FRONT COVER

Production Press Book INSIDE FRONT COVER PAGE 1

An Event Movie

Greenlight Media and BBC Worldwide present a unique film about our home,earth – a celebration of the beauty of our planet whilst reminding us of the delicate fragility of where we live.

 Production Press Book

A film by BBC Natural History Unit Directors and Mark Linfield Written by Alastair Fothergill and Mark Linfield Produced by BBC Worldwide and Greenlight Media United Kingdom and Germany 2007 Press contact Chris Charlton World sales contact Greenlight Media

  The Team Facts

Directors Cinematography Featured Locations Format Alastair Fothergill and Mark Linfield Andrew Anderson, Antarctic Peninsula; Argentina; 35mm and HD Doug Anderson, Doug Allan, Banks Island, Canada; Danum Producers Length 98 mins Paul Atkins, Barrie Britton, Valley, Borneo; Everest Valley, Alix Tidmarsh and Richard Burton, Simon Carroll, Nepal; Gabon, Gulf of Mexico; Date of start of Sophokles Tasioulis Rod Clarke, Martyn Colbeck, Himalayas, Nepal; Japan; Kalahari principal photography Executive Producers Justin Evans, Wade Fairley, Desert, Botswana; Kali Gandaki November 2004 Ted Giffords, Mike Holding, Valley, Nepal; Karakoram, André Sikojev, Nikolaus Weil, Date of completion of Michael Kelem, Simon King, Pakistan; Kibale Forest, Uganda; Stefan Beiten, Mike Phillips principal photography Toshihiro Muta, Justin Maguire, Laponia, Sweden; Northwest and Wayne Garvie June 2006 Didier Noiret, Andrew Penniket, Territories, Canada; Okavango Narration written by Rick Rosenthal, Adam Ravetch, Delta, Botswana; Pacific Coast, Year of copyright 2007 Leslie Megahey, Alastair Fothergill Tim Shepherd, Andrew Shillabeer, California, USA; Rurutu, French and Mark Linfield Peter Scoones, Warwick Polynesia; Sahara Desert, Niger; Countries of origin Seal Island, South Africa; Svalbard, UK and Germany Narrated by Patrick Stewart Sloss, Paul Stewart, Gavin Thurston, Jeff Turner, Norway; United Kingdom; This Film has been supported Venezuela; Vermont, USA; Original Music by Nick Turner, John Waters by the Federal Film board of Vladivostok, Siberia; Western Germany (FFA) Symphonic Music performed by Editor Martin Elsbury Highlands, Papua New Guinea Berliner Philharmoniker Sound Editors Produced by BBC Worldwide Associate Producers Kate Hopkins and Greenlight Media Melissa Caron and Amanda Hill and Tim Owens A Film by BBC Natural History Unit Production Managers Re-recording Mixers Amanda Hutchinson Andrew Wilson Distributed by and Mandy Knight and Matthew Gough Greenlight Media

  earth Director’s Statement

“earth is an escapee movie in a “If we were to make this film in sense: I want to take people to ten – or certainly twenty – years’ experience the natural spectacles time, we would not be able to of our planet that few of them bring the extraordinary images would be able to experience we are bringing to the big screen. for themselves. The range and So there’s a subtle, yet powerful quantity of resource over such message behind the film, which a long period of time required aims to encourage those who to do that means that nobody – see earth to feel compelled to until now – has ever been able do something to preserve our to do it before. beautiful, but fragile, planet.” Alastair Fothergill Director

 earth Summary

How well do we know planet awakens to the first sunlight of Earth? Using the most advanced spring. Will they find food before film-making methods ever the ice on which they live melts? developed, earth takes us on a tour of our home as we’ve never Half a world away, in the heat seen it before. of the Kalahari, an elephant mother and her calf find water Five billion years ago, a massive after a danger-filled trek across asteroid crashed into the young the desert. But they must share Earth. The impact was so great the pool with a pride of lions. that it tilted the entire planet at an Will their uneasy truce last? angle of twenty-three and a half degrees. But far from being a For the final leg of the journey, catastrophe, this cosmic accident we follow a humpback whale was crucial to creating life and the mother. She must keep her calf world as we know it today. Without safe on their 6,000 km migration the Earth’s tilt, we wouldn’t have from the equator to Antarctica. such a spectacular variety of landscapes, or such extremes of And so life on Earth goes on. hot and cold. We wouldn’t have A story played out billions of times the changing seasons. And most a day, 365 days a year, as the importantly, we wouldn’t have the Earth moves through the seasons, perfect conditions for life. every living creature bending to the power of the Sun. No film has Using the Sun as a guide, we set ever captured the epic scope of out on a truly global journey. On the drama of an entire planet, yet the way, we meet three mothers told it with heart-breaking and struggling to bring up their young. heart-warming intimacy of real In the Arctic, a polar bear family animal characters. Until now…  earth Outline

