Queens is Nat Geo’s latest wildlife series that follows six domains ruled by the fierce and formidable matriarchs of the animal world.
Narrated by Angela Bassett, the series hosted its world premiere in LA this evening at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.
And there was a surprise guest. Hillary Clinton delivered a message to the all-female production team behind the series, a rarity in the world of documentary and particularly wildlife.
In a video message, the former Senator said she was “celebrating the women in wildlife TV who are flipping the male-dominated script”.
“I love wildlife TV and for over 136 years National Geographic has captivated audiences with their visual storytelling of the natural world. But until now, there has never been a woman-led film and production team telling those stories. Queens not only amplifies stories of female power in the wild, it is dedicated to reshaping gender representation in television,...
Narrated by Angela Bassett, the series hosted its world premiere in LA this evening at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.
And there was a surprise guest. Hillary Clinton delivered a message to the all-female production team behind the series, a rarity in the world of documentary and particularly wildlife.
In a video message, the former Senator said she was “celebrating the women in wildlife TV who are flipping the male-dominated script”.
“I love wildlife TV and for over 136 years National Geographic has captivated audiences with their visual storytelling of the natural world. But until now, there has never been a woman-led film and production team telling those stories. Queens not only amplifies stories of female power in the wild, it is dedicated to reshaping gender representation in television,...
- 2/9/2024
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
Billie Eilish’s “you should see me in a crown” is the perfect backdrop for National Geographic’s Queens trailer. Two-time Oscar nominee Angela Bassett (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever) narrates the documentary series that focuses on fierce females in the animal world.
The seven-part docuseries, which premieres on March 4, 2024, has a female-led production team that includes showrunner and writer Chloe Sarosh, and directors of photography Sophie Darlington and Justine Evans. Wildstar Films’ Vanessa Berlowitz and National Geographic’s Pamela Caragol serve as executive producers.
Poster for National Geographic’s ‘Queens’
National Geographic released this description of the docuseries:
“Queens is bringing the natural world into focus through the female lens for the very first time. The series features matriarchies and female leaders from around the world to tell stories of sacrifice and resilience but also friendship and love. Each episode showcases matriarchs, from the peace-loving bonobos of the Congo basin...
The seven-part docuseries, which premieres on March 4, 2024, has a female-led production team that includes showrunner and writer Chloe Sarosh, and directors of photography Sophie Darlington and Justine Evans. Wildstar Films’ Vanessa Berlowitz and National Geographic’s Pamela Caragol serve as executive producers.
Poster for National Geographic’s ‘Queens’
National Geographic released this description of the docuseries:
“Queens is bringing the natural world into focus through the female lens for the very first time. The series features matriarchies and female leaders from around the world to tell stories of sacrifice and resilience but also friendship and love. Each episode showcases matriarchs, from the peace-loving bonobos of the Congo basin...
- 2/8/2024
- by Rebecca Murray
- Showbiz Junkies
Exclusive: Netflix’s natural history push continues – setting a feature-doc about kangaroos as its latest trip into the wild.
Deadline understands that the streamer has ordered 90-minute doc Kangaroos from Ample Nature, the nascent natural history division of the 9 Months with Courteney Cox producer.
The film has started production in Australia and it will film down under over a lengthy period of time, as is usual with all major wildlife projects.
It is Netflix’s latest natural history project, having launched Our Planet, its David Attenborough-narrated series from Silverback Films, in 2019, as well as Night on Earth, the Samira Wiley-narrated series from Plimsoll Productions, and Absurd Planet from Conde Nast Entertainment and Love Productions USA.
The streamer has also ordered Oceans from Freeborne Media, the production company set up by Blue Planet II creator James Honeyborne, as part of an overall deal.
It marks the first commission for Ample Nature,...
Deadline understands that the streamer has ordered 90-minute doc Kangaroos from Ample Nature, the nascent natural history division of the 9 Months with Courteney Cox producer.
The film has started production in Australia and it will film down under over a lengthy period of time, as is usual with all major wildlife projects.
