EXCLUSIVE: The BBC has sought inspiration from unlikely places including Oscar-winning movies and Netflix basketball docs for its next generation of natural history shows. In a saturated market hit by rising costs, natural history boss Sreya Biswas told Deadline she is focused on telling dramatic narratives and commissioning binge-able fare that takes advantage of top-level advancements in technology, including AI. With this in mind, Biswas has greenlit An Hour on Earth, which uses hyper-lapse technology to tell the story of nature’s rush hours, Matriarch, which explores a contemporary and retrospective story of the world’s oldest female chimp with Jane Goodall , and the latest edition of the Spy in the .
.. series, discovering how primates communicate.
“Our landmarks are varied nowadays and we are trying to turn the wheel,” said Biswas. “We want to invite different audiences and continue to entertain people. Natural history is traditionally closed episodes but people in this day and age don’t necessarily feel that urge [to watch closed eps] so we need to think how we can get people to binge watch.
” The shows Inspired by the various ‘golden hours’ that occur throughout the natural world, An Hour on Earth from Endangered Planet producer Offspring Films uses a one-shot narrative technique inspired by the likes of Oscar-winner 1917 , utilizing the latest drone tech and hyper-lapse. The show will move from dawn in the Kalahari to the hour after the rains in the A.