Five billion years ago a massive the winter under the snow. Advanced asteroid crashed into the young Earth. film-making techniques capture the The impact was so great that it tilted the moment her cubs venture into the entire planet at an angle of twenty-three daylight for the very first time. All the and a half degrees. But far from being a cubs want to do is play – but the catastrophe, this cosmic accident was mother has other things on her mind. crucial to creating life and the world as All too soon, finding food will be we know today. a matter of life and death.

Without the Earth’s tilt, we wouldn’t Early in our journey we learn that have such a spectacular variety of the Sun can be both a blessing and landscapes, or such extremes of a curse. While its warmth is welcome, hot and cold. We wouldn’t have it also starts to melt the landscape in the changing seasons and, most which the polar bears have made their importantly, we wouldn’t have the home. We see the male bear struggling perfect conditions for life. as the ice melts beneath his paws...

When the team behind the earth Leaving the icy Arctic wasteland,we movie set out to tell the story of our travel south, stopping to take in the planet, they chose the Sun as their sight of three million caribou in Canada. guide. The journey begins close to Their two thousand mile search for the North Pole, where there are fresh pasture is the longest overland 24 hours of darkness during winter. migration on Earth. But the vast herds Only in March does the Sun rise do not travel alone. Hungry wolves over the horizon for the first time. shadow them, all along the way. We watch from the air as the wolves Here we meet the first star of the film co-operate to separate a calf from its – a mother polar bear who has spent mother. How will the pursuit finally end?

10 earth Outline

To reach the first trees on our planet trees have dropped their leaves – we need to travel further south still. we glimpse the rarest cat in the world. 1200 miles from the North Pole, An Amur leopard and her cub scrape stunted shrubs mark the ‘tree line’ a living in the harsh cold. of our planet – the northernmost point where trees can grow. This is We continue our journey south to the start of the Taiga – the greatest the equator. Here the Sun shines coniferous forest in the world. This for 12 hours every day. Where there lonely woodland stretches unbroken is enough rainfall, there is life in around the northern hemisphere abundance. Tropical rain forests cover and contains a third of all the trees just three percent of our planet, but on Earth. In spring, after the icy thaw, they are home to more than half of all the around the whole world its plants and animals. In Papua New is increased because of these trees. Guinea alone, there are 42 different For much of the year it is a snow- species of birds of paradise, with covered wonderland, rarely marked an extraordinary variety of amusing by footprints. Those animals that do mating displays. live there, like the lonely lynx, are true spirits of the wilderness. However, not everywhere around the equator is as hospitable. In 1,500 miles south of the North Pole, the Kalahari, the Sun beats down there is enough sunlight to support on barren desert. Here we meet broad-leafed woodlands of bluebells, an elephant mother with her tiny nightingales, foxes and deer. We newborn calf, travelling with her watch in spring as mandarin duck family group, aiming for paradise in chicks take their first brave leaps from the Okavango delta. After days of their nest hole high in the treetops. trekking in search of food and water, And in winter – when the deciduous the elephants find a small waterhole.

13 earth Outline

But they must share the precious water with a pride of lions. Will their uneasy truce last?

The sun also fuels life in the oceans. It is here that we enter the final stage of our journey. In the tropical waters near the Equator we meet a humpback whale mother and her newborn baby. When the calf is five months old, the family of two set out on the longest migration of any marine mammal: over 6000 km from the tropics to the southern extreme of our planet. We follow the whales as they encounter some of the oceans’ most awe- inspiring spectacles, and watch violent storms form over the tropical seas. earth showcases some of the most breath-taking landscapes on this planet, from the greatest mountain ranges to the highest waterfalls and the harshest deserts. And it also portrays some of the most incredible animals, whose lives are in a delicate balance. As the rhythm of the seasons starts to change, their struggle for survival becomes even harder.

And so life on Earth goes on. A story played out billions of times a day, 365 days a year, as the Earth moves through the seasons, every living creature bending to the power of the Sun. No film has ever captured the epic scope of the drama of an entire planet, yet told it with heartbreaking and heart warming intimacy of real animal characters. Until now….

