A 47 year old award-winning film director tragically lost his life after being headbutted by a giraffe while filming at a safari lodge in South Africa.

Carlos Carvalho was capturing close-up shots of Gerald the giraffe when the animal unexpectedly swung its neck, sending him flying through the air and crashing to the ground.

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Tragically, Carlos succumbed to his injuries later that night after being airlifted to a hospital in Johannesburg, according to CallaCrew, a filming agency. He had been shooting scenes at Glen Afric farm in Broederstroom, a location known for its appearances in the British TV series Wild at Heart.

Richard Brooker, whose family owns the lodge, stated that Gerald, the bull giraffe, would not be euthanised as he was not deemed dangerous.

"When Carlos was standing in front of the giraffe, the animal spread its legs, bent its neck and swung its head at Carlos," Brooker explained. "Gerald will remain at the lodge. He did nothing wrong," Brooker told The Telegraph, reports <a href="https://www.irishstar.com/news/us-news/film-makers-horrifying-death-hes-35306517" rel="Follow" target="_self">the Irish Star</a>.

A representative from Glen Afric suggested that Carlos had strayed from the group and disregarded safety instructions not to approach the animals.

Drikus Van Der Merwe, a member of the film crew who was standing next to Carlos during the incident on May 2, 2018, said: "The giraffe started chasing the boom swinger who joined our unit."

In a tragic turn of events, filmmaker Carlos Carvalho passed away after an unexpected attack by a giraffe while filming. Speaking to The Sun, his colleague Drikus recounted the incident: "We didn't feel threatened because he just seemed to be inquisitive."

But the situation escalated quickly, leading to Carvalho's untimely death.

Describing the moment that led to the catastrophe, Van Der Merwe said: "We started shooting closeups of its body and its feet. Then while Carlos was looking through the camera eyepiece Gerald swung his neck and hit him against his head. The attack was sudden and left Carvalho with no time to react."

Despite witnessing the horrific event, Van Der Merwe initially believed Carvalho would survive: "I knew he had a severe head trauma. But I never thought he would die."

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Carvalho, a celebrated figure in the film industry, won a Cannes Lion award for his work on a South African Childline public service announcement in 2003 and served as the director of photography for 'The Forgotten Kingdom', a groundbreaking feature film from Lesotho.

Following the news of his death, tributes poured in on Facebook, honouring the Johannesburg father-of-two. Filmmaker Chris Roland expressed his sorrow: "Deeply saddened to hear about the passing of Carlos Carvalho, a very nice guy and talented DOP [director of photography] I had the honour of working with twice. A great loss to the industry. Farewell Carlos!".

Thabiso Mohapi, a props master, shared his personal grief: "RIP my brother! Meeting and greeting you that morning at breakfast shooting the first scenes of the morning didn't know it was our last time together."