It is Netflix’s latest natural history project, having launched Our Planet, its David Attenborough-narrated series from Silverback Films, in 2019, as well as Night on Earth, the Samira Wiley-narrated series from Plimsoll Productions, and Absurd Planet from Conde Nast Entertainment and Love Productions USA.
The streamer has also ordered Oceans from Freeborne Media, the production company set up by Blue Planet II creator James Honeyborne, as part of an overall deal.
It marks the first commission for Ample Nature,...
- 1/28/2021
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
Ample Entertainment, whose credits include “Cold Case Files,” “9 Months With Courteney Cox” and “Murder in the Heartland,” has launched a dedicated Los Angeles-based natural history division under the label Ample Nature.
The new entity has already secured programming across multiple networks and platforms.
Ample co-founder Phil Lott said: “Producing powerful, blue-chip natural history programming has been a goal for us since we started Ample, and it’s a perfect progression for our brand because these shows deliver extraordinary production value, incredible stories, and the best in filmmaking.” Fellow co-founder Ari Mark added: “I can’t think of a better time to avoid humans.”
Ample Nature has appointed producer Kylie Stott as VP of development for natural history. Stott has a stellar track record of working on internationally acclaimed documentary programs including “Great Barrier Reef with David Attenborough” and “Brave New World with Stephen Hawking.”
Ample is partnering with several well-known practitioners in the space,...
The new entity has already secured programming across multiple networks and platforms.
Ample co-founder Phil Lott said: “Producing powerful, blue-chip natural history programming has been a goal for us since we started Ample, and it’s a perfect progression for our brand because these shows deliver extraordinary production value, incredible stories, and the best in filmmaking.” Fellow co-founder Ari Mark added: “I can’t think of a better time to avoid humans.”
Ample Nature has appointed producer Kylie Stott as VP of development for natural history. Stott has a stellar track record of working on internationally acclaimed documentary programs including “Great Barrier Reef with David Attenborough” and “Brave New World with Stephen Hawking.”
Ample is partnering with several well-known practitioners in the space,...
- 7/28/2020
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Ample Entertainment, the company behind Facebook Watch series 9 Months with Courteney Cox, is moving into the natural history space.
The company has set up Ample Nature to produce blue-chip natural history series. It is thought to be one of the first natural history units in Los Angeles – a genre known for being produced predominantly out of Bristol in the UK.
Ample, which also produces Could You Survive the Movies for YouTube, Lost Gold of WWII for History, and Murder in the Heartland for Discovery ID, said that it had already secured shows across “multiple” networks and platforms but did not reveal details.
Kylie Stott, who has worked on series including David Attenborough’s Great Barrier Reef and Stephen Hawking’s Brave New World, has joined as Vice President of Development, Natural History. She will spearhead development and production across a slate of natural history and wildlife programming.
Ample has also...
The company has set up Ample Nature to produce blue-chip natural history series. It is thought to be one of the first natural history units in Los Angeles – a genre known for being produced predominantly out of Bristol in the UK.
Ample, which also produces Could You Survive the Movies for YouTube, Lost Gold of WWII for History, and Murder in the Heartland for Discovery ID, said that it had already secured shows across “multiple” networks and platforms but did not reveal details.
Kylie Stott, who has worked on series including David Attenborough’s Great Barrier Reef and Stephen Hawking’s Brave New World, has joined as Vice President of Development, Natural History. She will spearhead development and production across a slate of natural history and wildlife programming.
Ample has also...
- 7/28/2020
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
Female filmmakers and animals will reign in “Queens,” an upcoming National Geographic global series about matriarchal societies in the animal world. The team behind the series is led by women, with Wildstar Films on production duty and Vanessa Berlowitz exec producing.
“We’re accustomed to a narrative where the male animal voice often outshines that of the mis-perceived ‘gentler’ sex,” Berlowitz said. “In ‘Queens,’ females drive the story. The most accomplished women in the industry get behind the camera to turn things on their heads, revealing surprising insights into how females rise to power, often relying on cooperation and wisdom over brute strength to get ahead.”
The series will follow a sisterhood of a particular animal in each of its six episodes. The producers said the show would reveal unique feminine behaviors in six distinct animal communities: hyenas, elephants, ring-tailed lemurs, insects, primates and killer whales.