14 earth Production Facts earth Filming Firsts

• Five years in production • Polar bear emergence, • Birds of paradise, Western • Unique access to the Karakoram Kong Karls Land, Norway Highlands, Papua New Guinea mountain range in Pakistan • Filmed in 200 locations – The BBC were the first to be – The low light levels at which – The range contains more of • 26 countries featured allowed access to this polar these birds perform their the world’s highest peaks than in final movie bear denning site by the displays in the rainforests of anywhere else on the planet • 40 specialist crews Norwegian Government – Papua New Guinea restricted no one had been there filmmakers in the past – the low • The Tepuis in Venezuela • 1,000s of hours of footage for 25 years. light capabilities of the new HD – The isolated mountain plateaus • 250 days of aerial photography technology allowed the earth that inspired Conan Doyle’s • Polar bear hunting on sea team to film it in exquisite detail. Lost World ice in Svalbard, Norway • Cherry blossom – Using cineflex (aerial) and leaf turning • The first time use of super technology, this was a unique high speed cameras outside and first-time perspective of – No CGI used at all in the filming a studio environment. polar bears negotiating the of earth – all done using cutting sea ice – this cannot be filmed edge time lapse photography – earth adapted and custom- from the land. tailored high speed cameras used for car crash testing and • The first high quality aerial ballistic tests to work in the field. • Wolves hunting caribou – shots of the Himalayas These cameras made the shark Northwest Territories, Canada – Reconnaissance airplane of attack and the cheetah hunt – First complete hunt filmed from the Nepalese Army enabled sequence come to live. the air with cineflex technology. such filming 16 17 earth Production Stories

“I’ve worked on some pretty “Every shoot presented massive projects in my time, but massive logistical challenges. they’re completely dwarfed by Gaining access to the locations the scale of earth. Over the past took years of negotiations. five years‚ we have filmed at over But because of our experience‚ 200 locations worldwide; we logistical knowledge and have spent a record 4‚500 days reputation‚ we were able to get in, in the field and employed over and bring back, such wonderful 40 cameramen‚ all of whom images – it’s something that are experts in their own field. you couldn’t simply buy.” Alastair Fothergill Director

18 earth Production Stories A rapid descent amongst mighty peaks – filming in the Himalayas

4am in a Nepalese Air Base in Kathmandu. Cameraman Michael Kelem and I found ourselves watching soldiers emptying bombs from an ex British spy plane. In just one hour we would be taking off in this same plane to film high altitude aerials of Mount Filming the ‘white beasts’ of the Everest, and to get shots form the Arctic – a lesson in keeping warm Demoiselle Crane migration scene. altitude sickness. I looked up at his It was an unconventional start to a eyes and saw that they were rolling The camera we used in the field for the shoot, to say the least. backwards in his head. I shouted to the polar bear shoot was an HD Varicam co-pilot who immediately jumped out camera with a 800mm zoom lens. It was a perfect morning for filming. of the cockpit and began to share his As HD is a fairly new technology, this The massive barrier of the Himalayas oxygen. But nothing was happening was the first time we had taken it to appeared to stretch into infinity before – it appeared that the co-pilot’s oxygen below -30C. So our crew us. Within minutes we were heading mask was also jammed. There was was experimenting to some degree. towards China to position ourselves on only one thing to do, and the pilot made the Eastern side of Everest, ready for the split decision to descend to a safe The camera needed to be kept warm Another measure we took was to sunrise. We were cruising at an altitude altitude, dropping 3000 metres in 15 and constantly on standby. Nature ‘winterise’ the tripods – changing the of 28,000 feet, within a couple of miles seconds. The engineer came around filming is reactive and in the freezing grease we used to lubricate it. Ordinary of the summit. As the first rays of sun almost immediately and was soon cold the camera took too long to warm lubricant would freeze and the tripod hit the peak I gave the instruction for joking with the pilots as if nothing had up from being turned off. Letting it get lock solid. filming to commence. At that moment, happened. Michael had been in blissful too cold affected the availability of the Michael pointed at the monitor – the ignorance, focussing throughout on his colour channels, especially blue. However, keeping the crew warm was image was cloudy, the front lens had filming. In fact, he came up to cockpit By the time we were up and running, just as important. The biggest problem frosted over. With the Sun about to to find out why we’d dive-bombed the moment could be lost. they face is frostbite. You have to keep rise we didn’t have long to sort this out. halfway through, ruining his shot! moving to keep warm, but camera Without hesitating Michael crawled Keeping the camera on meant lots people are very focused and when they forward and quickly unscrewed and The instant we landed, the soldiers of battery power – and to complicate are filming they will keep still with their cleaned the front of the camera. This arrived to reload the bombs as our matters further, batteries die faster eye glued to the eye-piece. Their eye was quite a feat, working next to an pilots had been redeployed for a in low temperatures. So, we used socket can get stuck to the eye-piece open door at minus 20 degrees C bombing mission. I was still in a state Exploration lithium long life batteries and can also lead to frost bite around whilst through an oxygen of shock after our recent crisis but the and we had to keep them warm the eye – something very dangerous. mask is not to be underestimated. air crew seemed un-phased. It was along with the camera. quite sobering to think that for these And to prepare our crew? Doug Allan He signalled that we were now ready men, such danger is a grim reality if To keep the kit warm, we developed and Jason Roberts spend most of to go. With one shot in the can, we their daily lives. We all take risks filming a special jacket we call a ‘polar bear the year at either one of the poles and decided to push our luck and try for wildlife, but I am grateful that such near jacket’. It’s made of quilted down with seem to be as perfectly acclimatised another. I wanted to fly even closer to death experiences are thankfully a a heating circuit in it. We would also as the local fauna! the summit. Just as I called ‘Action’, I rare occurrence. bury the kit in the snow as it’s the wind caught sight of the engineer’s fingers that drives the down Jason C. Roberts which were twitching erratically. This Vanessa Berlowitz in the Arctic. Polar logistics expert is a classic symptom of , or Field Director

