Show of the Week: Airborne

Airborne (Source: Blue Ant Media)

Take to the skies with this new natural history series that follows the animal masters of the air, getting close to an array of wildlife that spend their lives above the ground.

Hailing from award-winning Humble Bee Films, a UK-based producer of blue-chip natural history, the series follows a diverse array of creatures through their trials and triumphs, from soaring condors and leaping lemurs, to gliding squirrels and orchid bees.

Airborne “is a premium, tentpole series that celebrates the unique challenges and ultimate freedom of animals who use the air to survive and thrive,” says James Manfull, exec producer for Love Nature.

The global footprint of this ambitious series is vast, with animal species from every continent in the world captured on camera. Manfull reveals some examples of stand-out locations, “the series takes us to the scorching hot environment of the Namibian desert in Africa and the inhospitable and dangerous terrain found in Madagascar.”

The film crew also traveled to “astounding tree canopies in the forests of Borneo to capture never-before-seen footage of draco lizards, and Iguazu Falls in Argentina to film thrilling footage of birds darting in and out of the water with incredible precision and freedom,” shares the exec.

Each episode explores a different aspect of flight, from how different species use air in their daily life to how animals defy gravity in order to gather food on the ground, in the canopy and high in the skies.

The series also reveals, in 4K HDR, how some animals use air to their advantage to find and keep a mate, as well as the aerial navigation methods that involve power and precision, innate GPS and complicated routes through crowded skies.

“The production crew is using the most advanced technology to get closer to animals in the air, giving audiences new immersive and intimate perspectives,” reveals Manfull. “So far, the crew has captured incredible close-up drone footage flying alongside goshawks, fascinating shots of paradise tree snakes that flatten and curve their bodies into wing-like shapes and a new look at sifakas that take amazing leaps and precisely land on razor-sharp rocks.”

Blue Ant Studios’ Lilla Hurst, global head of acquisitions & content strategy, suggests that Airborne has “wide audience appeal” and is “an amazing family co-viewing opportunity” as well as “an anchor for attention-grabbing stunt programming.”

While they cannot announce the narrator yet, Blue Ant is teasing a high-profile celebrity with mass appeal for wide audience reach. “There is also a great localisation opportunity to reversion with local celebrities in non-English territories. The immersive experience of the series lets the audience see their world through a different lens and from a different point of view”, says Hurst, who will be having discussions with pre-sales partners at London Screenings along with her distribution team colleagues.

Hurst adds that: “Audiences will be grabbed by the stunning views and immersive flight experience that Airborne brings to life,” with the series offering “a breadth of stories that will captivate viewers of all ages.”

Producer: Humble Bee Films
Distributor: Blue Ant Studios
Broadcaster: Sky (UK, Germany, Italy), Love Nature
Logline: An immersive natural history series that takes to the skies to tell the stories of animals that spend their lives above the ground