Natural history content makers have embraced innovation and drawn inspiration from other genres as maverick programme makers put the ‘wild’ into wildlife.

Once upon a time, natural history programming was simple and somewhat predictable: a camera crew descends on the plains of the Serengeti to film a group of wildebeest being stalked by ravenous lions. And we all know what happens next.

But those days are long gone. Now, pioneering next-generation producers are finding innovative ways to engage audiences with fresh twists on wildlife filmmaking.

Taking inspiration from other genres, natural history content now boasts elements of high-octane adventure, horror, animation and shortform.

Hollywood directors are signing up to bring their own vision to premium projects, while A-list actors are suddenly keen to volunteer for presenting or narration duties.

Meanwhile, new voices are challenging the long-entrenched dominance of natural history studios based in the UK city of Bristol. One example is Ample Nature, a recently launched division of US prodco Ample Entertainment, which claims to be LA’s first dedicated natural history unit.

Its manifesto is to marry the awe of wildlife content with the storytelling techniques of Hollywood. Its debut offering, the Emmy-nominated Kangaroo Valley, was picked up by Netflix and boasts narration from Succession actor Sarah Snook, plus a writing credit for Gorillas in the Mist scribe Tab Murphy.

The series tells the story of Mala, a female Joey growing up in the wilds of Australia. “I would frame it as a coming-of-age film,” says Ample co-founder Ari Mark. “I feel that natural history has been begging for character-driven storytelling, which a veteran screenwriter like Tab understands and makes accessible for a broader audience.

“The wildlife space is 100% a monopoly of the production companies coming out of Bristol. The reason for that is because they’re so damn good at it, so we don’t have a choice but to try to bring something new to the table.

“We’re aiming very high with Ample Nature, not just bringing things to the market for the sake of it. If I can’t surprise people with a pitch, I probably won’t even bother trying.”

Another US-based newcomer to this space is horror specialist Blumhouse (Insidious, The Purge), which is partnering with ITV Studios (ITVS)-owned and Bristol-based Plimsoll Productions to develop Nightmares of Nature.

It spotlights the true-life terrors of the animal kingdom, such as zombie snails, vampire fish and even trees that bleed. Blumhouse’s in-house horror experts will bring the fright factor by incorporating jump scares, a creepy music score and slasher movie plotting.

“The natural world is as creepy, freaky and strange as anything the best minds in horror can imagine,” says Gretchen Palek, Blumhouse’s head of alternative. “We’re pitching Nightmares of Nature as a dark fairy tale.

“I believe natural history and horror are two disciplines that braid together well. Both genres are known for immersive storytelling, transporting viewers to unfamiliar worlds and pitting predators against the prey.

“Blumhouse is focused on opening up its aperture and broadening the scope of the types of unscripted shows we’re making. I have a background in natural history from my time working at Discovery, so playing in this space was one of my first suggestions and we hope to do more in the future.

“The feedback we’ve had from buyers is that Nightmares of Nature is refreshing and innovative. Everyone in natural history wants to evolve beyond the tried-and-tested genres.”

Plimsoll, acquired by ITVS last year, produces acclaimed blue-chip titles such as A Year on Planet Earth for ITV, Tiny World for Apple TV+ and Patagonia: Life on the Edge of the World for CNN.

Plimsoll recently widened the scope of its natural history pipeline by promoting its veteran executive producer James Smith to the newly created position of head of adventure.His remit is to develop a slate of high-octane programming to meet buyer demand for this suddenly on-trend genre.

Examples include the two shows Smith made recently with US rock climber Alex Honnold, star of Free Solo, for National Geographic and Disney+: Alaskan expedition epic The Last Frontier and Arctic Ascent.

“In TV, producers are often accused of creating false jeopardy,” says Smith. “But rock climbing is one of the most dangerous things you can do, so when we see Alex try to summit a 3,750-foot rock wall in Greenland that’s never been climbed before, it just amps up the danger.

“That kind of action hooks a different audience, yet we’re travelling through beautiful landscapes with glaciers and ice caps on a journey of discovery, learning about threatened environments and vulnerable species at the same time. It helps to have a contrast and mix up genres.

“Plimsoll is established as a global leader in premium natural history, but we became aware of a lot of buyers interested in complementing blue-chip content with alluring stories that have thrills, adventure and a relatable human dimension to them.”

For many filmmakers, the huge advances in technology over the last 20 years have revolutionised the way wildlife content is produced, allowing previously unrecorded behaviour to be captured.

That’s certainly the case for Humble Bee’s recently announced Secret World of Sound with David Attenborough (3×60’), coproduced with Canada’s Infield Fly Productions for Netflix and Sky in the UK, in which the iconic naturalist explores how animals hear and produce sound.

“There’s a lot of hidden sounds that we don’t necessarily hear,” says Stephen Dunleavy, founder and CEO of the Bristol-based prodco. “So, we used specialist kit such as laser vibrometers – which are usually used to check for faults in aeroplanes – plus acoustic cameras, which I don’t believe have been used in this context before.