20 21 earth Production Stories

Filming the elephant – Giants of the Ocean – The art the joy of the spring rains of filming humpback whales

We had gone to the Skeleton Coast We filmed the humpbacks in the seas to film the desert lions when we came around Tonga. Humpbacks don’t live upon a family of elephants. We were in pods and the individuals are quite not expecting to find them at all. We scattered. There’s 7,000 sq miles of didn’t realise they came that far west. sea around the archipelago and the It was an incredible juxtaposition – the whales can be quite hard to find. You world’s largest land mammal in such an need to wait for the right conditions austere landscape. No one has filmed to spot them – clear, calm weather. these elephants where we filmed them, close to them and we treasured You look out for their blows when they so we followed them in our vehicles. the experience of such a beautiful came up to the surface to breath. In Trying to keep up with them was a great landscape. The only drawback was rougher conditions, the chop conceals challenge. Desert animals move long the sandstorms. The desert is always them and their blow is whipped away distances in search of food. very windy. Sometimes so strong that by the wind. What you also want was it bounced the vehicles around. I came good sea conditions – clear water and Fifty kilometres for an elephant in a home with my lenses full of sand! plenty of sunshine. What it takes to day and a night is typical. The only way film these whales is patience and good to make progress is along the dried The highlight of the shoot was when preparation. Good conditions don’t last up river beds, and they are difficult to the river flooded. It was a fantastic very long, so we were ever at the ready. navigate. You can’t travel outside those opportunity. The Hoanib hadn’t flooded parts. There are too many rocks and in October in living memory. The flipside When we found them, they were not the desert soils are fragile. Tyre tracks was that we were stuck there for a always very cooperative. We came can last 50 years. None of us would week. The flood lasts for a day but the across one group of males in hot want to destroy the look of the desert. soil is like blotting paper and soaks up pursuit of a female. There were four the water. It was too boggy for a 4x4. or five 36 tonne whales doing 10 –15 We avoided the Cineflex and only knots; we certainly didn’t want to get brought it in for a couple of days at This was a very special shoot, we in their way. They are very powerful the end of the shoot to do the aerials, lived with the elephants for nearly animals. But all the time you’re out where we could film from a long way two months observing them as there you learn about the animals off. These elephants hate the sound they travelled across near barren and learn how to interact with them. of helicopters and can pick up the desert, surviving on such a meagre This was so important for filming the infrasound – the low frequency sound diet. They are remarkably tough mother and calf. – from some distance. In the Eighties, animals and incongruous in such they were heavily poached from the air. an extraordinary setting! Naturally, the mother was very protective of the newborn but she got Filming from the ground was fine. Chadden Hunter more confident over time. Her calf was The elephants allowed us to get quite Field Assistant (Continued over page)

22 23 earth Production Stories Capturing predation in slow motion – the joy of digital

