Made over a period of two years, in the U.S. and Britain, The Animals Film is the first film to examine society's mass exploitation of animals — in factory farms, on the streets, in the wild and in the research laboratory. It is also the first film about those people opposed to the exploitation — the growing international movement committed to the ideals of animal liberation.

The Animals Film is much more than a comprehensive catalogue of atrocities: it aims to provoke, to unsettle our attitudes towards animals, to offer alternatives, and to inspire activity and change.

The film mounts a major assault on the scientific research establishment, from the uses of animals in bio-medical and psychological research to the military uses for testing weapons, and includes formerly-restricted government films of nuclear weapons research involving animals. It also examines the role of the multi-national drug companies, including secretly-shot film and interviews with scientists.