“This kind of technology allowed us to capture how grey owls use vibrations to hunt for voles hidden in snow, as well as the very different sounds made by treehopper insects, frogs, bees and the midshipman fish.

“The natural history space has been in a bubble for a while and needs content that stands out. People are tired of habitat-based docs filmed in Africa, because we’ve done all that before. So at Humble Bee we always try to create a niche for ourselves, because the market is changing dramatically now.”

The BBC claims that its Natural History Unit (NHU), founded in 1957, is the “best known and most loved producer of natural history content in the world,” creating classics such as the Planet Earth and Blue Planet docuseries for the UK pubcaster.

Over the years the NHU has innovated through the use of CGI technology in Prehistoric Planet, green screen techniques for Andy’s Wild Adventures and immersive multi-camera filming in Springwatch, and also created a special department that creates digital-first content for YouTube and social media platforms.

Recently, the unit has leveraged its considerable international clout to attract A-list Hollywood talent to premium projects such as the upcoming Ocean Xplorers (working title), a coproduction with OceanX Media and Titanic director James Cameron for National Geographic and Disney+; and last year’s Prehistoric Planet for Apple TV+, which tapped US filmmaker and actor Jon Favreau as its showrunner.

Next, Oscar-winning actor Tom Hanks will narrate The Americas, a tentpole 10-part event series for NBC in association with Universal Television Alternative Studio.

“Working with Hollywood directors and actors like that helps us tell the most engaging stories,” says Jonny Keeling, head of the NHU. “We’re always looking at new ways to produce in perhaps non-traditional ways as the audience for natural history evolves. Innovation is key for us.”

Keeling sounds a word of caution, however, suggesting natural history producers need to be mindful not to sacrifice factual and scientific integrity in the name of wilfully quirky entertainment.

“I love the natural world and sometimes these stories stand up for themselves, so it’s important not to alienate viewers with super gimmicky concepts,” he says.

So what are commissioners and buyers looking for in this space? WaterBear, the first streaming platform dedicated to the future of the planet, has been nicknamed the ‘Netflix of nature.’ When launched in 2020, it specialised in content based around the themes of natural history, conservation and biodiversity. This has since been expanded to a wider, impact-driven remit of docs and films detailing climate change, social justice and humanitarian crises.

An example of this is the short film The Black Mermaid, about South African freediver Zandile Ndhlovu. “It’s a beautiful short about an amazing woman, which also shows how incredible the oceans are,” says Poppy Mason-Watts, WaterBear’s chief growth and impact officer.

“We try to make sure our stories are human-focused, because viewers can relate more to that kind of content. We champion shortform content which showcases the work of next-gen filmmakers and we recently started experimenting with animated environmental films to engage younger audiences on subjects such as deep-sea mining. We’re always on the lookout for content to acquire, spanning micro-shorts to feature-length docs.”

Blue Ant Media-owned Love Nature is an international wildlife network headquartered in Toronto. Its programming includes My Best Friend’s an Animal (Big Wave Productions), Macaque Island (Beach House Pictures), Orangutan Jungle School (NHNZ), Evolution Earth (Passion Planet) and Wildlife ER (Wild Bear Entertainment).

“We’re a premium wildlife channel with a global audience, so we’re looking for creative, innovative content with universal appeal,” says Alison Barrat, senior VP of production and development, who commissions content for Love Nature. “Traditional natural history is in the rear-view mirror, so as a genre, we’ve got to be creative, fresh and forward thinking.

“We commission from production companies all over the world. Sometimes we fully finance projects, and sometimes we work with other broadcasters to coproduce.”

With the economic challenges faced by US-based streamers recently, there have been fears that those platforms may no longer open their chequebooks to greenlight new wildlife content. “The streamers are tightening their belts,” says Ample Nature’s Mark. “Natural history tends to be one of the more expensive genres and budgets have come way down.

“That can be an opportunity for Ample because we’re hungry to produce more cheaply than our competitors. If a buyer says, ‘We want to do your show, but we need you to hit this number,’ it’s our job to figure out a way to do that.”

Indeed, while the natural history space is clearly booming and demand for content is at unprecedented levels, concerns about funding remain.

“It’s more competitive than ever, but also there’s less money,” says WaterBear’s Mason-Watts. “It’s an underfinanced space and everyone I speak to is facing the same issues: getting content commissioned and financed. We’re all having to be savvy because it’s a real struggle to find budgets.”

Natural history content makers have embraced innovation and drawn inspiration from other genres as maverick programme makers put the ‘wild’ into wildlife.

Once upon a time, natural history programming was simple and somewhat predictable: a camera crew descends on the plains of the Serengeti to film a group of wildebeest being stalked by ravenous lions. And we all know what happens next.

But those days are long gone. Now, pioneering next-generation producers are finding innovative ways to engage audiences with fresh twists on wildlife filmmaking.
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