The camera we use for our super adapted. The camera needs to slow motion shots is a stay hooked up to a processor and that records straight on to a hard computer, from which it is controlled, (Continued from previous page) drive. There’s no film or tape. It creates and a regular power source. In the digital files that are stored straight field there isn’t any, so a series of car very boisterous and loved bashing its tail onto a laptop computer. It can film at batteries were rigged in the back of on the surface. It was just playfulness, 2,000 frames per second, at full 1024 the Land Rover. It takes 10 minutes to but we had to be careful not to excite it. x 1024 pixel resolution. This means warm up and then it’s never turned off. It could do a lot of damage. that we can slow an event down by The camera had no view finder, so the up to 40 times but maintain the clarity team adapted it so that the cameraman Before getting into the water with and detail of the image. could see what he was doing. them, we got to know their character, to learn how we should behave in their Since the camera is digital, it can fire We use this camera to enable an company. The right behaviour starts its shutter at extremely high speeds. audience to see spectacular events with sensitive handling of the boat – not see her looking at me. I felt privileged. On a typical film camera, this process that happen in a very short period approaching too fast, keeping the revs I had managed to gain her trust. That is mechanical. A second important of time in detail – like a great white down and steady. Once in the water, was what was so enjoyable working feature is that the camera operates on shark shooting out of the water – an I had to let them get accustomed to me. with humpbacks, because they think a continuous four second loop. This event that is over in one second of That also involved sensitive behaviour – – they’re sentient with feelings and means that it is recording constantly real time. The human eye and brain keeping splashing down to a minimum, intelligence. When I got close and she over four seconds, then recording cannot process this quickly enough, being gentle. There’s a knack to was still relaxed, I felt that I had created again over the top of the previous four so we miss out the detail of what is behaving around animals. That’s what a relationship between us. But that seconds. This enables us to trigger at happening. Only by filming this way will let you close to the animal while it relationship won’t last for very long any point during a specific action and can we truly appreciate the beauty and carries on doing its natural behaviour. because you inhabit different worlds, you can be certain of getting the whole mastery of such magnificent creatures so it’s very precious. The whale is 45ft event. On a normal camera, you have as the cheetah or evoke the poignancy Filming underwater means getting long, but it’s weightless, and so are you. to begin recording before an event of the life and death struggle between up close, which is why it’s so special. Filming her, I could work in 3D, moving happens, but with this camera you prey and predator. Shooting at its When you are on the land, you quite the way she does. On land, I’d need a can trigger half way through an event highest speed, this camera would take often rely on being a long way away and crane to do the same kind of shots. and know that the camera has already an event that occurs over four seconds you’ll be hidden in a blind or in a vehicle. recorded the previous two seconds, and make it into a shot that takes over In the water, you have to work much I’m not surprised when people say and will record the next two seconds as five minutes to lay out! closer to the subject. It will be aware of having a whale encounter changes well. You can even set it to record on an you, so its confidence is essential. It’s their lives, and I had a far more intimate, end trigger, meaning when you hit the Of course, technology is not a very satisfying challenge when you personal experience with a whale than trigger, the camera will have already what makes a fantastic shot. It just overcome it. My goal is always for the most people. There is no equivalent recorded the previous four seconds. enhances what has been filmed. The animal to accept me. experience with a live animal. You can This ensures that you will capture a split skill is the cameraman’s – in being at make friends with an elephant but second action from start to finish. the right place at the right time and I filmed within a couple of metres of the whales are so much bigger and in the knowing what the animal is going to humpback mother. That was when it weightless medium of water, they have The camera was originally developed do. It takes a real expert to second was intensely exciting but also deeply this intangible mystery about them. for crash testing on cars, which is a very guess a hungry cheetah. satisfying. To be that close and have controlled environment. We needed the animal accept me and watch me. Doug Allan it to work in the adverse conditions of Simon King I could see her eyeball and I could Cinematographer wildlife filming, so we had it specially Cinematographer

