Life Force II gets greenlight

MIPCOM: Japanese broadcaster NHK, Science Channel, Discovery Networks International and Arte are partnering on a blue-chip science and natural history series.

Life Force II is a six-part series building on the success of the original Life Force, which premiered in early 2011 and has since sold throughout the world. New Zealand-based prodco NHNZ is making the show.

The series looks into the theory of evolution and tries to find out why animals in six extraordinary environments developed in such strange and unique ways.

NHK executive producer of natural history programmes Shin Murata said: “This will be the fourth time NHK and NHNZ have done a true coproduction in the sense that we both play a hands‐on role in making the programmes. The participation of our other partners from all continents will enable us to use even newer camera technologies to reveal more of the mysteries of life and evolution on a global scale.”

The production team from the original Life Force series, led by NHNZ MD Michael Stedman, will be joined by producer Lorne Townend, who most recently worked on Mankind: The Story of All of Us – a 12-part History Channel series from Jane Root’s Nutopia prodco.

The new series will premiere in 2014 and be distributed internationally by Anglo-Dutch distributor Off The Fence.