Cinematographers on the series...
“We’re accustomed to a narrative where the male animal voice often outshines that of the mis-perceived ‘gentler’ sex,” Berlowitz said. “In ‘Queens,’ females drive the story. The most accomplished women in the industry get behind the camera to turn things on their heads, revealing surprising insights into how females rise to power, often relying on cooperation and wisdom over brute strength to get ahead.”
The series will follow a sisterhood of a particular animal in each of its six episodes. The producers said the show would reveal unique feminine behaviors in six distinct animal communities: hyenas, elephants, ring-tailed lemurs, insects, primates and killer whales.
Cinematographers on the series...
- 5/10/2019
- by Stewart Clarke
- Variety Film + TV
In terms of scope, production time and — very likely — budget, Netflix’s “Our Planet” is one of the most ambitious projects from the streaming service to date. Narrated by David Attenborough and made available worldwide on April 5, the goal of the eight-part series is to capture diverse habitats across the globe and highlight the struggles of local wildlife as animals try to cope with climate change that threatens their existence.
To accompany the show, Netflix and the wildlife production company Silverback Films worked in tandem with the World Wildlife Fund to create an interactive website where viewers can watch added content and discover ways to help the cause of environmentalism.
The pricy project was filmed over four years in 50 countries, capturing tens of thousands of hours of footage in roughly 3,500 filming days from 600 photographers and filmmakers using some of the world’s most technologically advanced camera systems. Out of that massive crew,...
To accompany the show, Netflix and the wildlife production company Silverback Films worked in tandem with the World Wildlife Fund to create an interactive website where viewers can watch added content and discover ways to help the cause of environmentalism.
The pricy project was filmed over four years in 50 countries, capturing tens of thousands of hours of footage in roughly 3,500 filming days from 600 photographers and filmmakers using some of the world’s most technologically advanced camera systems. Out of that massive crew,...
- 4/19/2019
- by Valentina I. Valentini
- Variety Film + TV
Bristol, two hours west of London and known by toon enthusiasts as the home of Aardman Animations, also happens to be the world center of wildlife filmmaking and home to the top producers, directors and camera pros creating the influx of natural history shows that continue to grow ever more popular on TV screens around the world.
The city is the headquarters of the BBC Natural History Unit and also the base for large independent players in the nature film arena such as Silverback Films, Plimsoll Prods., True to Nature, Tigress Prods., Off the Fence, Keo Films and Icon Films. Top production and post-production houses in the area that cater to the genre include Films@59, Evolutions and Big Bang.
The best-known name in wildlife filmmaking associated with the city is David Attenborough, now 92, whose 1979 classic TV series “Life on Earth” began a wave of television that continues to crest with such shows as “Blue Planet.
The city is the headquarters of the BBC Natural History Unit and also the base for large independent players in the nature film arena such as Silverback Films, Plimsoll Prods., True to Nature, Tigress Prods., Off the Fence, Keo Films and Icon Films. Top production and post-production houses in the area that cater to the genre include Films@59, Evolutions and Big Bang.
The best-known name in wildlife filmmaking associated with the city is David Attenborough, now 92, whose 1979 classic TV series “Life on Earth” began a wave of television that continues to crest with such shows as “Blue Planet.
- 12/14/2018
- by Valentina I. Valentini
- Variety Film + TV
Among new members are Maren Ade, Hugh Grant and Hayley Squires.
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (Bafta) has revealed its 2018 intake of new members drawn from the film, TV and games industry.
Among the 386 new members are actors Hugh Grant, Willem Dafoe and Hayley Squires, directors Maren Ade (Toni Erdmann), Daniel Kokotajlo (Apostasy) and Michael Pearce (Beast), film execs Shana Eddy-Grouf (Studiocanal) and Katie Goodson-Thomas (Fox Searchlight), and La La Land producers Jordan Horowitz and Fred Berger.
Former UK and Ireland Screen Stars of Tomorrow in the new intake include producer Fodhla Cronin O’Reilly and actor Jessie Barden.
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (Bafta) has revealed its 2018 intake of new members drawn from the film, TV and games industry.