24 25 earth Production Team earth Production Team

Alastair Fothergill Mark Linfield George Fenton Director Director Composer Alastair Fothergill was educated at Mark started his career in 1990 George Fenton began writing well as many of Ken Loach’s films such the Universities of St Andrew’s and working on a BBC documentary in scores in 1974 after a brief career as, Land and Freedom, My Name is Durham. He joined the BBC Natural West Africa. After several years he performing and song writing. He Joe and Ae Fond Kiss. History Unit (NHU) in 1983. He joined Green Umbrella Ltd, where he now works exclusively in theatre, has worked on a wide range of the produced and directed many award- TV and film. Theatre work includes Following the broadcast of The Blue department’s programmes, including winning films includingThe Triumph scores for The Royal Shakespeare Planet in 2001, for which he won Ivor the BAFTA award-winning The Really of Life, The Battles of Braveheart, Company, The National Theatre, the Novello, BAFTA and Emmy awards Wild Show, and the Orangutans: The High Society, Royal Exchange Theatre, the Royal for best television score. He has innovative Reefwatch, where he was and The Temple Troop. Court and Peter Gill’s productions at taken the show, Blue Planet Live! one of the team that developed live Riverside Studios. on tour performing in London at The broadcasting from beneath the sea. In 2000 Mark returned to the BBC Royal Festival Hall and Proms in the full time to produce and direct on the His film career began with films on Park, as well as overseas in Hong Fothergill went on to work on the BAFTA nominated Life of Mammals television for Jim Goddard including Kong, Copenhagen, Montreal and BBC ONE series, The Trials of Life, with Sir . In the Out and Fox and Stephen Frears, the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, with David Attenborough. In 1993 last four years Mark has produced the including Bloody Kids, Going Gently, and more recently he finished the first he directed , a six award winning Capuchins:The Monkey Saigon Year of the Cat, also the leg of a UK arena tour in Manchester, part series for BBC ONE celebrating Puzzle and two episodes of Planet series, The Jewel in the Crown, Newcastle and Nottingham with the wildlife of the Antarctic. While still Earth, including the opening show The Monocled Mutineer and The the Manchester Camerata. working on the series he was appointed Pole to Pole. History Man. In addition, he has written Head of the NHU in November 1992. music for many of Alan Bennett’s In May 2003 for the film version of plays, films and monologues, as well , Deep Blue, he In June 1998, Alastair stepped down as popular signature tunes including recorded the score with the Berlin from his role as Head of the NHU to Shoestring and Bergerac, and the Philharmonic at the Philharmonie, concentrate on directing Deep Blue, major documentary series, The Trials Berlin, the first time the Orchestra the ground-breaking feature-length film of Life, Life in the Freezer, Beyond has recorded a film score. His most on the Earth’s oceans, which achieved the Clouds, Shanghai Vice and recent film scores are Nick Hytner’s both critical, and box office, success for The Blue Planet. The History Boys and Ken Loach’s The its outstanding cinematography. Deep Wind That Shakes The Barley and for Blue went on to rejuvenate worldwide He has composed for a wide variety television, the BBC series, . interest in the documentary film genre. of feature films, receiving Academy Award nominations for his work on In November last year, the Royal The Fisher King, Dangerous Liaisons, Television Society awarded George Cry Freedom and Gandhi. Other a Lifetime Achievement Award for his Scores include: The Madness of contribution to music for television. King George, Groundhog Day, This year George has won Soundtrack Shadowlands, Ever After, Sweet Home Composer of the Year award for Planet Alabama, Stage Beauty and Hitch as Earth at the Classical Brit awards.

