Natural History Specialist Wendy Darke Talks Funding, Tax Breaks and Environmental TV As Fremantle Strikes Deals For ‘Whale With Steve Backshall’
27.11.2023 - 09:05
/ deadline.com
EXCLUSIVE: Whale with Steve Backshall, the latest high-end natural history series out of the UK is racking up international sales, as the Sky Nature show’s executive producer Wendy Darke talked up the importance of distribution and tax credits in getting such programs made.
The ABC in Australia and France’s Ushuaia are the latest to board the blue-chip natural history series from Wendy Darke’s indie True to Nature ahead of its debut on Sky Nature in the UK on December 3.
The series follows conservationist and wildlife expert Backshall as he attempts to challenge preconceptions around the endangered animals. Free-diving in the ocean, he attempts to get the audience closer to the than ever before to whales and dolphins, and showcase rarely-seen behaviours from the little-understood mammals.
Fremantle sells globally after launching it at the London TV Screenings earlier this year, and unveiled deals with the BBC in the MENA region, DokuTV (former Yugoslavia and Albania), Canal+ (Poland), TVI (Portugal) and Movistar Plus+ (Spain) at Mipcom last month. Darke was keen to talk up the companies’ ongoing relationship during a wide-ranging interview that also spanned the state of the genre and TV’s relationship with environmentalism.
She described her business partnership with Fremantle as “second to none,” adding: “What brings us together is a desire for premium content for a global audience. The crucial thing is the idea that we develop gets editorial alignment around what that show is going to look like in its tone. That’s the starting approach because ultimately, it’s all about the shop window.”
She also paid tribute to the likes of BBC Studios, Sky Studios, Blue Ant Media and ZDF Enterprises for backing several of her
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