Among the 386 new members are actors Hugh Grant, Willem Dafoe and Hayley Squires, directors Maren Ade (Toni Erdmann), Daniel Kokotajlo (Apostasy) and Michael Pearce (Beast), film execs Shana Eddy-Grouf (Studiocanal) and Katie Goodson-Thomas (Fox Searchlight), and La La Land producers Jordan Horowitz and Fred Berger.
Former UK and Ireland Screen Stars of Tomorrow in the new intake include producer Fodhla Cronin O’Reilly and actor Jessie Barden.
- 12/12/2018
- by Orlando Parfitt
- ScreenDaily
Hugh Grant, Jodie Whittaker and Letitia Wright are among 386 new BAFTA members. The 2018 intake span the film, games and TV industries across eleven countries. Scroll down for the full list of new members.
Among new members are BAFTA-winner Grant, Doctor Who star Whittaker, BAFTA-nominee Willem Dafoe, Black Panther star Letitia Wright, La La Land producers Jordan Horowitz and Fred Berger, Mad Max: Fury Road costume designer Jenny Beavan, Toni Erdmann director Maren Ade, and UK broadcasters Sandi Toksvig and Simon Mayo.
BAFTA comprises around 8,000 members worldwide. The UK org tweaked its membership requirements in 2016 in a bid to improve diversity of intake.
Amanda Berry, Chief Executive of BAFTA, said, “We’re delighted to welcome our new members to BAFTA. Our members represent the breadth of the ever-evolving film, games and television industries. They sit at the heart of everything BAFTA does, from mentoring emerging talent, voting in the Awards, sharing...
Among new members are BAFTA-winner Grant, Doctor Who star Whittaker, BAFTA-nominee Willem Dafoe, Black Panther star Letitia Wright, La La Land producers Jordan Horowitz and Fred Berger, Mad Max: Fury Road costume designer Jenny Beavan, Toni Erdmann director Maren Ade, and UK broadcasters Sandi Toksvig and Simon Mayo.
BAFTA comprises around 8,000 members worldwide. The UK org tweaked its membership requirements in 2016 in a bid to improve diversity of intake.
Amanda Berry, Chief Executive of BAFTA, said, “We’re delighted to welcome our new members to BAFTA. Our members represent the breadth of the ever-evolving film, games and television industries. They sit at the heart of everything BAFTA does, from mentoring emerging talent, voting in the Awards, sharing...
- 12/12/2018
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Five wildlife film-makers nominate their favourite living artist in their field
Alan Root on Mark Deeble and Victoria Stone
Mark Deeble and Victoria Stone have produced an unbroken string of great wildlife films, notable for the variety of creatures depicted, the strange behaviours captured, and the stunning photography – but most of all for the quality of the storytelling. Giant crocodiles stalk their prey; hippos open their mouths to have their teeth cleaned by schools of fish; tiny wasps hatch into the extraordinary world hidden inside a fig; a fish opens her mouth to release tiny fry, not realising she has been cuckolded, and they are someone else's young. They have brought so many new, extraordinary sequences to the screen, all of them woven into deeply satisfying stories. And that, for me, is the raison d'etre for film-making.
Alan Root's 1978 film about termites, Mysterious Castles of Clay, was nominated for an Oscar.
Alan Root on Mark Deeble and Victoria Stone
Mark Deeble and Victoria Stone have produced an unbroken string of great wildlife films, notable for the variety of creatures depicted, the strange behaviours captured, and the stunning photography – but most of all for the quality of the storytelling. Giant crocodiles stalk their prey; hippos open their mouths to have their teeth cleaned by schools of fish; tiny wasps hatch into the extraordinary world hidden inside a fig; a fish opens her mouth to release tiny fry, not realising she has been cuckolded, and they are someone else's young. They have brought so many new, extraordinary sequences to the screen, all of them woven into deeply satisfying stories. And that, for me, is the raison d'etre for film-making.
Alan Root's 1978 film about termites, Mysterious Castles of Clay, was nominated for an Oscar.
- 11/24/2011
- by Emine Saner
- The Guardian - Film News
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