26 27 earth Production Team

media consultancy, B8 Media, which Berliner Philharmoniker supports development, funding BBC Worldwide and Greenlight Media’s and marketing processes in film and first feature film,Deep Blue, introduced television. She previously was at BBC the world renowned Berlin Philharmonic Worldwide for seven years, as Director Orchestra to the world of film-making. Patrick Stewart of Marketing where she headed an This relationship continues as the Narrator integrated, full service marketing BPO record the soundtrack for earth. Patrick Stewart was born in Mirfield, Alongside his extensive theatre operation that included strategic Yorkshire. He has become an work, Patrick has had an enormously market planning and the creative Amongst the world’s leading internationally respected actor successful television and film career, execution of campaigns. orchestras, the BPO was founded in known for successfully bridging the which includes the originated role of Berlin in spring 1882. The orchestra gap between the theatrical world ‘Jean Luc-Picard’ in the hit series, Sophokles Tasioulis was given its name and of the Shakespearean stage and Star Trek: The Next Generation, which Producer reorganized in 1887 and was lead contemporary film and television and earned him a Best Actor nomination Sophokles Tasioulis studied aerospace by esteemed conductor Hans von continues to demonstrate his versatility from the Screen Actors Guild. He engineering at Berlin’s Technical Bülow, who, together with a string with a wide range of projects. In April earned both Emmy and Golden Globe University (TU Berlin) as well as Media of prestigious composers like Hans of this year Patrick was awarded The nominations for Best Actor for his role Design and Media Art at the BILDO Richter, Felix von Weingartner, Richard Jules Verne Award d’Honneur by the as ‘Captain Ahab’ in the USA network’s Academy Berlin. After completing Strauss, Gustav Mahler, Johannes Jules Verne Film Festival for his artistic epic mini-series Moby Dick (1998), his studies, he worked for various Brahms and Edvard Grieg helped achievements. In 2001 New Years’ while Patrick’s film work includes theX- broadcasters and film production to establish the BPO’s reputation. Honours list, Her Majesty Queen Men series, Steamboy, Chicken Little, companies (including Arte, BBC, Elizabeth conferred on Patrick the The Game of Their Lives and Bambi 2 CanalPlus, ZDF) and founded THESA The orchestra continued to perform order of the Officer of the British as well as the last four feature films from Film und Fernsehproduktion in 1991. throughout World War II, despite having Empire (O.B.E.). the Star Trek franchise. In 1998 he founded Hope & Glory Film its concert hall destroyed in 1944. The Productions. Since 2002 he has been new Berliner Philhamonie was rebuilt in Patrick has a long standing In earth, Patrick’s voice takes the in charge of developing, financing and 1963 by the architect Hans Scharoun. relationship with the Royal audience on a journey of discovery, producing projects with German and Herbert von Karajan, one of the most Shakespeare Company winning exploring this planet we call home and international co-production partners at illustrious conductors of recent times, rave reviews from critics and awards the affects the Sun has on the creatures Greenlight’s Production Department. joined the BPO in 1954 and remained which include the Society of the West and plant life that live on it. Sophokles Tasioulis was appointed with them until 1989, resigning only End Theatre (now renamed Olivier a member of the executive board in months before his death. Under him Awards) Award for his performance Alix Tidmarsh 2006. He produced and co-produced the orchestra made a vast number of as ‘Enobarbus’ in Peter Brook’s 1978 Producer a number of noted documentaries, recordings and toured widely. stage version of Antony and Cleopatra, On her previous feature film project, including Cheerleader Stories (2001), Best Solo Performance award at Deep Blue, Alix spearheaded the Deep Blue (2004) and earth (2007), Simon Rattle made it a condition of his the What’s on Stage Theatregoers vision with the Director of creating a as well as features such as Shoes signing with the Berlin Philharmonic that Choice Awards, supplementing his feature film on the oceans. Working from America (2000) ,The Great Match it be turned into a self-governing public Olivier Award nomination for Best with co-producers Greenlight Media, (2006) and the animation feature foundation, with the power to make its Actor and the Olivier Award for Best Deep Blue was launched in 2004, Quest for a Heart (2007). own artistic and financial decisions. This Entertainment for Solo Performance, grossing $30m at box office and has required a change to state law, which when he presented his universally sold-to-date over one million DVD’s. Executive Producers was approved in 2001, allowing him acclaimed solo production of Charles She is currently producing a number André Sikojev, Nikolaus Weil, to join the organization in 2002. The Dickens’ A Christmas Carol at the of feature films as well as providing Stefan Beiten, Mike Phillips current Intendantin of the orchestra is Old Vic Theatre in 1993. consultancy services through her and Wayne Garvie the American Pamela Rosenberg.

