Produced in association with RTÉ and ARTE France
International licensing and pre-sales available via Blue Ant International
(Washington, D.C. – June 22, 2020) – The hardy and resilient wildlife that survives on Ireland’s battered Atlantic islands will have a starring role in the new Love Nature series Ireland’s Wild Islands (3×50’ & 2×50’; 4K and HD), produced by award-winning Irish production company, Crossing the Line. The blue chip series is hosted by one of Ireland’s most celebrated wildlife and outdoor television presenters, Eoin Warner, who travels by sailboat down the famously spectacular Irish Coast as he explores the wildlife inhabiting these storied islands. A Love Nature original commission, Ireland’s Wild Islands is produced in partnership with RTÉ and ARTE France. Blue Ant International will oversee pre-sales and international licensing. Love Nature is a family-friendly wildlife and nature brand with online and linear platforms reaching 200 million homes around the world
“Crossing the Line is a widely sought after natural history production company, celebrated for their craftsmanship in storytelling and filmmaking techniques. Ireland’s Wild Islands is our first greenlight with the company and is sure to win the hearts and minds of Love Nature’s engaged audience globally,” said Carlyn Staudt, EVP, Love Nature Programming & Development. “As we continue to work with co-production partners across Europe and the world, we are excited to have RTÉ and ARTE France onboard for this exciting project.”
“With the natural world under siege, Ireland’s remote islands are extraordinary and precious refuges for wildlife and we’re delighted to be working with Love Nature, RTÉ and ARTE to bring their wonders to a worldwide audience,” said John Murray, MD, Crossing the Line.
The series travels the entire Irish Coast, from northernmost Inishtrahull, where huge basking sharks breach, to the monastery walls of Skellig Michael, where storm petrels roost after making an incredible flight from Antarctica. The producers will reveal the hidden worlds of Ireland’s storm-battered islands and the hardy creatures that live there, including fin whales, golden hares, otters, dolphins, puffins and white tailed eagles.
The Eoin Warner-hosted version of Ireland’s Wild Islands is available as a three part series. An extended cut of the series includes two additional, non-hosted, blue chip versions that exclusively highlight the landscape, wildlife and the majestic islands themselves.
Ireland’s Wild Islands is created by Crossing the Line. The series is directed by Emmy award winning documentary filmmaker, John Murray (The Farthest, On a River in Ireland and Broken Tail) and produced by Cepa Giblin (Broken Tail, Wild Ireland, Wild Journeys). James Manfull will executive produce the series on behalf of Love Nature.
Love Nature is a family-friendly wildlife and nature brand that brings audiences powerful stories about the natural world that foster a deeper understanding of and connection to the planet we call home. Our award winning library of 4K natural history series and documentaries are available on Love Nature’s branded linear and streaming platforms available around the world and through partnerships with top-tier pay-TV platforms and streamers, reaching over 200 million households globally. Love Nature is a joint venture between Blue Ant Media and Smithsonian Networks. Engage with us at lovenature.com / Twitter / Facebook / YouTube / Instagram
Crossing the Line is an Emmy Award winning documentary production company making crafted films featuring powerful stories from the world of wildlife, science and history. The company has won the ‘Oscars’ of the natural history film world an unprecedented three times in a row – Best of Festival at the Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival twice running and the Golden Panda at the Wildscreen Festival in the UK. In 2018, they won the Emmy for Best Science Documentary and have received nine Emmy Nominations to date, seven of which were for their wildlife films. In 2017, the company won Best Wildlife Film of the Year at the UK’s top documentary awards – the Griersons. Recent projects include Cuba’s Wild Revolution and The Farthest, a cinema feature documentary on the iconic Voyager space mission which achieved a theatrical release across the USA, UK and Ireland before being broadcast worldwide.
RTÉ (Raidió Teilifís Éireann) is Ireland’s national public service media organisation. A leader in Irish media, RTÉ provides comprehensive, cost-effective, free-to-air multimedia services to the public in Ireland and interested audiences internationally. RTÉ services are impartial in accordance with statutory obligations. At its heart, RTÉ is a creative organisation, making and commissioning a broad range of high-quality programming and content to meet the needs of multiple audiences. RTÉ One and RTÉ2 television typically air at least 18 of the top 20 programmes broadcast by any channel available in Ireland every year.
ARTE is a French-German channel that showcases Europe’s rich cultural diversity. Founded by an interstate treaty signed by France and Germany in 1990, ARTE is a public service television channel and its mission is to strengthen understanding and ties amongst people in Europe with culture and inspiring innovative programs. The ARTE Group is made up of three separate companies: the Strasbourg based European Economic Interest Grouping ARTE GEIE plus two member companies acting as editorial and program production centres, ARTE France in Paris and ARTE Deutschland in Baden-Baden. These two companies provide three-quarters of ARTE’s programming in equal proportion, the remainder being provided by ARTE GEIE and the channel’s European partners. 65 % of the programs are documentaries, which represents 91 hours a week. ARTE is available in six languages, so 360 million Europeans can watch in their mother tongue. All the programs go out in French and German, and hundreds of hours of factual programming are subtitled in English, Spanish, Polish and Italian. More information on arte.tv
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