 6:30 p.m.

For tickets and more information visit tmvff.org.