28 29 earth The Production Houses earth Quotes from the makers

BBC Worldwide Deep Blue, Greenlight Media’s 2003 Alastair Fothergill George Fenton BBC Worldwide Limited is the main BBC Worldwide co-production Event Director Composer commercial arm and a wholly owned Documentary, was the most successful “The sheer scale of earth is frankly “Creating music for the natural world subsidiary of the British Broadcasting German film abroad in 2004. The life breathtaking. Nobody in the history is very liberating because you can do Corporation (BBC). The company action feature film,The Great Match, of cinema has ever had so much time, what you want provided you feel you’re exists to maximise the value of the was selected for the Berlinale Special resources and talent brought together being true to it.” BBC’s assets for the benefit of the Section of Berlin’s International Film for one documentary feature.” licence payer and invest in public Festival 2006. “We are probably the only unique service programming in return for “Sometimes when you find yourself in species in the history of the planet who rights. The company has six core In cooperation with BBC Worldwide, a small, dark cutting room everything are developed enough to realise what businesses: Global Channels, Global Greenlight Media coordinates all global gets smaller and smaller and smaller as is great about it and to understand TV Sales, Magazines, Content & sales activities. you edit the piece. What’s so wonderful enough to preserve it. I think the film Production, Home Entertainment, is that as soon as you see the muted speaks very strongly in that way, so I and Digital Media. In 2005/06 The BBC Natural History Unit pictures on the big screen, add the hope a lot of people go and see it.” BBC Worldwide generated profits of The BBC’s NHU this year celebrates its sound effects and the music of the £89 million on sales of £784 million. 50th anniversary. Based in Bristol, UK, BPO and George Fenton, suddenly the Sophokles Tasioulis the NHU has been enthralling listeners picture and the experience gets bigger Producer Greenlight Media and viewers around the world with its and bigger and bigger again. I hope “I see earth as a history film rather Greenlight Media AG, headquartered pioneering techniques to document that if nothing else, those sitting in the than a natural history film. In the years in Berlin, is a successful film company the flora and fauna of the globe. Its cinema will have that big experience to come, some of what we see in earth operating globally. From its base in programme makers specialise in that I originally had out in the wild.” will not be there anymore. By that alone, Germany, Greenlight Media provides capturing the living wonders of the this film will become more and more development, finance, production and world and continue to find new marvels Mark Linfield important.” distribution for worldwide high-quality on the planet. The unit is the world’s Director theatrical and television films, primarily largest wildlife television and radio “Five years is a long time. Over the Alix Tidmarsh animation, event documentaries and production house and holds the world’s course of that period I think all the team Producer features. It is committed to delivering largest archive of natural history film at times thought, ‘can we pull this off? “What’s wonderful about our home strong entertainment brands to and sound recordings. It produces It’s so difficult in a production of this is that millions and millions of lives and audiences all around the world in both around 100 hours of television and 50 length: you have ups and downs; some stories are played out everyday of the film and non-film media. hours of radio a year, using a variety shoots fail, some shoots are successful. year, and all are delicately intertwined of formats including major landmark You have to constantly rethink the story. because we are all influenced by Founded in 1993, Greenlight Media series, classical wildlife, animal and But after five years, looking back at it I the Sun and its effect of creating the took off with the launch of the wildly people documentaries and live think it worked out really well.” seasons. Each wildlife story is unique successful animated TV series broadcasts and presenter-led shows and you can’t help but will the hero in SimsalaGrimm, which has since been for adults and children. “We’re hoping that earth is for that story to succeed. And when they distributed to over 120 territories absolutely everybody. We’re hoping do, you can’t help but feel inspired worldwide, making it Germany’s that everyone will fall in love with their and give a little cheer.” number one exported TV series planet once they have seen it, not of all time. matter how old they are.”

30 31 PAGE 32 INSIDE BACK COVER earth Images

Polar bear Finally we’ve begun to It’s not too late to make a “The polar bear emerged through the understand how precarious change. For more information film probably as the ultimate symbol the state of our planet is. If we look out for loveearth.com for our planet. When I managed to film those extraordinary images of the are to go on sharing it with coming soon. male polar bear swimming in the ice, such a rich cast of characters, not only was it an unique image but it and to preserve its fragile was a breathtakingly beautiful image, LOVEEARTH and the scale of it… its the largest land balance, now more than carnivore on our planet, out there in ever, it is in our hands. this massive ocean, completely at the whims of the ice melting, an absolute prisoner to the Sun and it was very clear it was going to be our ultimate story – the key-message we had to give.”

Elephant “With global warming disrupting our planet’s weather systems supplies of freshwater are becoming increasingly unpredictable.”

Humpback whale “If you are going to preserve the humpback whale, you have to preserve Antarctica, you have to preserve the tropical reefs and you have to preserve everything on the way, and what could be a better symbol for our whole planet that an animal that needs the whole world to be in a good state of health to survive…”

Alastair Fothergill Director

© BBC Worldwide Limited 2007 Photography: Front cover, © Stuart & Michele Westmorland/ Getty Images; Inside front cover, © Martyn Colbeck; Page 2, © Photolibrary; Page 7, © Masa Ushioda / CoolWaterPhoto.com; Page 9, © Jenny E. Ross / CORBIS; Page 11, © Ben Osborne; Page 13, © Masa Ushioda / CoolWaterPhoto.com; Page 15, © Huw Cordey; Page 19, © Tom Clarke; Page 22, © Chadden Hunter; Page 23, © Sue Flood & Doug Allan; Inside back cover, © Photolibrary

32